Act I: A Warm Welcome
Chapter 2: Ten Moments of Disturbance
Intro: Not seeing any reviews...I'll start posting anyways. The only new thing this time is some italics expressing Figueroa's thoughts. So I am just going to give a little…
Disclaymore: I don't owns dem Halos, nor do I have one over me noggins. If I diddits, then I would not bes an unedumacated individeevul making fun O' noone.
Lazarus looked up at the Chieftain not a few meters away; his Magnum was out of ammo and it was time to just rely on his combat knife again, but that was okay. He threw his gun away and the Brute made a wicked grin as it advanced slowly, fully focused on the prey in front of him. That's when Lazarus saw an odd gleam on the back blade of the Gravity Hammer. He heard the whizzing noise before he saw what caused it. Lazarus quickly tried to cover himself from the missile blast, turning to his right. The explosion rung in his ears as he saw the look of surprise on the Brute's face as it was killed by the missile, and as it caused Lazarus to fly back ten meters away, twisting in midair. Lazarus landed on a boulder with his already battered left side, falling down head first onto another large stone, cracking his skull as everything in his world went black.
XxSticks_and_StonesxX
"Off to the RC now, right?"
"What are you doing?"
2200 Hours, September 30th, 2552 (Military Calendar)/
ODP Medical Station, Orbiting Earth
"How is he faring?" asked a distorted voice.
"Recovering smoothly…ribs, skull and other bones have been fixed and the concussion is gone. He lost quite a bit of blood from the surgery, but…he seems to be fine," replied another. The voices both sounded so far away to Lazarus. He tried to open his eyes but when they met the bright light of the room, he shut them back tight quickly and groaned in displeasure.
"He's awake!" exclaimed the 1st voice a little too giddily. It sounded womanly, and eerily familiar to Figueroa.
"It seems so," said the 2nd voice much more clearly "I'll leave you alone with him for a while, Captain," the 2nd voice is definitely male and also seems to be familiar. However, the woman – Captain did he say? Oh great…her…thought Lazarus.
"Thank you Dr. Madrigal," said the Captain. Ah, of course that one is going to look after me. The doctor bowed and headed for the door out the room.
"So, you fully awake yet?" asked the Captain.
"Turn off the lights and I'll tell you," said Lazarus slyly.
"I already told you to stop flirting with me…Corporal," said the Captain grinning. Through squinted eyes, Lazarus could make out the blonde that carried such a pretty face. Her eyes are sparkling?
"The light's in my eyes, what are you thinking in that head of yours, Captain?" replied Lazarus. The Captain rolled her eyes and the nice tone in her voice disappeared without a trace.
"Did you not hear me Corporal Figueroa?" she asked impatiently. The stern dominating voie was the one Lazarus heard.
"Yes Captain Dare, I hear you loud and clear. Corporal, huh? What happened to Private? I believe you have to go through the ranks in order, no?" asked Figueroa, opening his eyes fully despite the light still not turned off so he could give the Captain his full attention.
"Thanks to me, your on a fast-track promotion system – luckily it's reinforced through your indespensible proven skill in the field. Warrant Officer Draco also told me how this," Dare said pointing to figueroa's left side "happened," Lazarus tried to look down at his bandaged side but it was badly bruised and hurt terribly.
"I remember," noted the Corporal, looking back up at the ceiling.
"If it makes you feel any better, we can demote her," proposed Dare.
"Not worth it,"
"Are you sure? She said she was terribly sorry, but with your record, I doubt she meant it. At least 10% of all military casualties,"
"First of all, that number seems too low. Secondly, why would you promote me with my past record?" asked Lazarus suspiciously. The Captain looked at the wall thoughtfully for a moment before she closed her eyes and took a deep breath in.
"I trust its decision. Anyways, your life never seemed to be easy before…despite what you ended up doing. I just believe you should get a chance, Figueroa," replied the blonde, without opening her eyes.
"…but do you trust me, Captain Dare?" asked Lazarus as she opened her eyes to look at him.
"I trust you to follow orders like a good soldier," Dare replied, turning to leave "By the way, Alice left you some flowers," then the Captain left as the Corporal turned to his left and saw a basket of assorted flora on a stand. He sneaked a glance at the swaying hips of the Captain as she left though. Your hips lie to my face…humph, thought Lazarus as he scooted to the edge of the bed to get a closer look at the flowers. When he saw a blue one in particular, erect in the middle, he picked it up. A Forget-Me-Not. I have never seen one of those in person. She must've gotten some of these while still on surface. The Corporal - remembering old tales of an ancient society - took off the top part of the flower and stuffed it into a pocket of his nearby ODST uniform. Doctor Madrigal came in to see Lazarus right as he stuffed the Forget-Me-Not away, giving the soldier a solemn look while another man in a completely white Navy dress came in behind the doctor.
"Our good Doctor says you'll be up and running like normal tomorrow after a nigh in the regeneration chamber," announced the man in white.
"Is that so?" replied Figueroa coolly. This man is definitely one of the 'big heads.' Might as well have some fun. The uniformed man stood silent as if he was listening to Figueroa's thoughts, detecting the slight disrespect from the Corporal. The good Doctor trembled as he waited, but then the uniformed man chuckled.
"Yes, your ass will be out in the field. But you're gonna have to deal with some pain," said the man in white uniform.
"I live for it,"
"Good, we don't take pussies. You also did a fine job on your first mission…for a criminal," that did not dwell well with Lazarus as he saw the higher officer turn to leave, just like Captain Dare just a couple minutes ago. The Corporal shot up into a standing position despite the pain in his left side.
"Any day, sir," he said calmly, nevertheless. The "sir" walked away laughing at the not-so-hidden unmannerly way he was treated, while Dr. Madrigal was trying to keep from shaking in horror.
"You can't speak to - to h-him like that!" exclaimed the Doctor when the uniformed man was out of earshot. Lazarus got back onto the bed and laid back down grinning to himself with his eyes closed, letting the pain fade to a small section in his side.
"Everyone in authority needs to know how to handle a situation like that. A cool head makes a great leader, and I would say he handled it quite…Admirably by my standards," said Lazarus, with purpose.
"Your insane to be testing a higher officer at all Corporal Figueroa! I'm the only Medic on this ship willing to even treat you privately,"
"I only follow orders Dr. Madrigal,"
"Then I order you to behave!"
" - From higher officers," psyched Figueroa, staring at the exasperated Doctor. Madrigal rolled his eyes and went behind the ODST's mobile bed.
"Off to the RC now, right?" asked Lazarus as Madrigal started pushing the bed forward out the door.
"Precisely, Corporal," replied the Doctor, making a right as pushed the bed out the door.
"Good to hear," Lazarus closed his eyes and relaxed some more "You're not afraid of me, are you Doctor?" Madrigal started choking on the air, coughing and sputtering into the elbow of his own scrubs. When the Doctor composed himself, he stood still and silent for several long moments while Lazarus waited patiently, knowing that the former was twitching madly. "Are you?"
"I don't know what to expect from you Mr. Figueroa…I just hope you make the right choices in everything that you do from now on," replied Madrigal abruptly as he resumed pushing the mobile bed. Seems like no one can give me a straight answer here. Fine then, I might as well not fan the flames about my past anymore, thought Lazarus.
"That's a good answer," replied Lazarus, smiling. They reached the Regeneration Chamber's room and Dr. Madrigal helped transfer Figueroa into the chamber with 3 other doctors. As the closed the door to the room, Dr. Madrigal looked at Lazarus one more time, privately after the 3 other doctors left.
"Good night Corporal," said the Doctor, before he too left the Corporal in the Regeneration Chamber to heal. The refreshing effects of the Regeneration Chamber came over him and revitalized his systems one cell at a time. Sighing peacefully one more time, Lazarus drifted off to sleep.
XxSnow DayxX
2334 Hours, September 12th, 2552 (Military Calendar)/
Somewhere in the Arctic Circle, Earth
There was a bridge running across a large frozen lake, connecting two different parts of a valley. It was winter time, with snow falling down on the already 3 feet of snowfall on the ground. All the trees were bare in this frozen wasteland no matter if they were coniferous, evergreens or otherwise. Currently on the bridge there was a heavily armored UNSC vehicle flanked by two M12 FAV Warthog jeeps with mounted with Vulcan Machine Guns, with a large Snowplow leading its way and moving the snow out of the way. The armored vehicle known as the M312 Heavy Recovery Vehicle "Elephant" advanced at a slow pace down the bridge, with occupants that have been awake for over twenty four, grueling hours. The UNSC Marines were escorting a high profile civilian woman who was a Defense scientist working at the Office of Naval Intelligence building. This woman - Dexter Dealey Daine thanks to a neglectful and hateful father - specialized in shields both for personnel and ships, smart A.I.'s, and safety measures of all kinds. She had an extensive amount of knowledge of Forerunner & Covenant technology concerning the shielding they used: Hardlight and Plasma Shields respectively. Her greatest achievement thought was making an Artificial Intelligence similar The Catherine Halsey's Cortana, except laced with actual cell particles that resided within the A.I.'s bioelectrical holochip. Before she was being evacuated from her previous residence after some death threats from Insurrectionists, Daine was working on a piece of technology that would replicate the Hardlight Shield, in the form of a cheap Riot Shield for Marines and Police forces that would render most low class weapons useless - which the rebels usually had. That's why she was scared: Dexter received a warning package the other day, killing her assistant. She was on the run now to a protected facility in Antarctica, where it was winter…but halfway across the bridge, the Elephant's engines stopped working.
"What the hell?" shuddered Dexter as she backed up against the inside wall of the Elephant. Her long brown hair neatly fell onto the front of her shoulder and covered her left eye.
"Don't worry mam, we're just going so slow that the engine froze up," said one Marine chuckling.
"We'll get it online right away Ms. Daine," said another as they went to the part of the Elephant with the engine.
"They forgot the fact they have to open up the big girl before they fix her up," muttered an ODST as he went and started opening up the vehicle.
"No!" cried Daine as she sunk to the floor, holding her knees to her chest while sobbing into them. The ODST took off his helmet and rolled his bloodshot eyes as he walked over to the scientist.
"Don't fret Ms. Daine," said the Shock Trooper, placing a gloved hand on her shoulder. The cold wind started to reach her and she began to shiver. "It'll only take a few minutes," The scientist looked up slowly after the soldier removed his hand and walked away. The snow reached the inside of the Elephant, falling onto Dexter's hair and hands. She caught a handful of the white precipitation in her hands and looked up at the clouded sky.
Perhaps she knew those were her last moments; watching the snow fall down in the middle of nowhere. The interior of the Elephant was now fully exposed. Daine let go one more tear as she closed her eyes for the last time as she was shot in the head by a Hard Sound Rifle. Her brain was completely demolish, killing her instantly. None of the damage was visible externally, but she slumped forward onto her knees, with the soldiers around her not knowing what happened yet. Her mouth hung in a position as if she was about to speak or at whisper something out. 2,000 feet from her location the assassin was already escaping; hidden in the snow with matching camouflage, the figure of Lazarus Figueroa ran away towards a cave. It would take a couple more minutes after the Marines got the engine back running to notice that the scientist was assassinated. By then, Figueroa was already gone.
XxVoicesxX
The Dream moved onto a pitch-black setting with different voices of the past resounding in the dark.
"You're a soldier now!"
"I'll kill you in five seconds,"
"No dilly-dallying,"
"Kill that Pig!"
"I used to think better of-"
"You're definitely not normal,"
"You're back!"
"FUCK!"
"Well, hello there,"
"Please don't…"
XxThe_First_FitxX
Figueroa was spasmodically shaking in a seizure fit during his sleep in the Regeneration Chamber. Several doctors were trying to restrain the ODST so he wouldn't hurt himself or destroy the machine. The group of them could bare hold him together and were frightened for their own well-being.
XxA_Test_of_CharacterxX
A table appeared in front of Lazarus. He was in civilian clothes looking up from his seat at a shadowy figure. The smile of the figure was noticeable as Lazarus scowled at it.
"It's time to prove that you can really take orders without question, Figueroa. You shall show your loyalty to the survival of Earth and her colonies, but most importantly; you will follow the orders of the UNSC and especially ONI," said the person in front of Figueroa "Understood?"
"Of course," replied Figueroa calmly.
"Time for your first test of undying loyalty then," announced the figure "You shall speak of this to no one,"
XxIndecent_RunawayxX
0007 Hours, August 1st, 2552 (Military Calendar)/
ODP Medical Station, Orbiting Earth
"Wake up already, damn it!" yelled Dr. Madrigal's voice. Someone was shaking Figueroa vigorously until he stopped spasming and screaming in his dream. The Corporal sat up suddenly and punched a random doctor in the face as he got up. The unsuspecting doctor staggered back into a table of surgical instruments. Luckily, he did not hurt and only his scrubs were ruined with several rips and tears. Lazarus wrenched off all the monitor wires attached to him and even took out the IV line giving him blood. The doctors again tried to restrain him after they regained composure, but Figueroa pushed them back and jumped out of the Regeneration Chamber as if he was never hit by the splash effect of a missile. Dodging a sleep inducing dart from a Narq pistol, Figueroa grabbed a fallen scalpel and threw it at the shooting doctor with deadly accuracy…hitting the gun out of the doctor's hands.
"What the-" started Dr. Madrigal as Figueroa started running out into the halls with only a towel wrapped tightly around his waist "FIGUEROAAAA!" As the man who was yelled at was running down the halls of the ship he encountered two marines armed with Narq-dart Pistols like the previous doctor did.
"Freeze soldier!" ordered the Marine on the left. Figueroa snorted his response, noticing how visibly the two were shaking. When he saw that one of them was about to fire, Figueora went into a slide like a pro-baseball player as the darts passed over where his upper body was previously. Before the Marines could gather their own senses, the Corporal tripped them both which caused them to drop their weapons. Lazarus continued to run down the halls after getting up and grabbing both of the Marines' pistols. He continued to hear the emergency sirens except this time he heard a voice come out on the intercom finally.
"Soldiers! Everyone search and restrain a rouge unit! Subject is running through the halls shirtless and…in a white towel," said a woman over the COM, barely believing her own words. Lazarus then saw a soldier in dark shaded armor, arms crossd and flanked by two ODSTs. The Corporal grinned as he came to a stop ten feet away from them.
"What are you doing?" asked the armored soldier in the middle. Her Recon variant helmet seemed to be making a glare at Lazarus.
"Getting my gear," stated Lazarus simply, getting into a casual stance with his thumb hooked into the towel.
"And you have to make an uproar to get it?" questioned Dare.
"Maybe I'm just that self-conscious," japed Lazarus. The Captain put her hands on her hips in annoyance.
"You seem to be quite halcyon about making a ruckus like this,"
"Must you use such big words, Captain? Anyways, I believe they are overreacting Miss Dare,"
"And I believe that you are underreacting, Corporal Figueroa. You can't go around doing things like this!"
Figueroa harrumphed at her exclamation "Is there a point you're getting to, Captain?" Captain Dare walked up to Lazarus and looked at him straight in the eye after taking off her helmet. Blond hair cascaded down her shoulders.
"You will behave on this ship," Figueroa's grin turned into a grimace "Do you understand?"
"Yes Captain," said Lazarus calmly.
"What do you understand!" demanded Dare, looking for a clear, precise answer.
"I understand that I will cause no further disruptions on Say My Name, Captain Dare," he replied, and as he did, the Captain eyed him suspiciously.
"Your needed in the briefing room," she said with ennui. Her shoulders slumped as she stepped back.
"Good, I could use some," said Lazarus slyly, making Dare roll her eyes.
"Just move it," ordered Dare. She put her Recon helmet back on and turned on her COM "The lion has been tamed. Everyone back to their posts by order of Captain Dare," she walked away, only looking back once so she could shake her head at the half-naked ODST she left behind.
Lazarus sighed before he went to his quarters. Thankfully, no more UNSC or ONI members met him along the way. When he reached the small compartment called his "room" Lazarus picked out a white shirt and camouflaged cargo pants from his compartment of clothes under his cupboard like bed-in-a-wall. His "bed" was basically a mat and a pillow in a 7. foot compartment. After he put on his clothes and a pair of combat boots, Lazarus headed towards the briefing room. Walking down the halls, he thought about what really made him go ballistic: the dream. Pushing it out of his mind as quickly as it entered, Lazarus thought about what his next mission would include.
I better get something more quiet…or maybe with less squad members. Those three were useless besides the fact they were a good distraction. Not to mention the idiot of a woman that almost blew me up…though it hardly matters enough to whine about it now, thought Lazarus. Less than twenty four hours ago, Figueroa was hit by a friendly miss-fire, courtesy Sgt. Alice. The splash effect of the missile made him fly into a boulder, knocking him unconscious…yet he was perfectly fine now. That is just one of the many peculiarities of this ODST.
When he thought about the missile again, he grasped his left side as if there was a physical bruise still there that started hurting…but there was none.
Phantom pain…Useless psychological effects… he spoke in his head. Shame he didn't use the terminology in the right context. Next thing Lazarus knew, he was standing at the entrance to the briefing room. He scanned a keycard that he brought along after dressing up. The blast doors slid open, revealing a group of people. Two of them were explaining mission directives and objectives to the other three. The "other three" were obviously ODSTs as they all had that extremely disciplined and fiery look in their eyes. They kept their hands behind their backs and had their legs separated at equal angles – epitome of a soldier…but that's rambling. One of the briefing officers saw Lazarus walk in and frowned. "You're late," said the briefer, she was a woman.
"Pardon me Major Aester, I wasn't decent at the time," replied the new Corporal. The woman shook her head at him.
"Never mind your skivvies Figueroa, you didn't miss much anyways," she stated, getting ready to speak to the others again as they eyed the newcomer suspiciously. However a brown haired man that was what Lazarus presumed was going to be his squad leader walked up to the Major.
"You want him on my squad?" asked the man exasperatedly.
"Yes, and you'll have to deal with him for today and tommorow," replied Aester. Then turning to Figueroa "Corporal…"
"He was enlisted just a few days ago!" exclaimed a fiery redhead ODST.
"You'll be led by Gunnery Sergeant Edward Buck to check out some inconsistencies in radio wave patterns located in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean," continued the Major, ignoring the other woman "You'll also be partnered up with Sergeant Red Dawson – the rude one – and Warrant Officer Chloe Magnuson," Red Dawson was a very physically toned woman who was still able to retain a feminine figure even at 6 ft. tall, with long black hair, and green eyes. (1.8288). Chloe was only 5 ft. 5 inches (1.6764 m) and was dwarfed in comparison to the others…wonder what she did to get here… She, ironically, was a redhead, but had brown eyes – eyes which looked away shyly after staring at Lazarus. Two women…at least they're making this more interesting. Lazarus nodded to the three soldiers, receiving a guarded recognition from Dawson, a glance from Magnuson and an outburst from Buck.
"How can you trust this guy? How's this mission even in his vector?" demanded Buck.
"Corporal Figueroa has extensive experience in stealth and espionage operations…This particular mission will require absolute secrecy and he will be an asset to your team, and you will take his advice. You will do anything and everything to reach your objective, and that includes El Diablo on your squad. Is that understood, Sergeant Buck?" explained the unnamed officer. He seemed to be suppressing a smirk – one that only belongs to an ONI agent. With more observation, one could see the upper tip of the ONI's symbol tattooed on his skin, hidden by most of the "spook's" neck collar.
"What does this have to do with radio waves?" asked Red through gritted teeth, not lettting Buck reply.
"It seems that those 'stragglers' Figueroa fought yesterday had friends…which means the Covenant know Earth's location. We expect an attack any day now," stated Major Aester.
"The art of war is simple enough. Find out where your enemy is. Get at him as soon as you can. Strike him as hard as can, and keep moving on." - Ulysses S. Grant
Chapter Questions
1. Will we see Sgt. Alice again?
2. What do you think Lazarus is going to act like in front of these teammates?
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We Are The Smashers: by The Element Commander
The Smashers are gone, and Master Hand must transform certain humans to get them back! Tabuu has rising again, and for some reason, the Smashers have all vanished. With a daily dose of transforming children, the Smash Mansion might be filled to defeat evil.
Personal opinion: This is a story full of hilarious characters, randomness and absolute mayhem. I liked this story, but personally I find its darker sequel to be even better! If you are an SSB fan, and have a good sense of humor, then this story is for you.
My Final Pleas: Wow that was a long chapter. Glad I don't have to write those things...oh wait, I do. Oh well, it gives me pleasure making these stories for people and myself. Maybe I secretly wish someone from 343 Industries is reading this and needs a new recruit in their forces. Well, I hope that wasn't painful to read but I hear alot of people complain about short chapters when they only come in once a week or something (I'm part of that group) so again, I hope you enjoyed it. Please review, just...do it for s**ts and giggles. :O
