Alaska jerked awake at the nudging of Del.
"Allie, you really need to start going to bed earlier."
She sighed and lifted her helmet over her head. She shook her fluffy hair loose before rubbing her eyes.
"I went to sleep at ten," she whined.
She relaxed into her seat, cradling her helmet in her lap. She closed her eyes and groaned.
West gave her a shove as he paced through the spacious hall of the cabin. She kicked at his calf in return, which he accepted. He continued his circuit and Alaska rested her head against her seat once more, staring blankly into the stray tufts of hair floating in front of her face. Not a lot else to do; the rest of the team was too tense to speak much. She tucked her hair away from her face to watch West's walk to nowhere. Something pinched her neck as she looked around the cabin. She hissed and reached for it, a chain emerging with her fingers.
One of the dogtags she owned, different from those that hung in her closet. "Darius Ryan, UNSC". Her father's. Declared incapable of service during the Human-Covenant War. She possessed one, and her brother possessed another. She grimaced at the thought of him. He was drafted to what she now knew were Simulation Troopers for the very program she belonged to. Certainly, there were worse fates, but….
3-3-9's voice came over the speakers, interrupting Alaska's thoughts. "We will land in less than ten minutes." Everyone's heads perked up a bit. "If you require a team for emergency backup, radio the Mother of Invention. You know the drill; the confirmation code is G26KL1. If you use it once, it can't be used again."
Alaska recited the series in her mind. G26KL1... G26KL1... G26KL1….
Tennessee slumped. She wasn't the best with things like codes, but she would sooner walk into enemy fire than dare write one down again. It only took one instance of that mistake for her to learn her lesson; most mistakes that resulted in the Director shouting you down did. He was hoarse for days.
West stopped in his lap as he passed her and patted her shoulder.
"It'll be alright, Tenn. We probably won't need it."
"Famous last words," Hawaii mumbled. A nervous chuckle wormed out from Del.
Alaska secured her helmet over her head, double-checking her functions. West retreated to the cockpit once more until the Pelican shuddered with the soft rumble of landing. They promptly exited once the harnesses released them. Sniper rifles in-hand, the five stared out at the mountainous crags of Reverb for the first time:
Bright moss peppered the brown canyon walls. Tall, stiff grasses stuck up between crags. Exotic plants speckled with white flowers decorated the places where vines didn't stream down the rocky slopes. Little birds nested on the opposite canyon wall. Their chirps were one of few things that broke the tranquil silence.
"Something's wrong? On this planet?" Kansas sounded like he was trying to fool himself.
"What a ray of sunshine you are," Hawaii crooned. He squatted at the nearest ledge and raised his rifle to his eyes, chatting to himself.
West joined the group, depositing something on the ground behind him. "You seeing the base?"
"Yes-"
"Where?"
"Because we landed in an area where we could be seen doing so."
"Zip it."
"Kan, you may have a rival for biggest ray of sunshine."
"How do we wanna get down there?" Del asked. Hawaii and West looked over to him.
"Small groups," proposed West. "Three of two or two of three."
Tennessee nodded. "We only have two people who have good experience in scouting, so maybe two groups would work better."
"Don't you think threes might stand out a bit?" Kansas asked.
"Not to mention," Hawaii said, "scouting and recon don't call for the same conditions. I think you should give your scout more protection."
Del thought for a second. "How about a group of four and a pair? Three people to help the scout, and a smaller party for the recon. Larger party that can split from the scout to draw attention if we need to."
The party seemed satisfied with this. They performed a radio check as they split into their units: Hawaii, Kansas, Delaware, and Tennessee in one, and West with Alaska. She far from minded this setup; she needed to have a word with him.
West grabbed the items he'd dropped before. Lengths of thick rope bundled into halos, adorned with hooks. Prime for scaling rocky walls. He handed them out to each soldier.
"Stick to the crevices. We're trying not to be noticed."
"We're heading East," Hawaii instructed. "I'll radio coordinates if needed. Private channel."
Alaska pressed herself against the canyon wall with a stifled gasp. Little rocks fell to their demise as she repositioned her foot. She clung to a little crack with one hand, shouldering her sniper rifle with the other. She lifted the scope to her eyes, scanning the area.
"Anything?" hissed West. He was fastened to a little shady fissure, readying his rope for a new throw.
Nothing suspicious she saw. None of the soldiers were moving regularly; this outcrop must have been something of a leisure spot. Only one or two refilling a canteen. The only possible sign of suspicion she'd seen had been a man staring at the ridges, maybe for birds.
"Clear."
West made his way to a wide brim of stone covered by a tall rock, and Alaska did the same.
She leaned against the bumpy edge of rock. She slid down a bit, breathing heavily.
"Who'd've guessed that climbing in power armor would be such a bitch?"
West gave her something of a laugh and peeked out from the stone barrier.
Static entered their ears. "We're fine so far." Del. "Potential sniper's nests, low-activity. Hawaii found us a nice path. Likely unnoticed so far. Continuing to objective."
"Affirmative," West responded. "No notice here, either. Continue."
"Clear."
The radios clicked in disconnect.
They stood in the shaded crevice for a bit longer in silence.
"Can we talk?"
West looked at her over his shoulder. "Huh?"
"Talk. Just us." She turned her radio off.
"As long as we keep moving, Allie." He turned his off as well and slipped onto a thin ledge obscured by crisp grasses. She followed him at a distance.
"Are you doing okay?"
"I'm doing."
"Sammy," she coaxed.
He stiffened before checking that his radio was, in fact, off. "I'm just stressed, Maya."
She took a second to scan their surroundings again. The frequency of soldiers was gradually increasing. She'd have to radio that fact after this.
"You know you're a good leader, right, Sammy?"
"Good one," he responded dryly.
She slipped around him at the next ridge wide enough to take lead. "I mean it."
"You're saying that because you're my friend."
"No I'm-" She gasped and laid her hand over her heart. "Just your friend?" she teased.
"Best friend."
She grinned widely. "Damn right." She ducked under a boulder and crouched, taking another look around. Her face fell. There, at the mouth of a rough cave: distorted, moving spots.
She reestablished her radio connection. "Cease!" she shouted. "There are cloaked units positioned down there!"
Hawaii's frantic voice broke through a wall of static, just hardly. "Turn off your radios!"
Alaska returned to her scope's view, combing the area for friendlies. Her sights landed on Kansas, signaling with his hands and arms. Activity. Motion trackers. Cover. She gave him a thumbs up he might have been unable to see and lowered her rifle.
She looked over at West in her peripheral, who was entrenched in his own scope, to say something. Her blood ran cold as her eyes registered what was happening behind him: the unmistakable fading of active camouflage. The soldier's body was poised for strike, the patches of his body coming into sight. He held a knife, ready to plunge into his target.
Her feet crossed as she lunged at the attacker. She collided into him as the knife took its dive. It plummeted through the gap in her armor, cutting through her skin like butter.
"Alaska!" she heard West screech. She was engulfed by the burn of the blade being ripped out of her arm. She groped for the injury while the teal blur that was West deliver a swift kick. Crack. Hands grabbed her below her arms and gently dragged her deeper into the shade.
"Healing unit," West ordered.
Alaska looked up at him through squinted eyes. "Wha…? I'm fine…."
"Hea-ling u-nit." he repeated. He guided her through the activation. When he had crouched beside her - and when she had been laid in a lush patch of grass - she had no idea. She was far from opposed, however. She laid into it, drowsiness eating away at her consciousness.