Disclaimer:
I do not own Halo or Mass Effect.
My English is HORRIBOL so please forgive my grammatical mistakes.
Act 1: Excuse me….Who were you?
January/11/2662
Milky Way/Minos Wasteland/ Caestus system
Near planet Temerarus
Onboard the UNSC Forward Unto Dawn.
"Chief, contacts!" Cortana reported as soon as Chief reached the dining hall.
"Understood." Chief replied as he took cover behind the long abounded food counter, with his plasma cannon ready to fire.
"Hungry, Chief?" Cortana sarcastically asks as a long frozen tray of potato mash flows pasts the Chief's visor.
"How many contacts?" Chief quickly asks to avoid the question. While the nutrient injection system in the Cryopods is sufficient enough to keep a body stable in cryosleep, it wasn't designed to take care of the serious post-croyosleep hunger issue which currently Chief's going through.
"Four life forms entering via the main door," Cortana replied in a more serious tone then before. "And one other thing, she also added, they're not covenant and they're definitely not humans."
Chief nodded as a sign of acknowledgement and then raise his head slightly to take a look at the Aliens through the counters display window. He, along with Cortana was quite surprise to see four human like figure walking through the dining tables.
"Are you sure that they are not humans?" Chief asks in a slightly amused tone.
"Positive Chief," Cortana replies in a slightly irritated voice. "They may look like humans but their DNA Struthers are way different than ours."
"They are too heavily armed and armored to be civilians," Chief thought while observing the aliens, "but given their rather undisciplined movement, they are not any military force either."
"These guys are either pirates or scavengers," Chief came to a conclusion. "If so, he thought himself, they are probably here to…"
"They are here to salvage the Dawn," Cortana completes chiefs thought. "Well chief, I think it's time for us to introduce ourselves. I'm sure that their civilized enough to lend us a ride….."
She was interrupted by Chief as he noticed increased activity among the aliens. Apparently, one of them found a MA5C Assault Rifle and he is not so willing to share his prize with the apparent leader of the team. After a brief heated conversation, the leader suddenly pulled his pistol and shot the other alien in point blank range, killing him. The other two aliens quickly started to strip the dead alien form anything useful while the leader started to examine his newly "acquired" prize.
"You're sure their civilized?" Chief asks in an amused tone.
"We should wait until they leave this room, then we can search the corps, those guys might leave something useful." Cortana quickly avoided the question. Chief couldn't help but imagine Cortana with a blushing face.
"Why wait," he replied, "I don't think these guys will be….."
He was interrupted as the lead alien pulled the trigger of the MA5C. To his surprise, the gun fired, spraying a large number of bullets on its intended target: the dead alien. The alien shook his head with satisfaction as he draw a knife to forge a mark in the rifle.
"That Rifle is using self-contained rounds! Whose rifle was that?" Cortana was as surprised as Chief was.
The same question was going through Chief's mind, during the last days of the Human-Covenant War, UNSC was in short supply of resource, to compensate that, UNSC took many steps. One of them was limiting the uses of self-contained rounds. SCR was only available in high value installations and ships (MAC platforms, Marathon Class cruisers ETC) and to ODSTs, Spartans and to officers with significant achievements. Others had to make do with normal rounds.
The Dawn dropped all its ODSTs during the battle of installation 00 and Chief is quite sure that they took all the SCRs available in Dawn's Armory (He didn't manage to find any before the Battle of citadel). Captain Keys used SMGs so it's not hers, and aside from her there was only one person in the entire force who had personal caches of SCRs and that person is…
"That's Jonson's Rifle!" The realization makes Chief feel something he never felt in a long time…Rage, Blind Rage!
In a matter of second he dropped his plasma cannon and drew both of his rifles, then, using the upper top of the counter as support, he threw himself to the unsuspecting group of aliens with both of his rifles aiming at the neck of the two aliens who just stood up after looting their former teammate. Before the aliens could even see him, his rifles dual plasma collimator connector cut through their neck like a hot knife through butter, effectively beheading them. As soon as that was done Chief activated his left boots magnetic system attaching him with one of the bolted in table of the mess hall. Using it as an anchor, he performed a perfect back upper kick with his right leg at the remaining alien's neck who was still trying to understand what just happened. Unfortunately for that guy, while his magnetic boots did a perfect job keeping his body attached with the ship's floor, his neck was not so strong. His head turned in to a big pulp of flesh as it hit the ceiling of the ship while a large mist of blood started to emerge where his head was. The entire action happened in less than four seconds.
"Why the hell do you do that?" Cortana was as shocked as she was surprised.
"It's Jonson's Rifle." Chief gave her a short answer as he took the rifle form the now freezing body of the dead alien and slipped it into his rucksack.
"I see." Cortana remained silent foe a moment. Then she spoke up again, "chief I'm detecting some short of computer device into that guys left arm. Patch me through and I will see what I can dig up."
Chief nodded in acknowledgment as he grabbed the body's left arm. There was a faint golden shimmer as Cortana downloaded herself into the unknown computer device.
Act 2: Ghost ship
January/11/2662
Milky Way/Minos Wasteland/ Caestus system
Near planet Temerarus
Onboard the UNSC Forward Unto Dawn.
"Something's not right." Ghadha thought as finished scanning the bridge computers of derelict ship. They were wiped clean, and make matters worse, his omni-tools scans tell him that it was done very recently.
"Is this some kind of trap laid by the Turians? Can't be, this ship is way too old and alien for that." He thought as he opened up his radio. "All teams report in." He ordered.
"Bravo here, we found the engine room entrance but its looks like it was sealed shut, and if that's not odd it looks like it was done very recently." Bravo team replied.
"Alpha team what's your status?" Gadha asked. There was only silence." Alpha team response! He barked through radio."
Again there was only silence.
Fear grasped Ghadha's heart." Is this ship alive?" He thought. "Or is there's someone or something in this ship that killed Alpha team?" Whatever the reason was he had no interest to find out, not with his current size of squad anyway.
"Bravo team, regroup at the shuttle," We will join force and look for alpha squad. He ordered through radio and started to head toward the shuttle.
"Whatever thing that killed Alpha squad must be dealt with", he thought as he and his squad started to walk through the dark gray hallway, "this ship is too valuable to let go."
Act 3: Revelation
January/11/2662
Milky Way/Minos Wasteland/ Caestus system
Near planet Temerarus
Onboard the UNSC Forward Unto Dawn.
"Found anything?" Chief asked as the body's left forearm was suddenly engulfed in what looked like a blue glowing, holographic glove.
There was no answer. After waiting ten minutes Chief grabbed the hand again. There was the familiar cold feeling running down his spine as Cortana returned to his suits on-board systems.
"Sorry about that Chief, that things memory is a lot bigger than it looks," Cortana spoke up through Chief helmet's speakers. "Apparently, that device is called omni-tool, a kind of all-purpose combat computer; I copied everything that was inside its data-banks. There was a virtual encyclopedia that was stored in it, and it seems to contain generalized information about all the aspects of the universe that is known to them," She continued, "from what it tells us, these aliens are called Batarians and they are salvers. There is also something about a government called the Citadel Council. This Council is comprised of three species, the Turians, the Asari and the Salarians. There is also a number of non council spices' "allied" with them. All locations administered by the Council are called "Council Space". And apparently they don't have any decent FTL drive they utilize something called "Mass Relays" in order to travel vast distances."
"That was…fast." Chief was quite surprised with the fact that Cortana just translated an alien encyclopedia in such a short notice.
"That thing had a translator system on-board; all I had to do is install an English grammar package." Cortana explained.
"What can you tell me about their weapons?" Chief was about to ask when Cortana interrupted him.
"Chief, Four Batarians in the main hallway." Cortana reported.
Chief nodded in acknowledgment and grabbed the cannon from the counter and then exited the dining hall. He took position at the corner of the hallway that connects the dining hall with the main hallway. Waiting for the enemy's to get close.
"Chief." Cortana spoke up.
"What?" Chief answered.
"I have uploaded their language in your suits translator; we can speak with them if you like." Cortana informed him.
Chief snorted. "Do you want to negotiate with slavers?" He her asked amusedly.
"No, Cortana admitted. "But…"
"Neither do I." Chief cut her off and jumped onto the hallway, with his finger squeezing the trigger of his cannon.
Well there you go the second part. I know it's a little short but I will try to make it up in the next chapter.
And again please forgive my grammatical/spelling mistakes.
And finally,
Please R&R.