CHAPTER 03
1217 HOURS, 14 FEBRUARY 2533 (UNSC MILITARY CALENDAR)
CAMP CURRAHEE, PLANET ONYX, ZETA DORADUS SYSTEM
Three hundred children assembled at the Drop Field, the location named for the first thing the SPARTAN-III program had done to its recruits there. Even the camp personnel called it the Drop Field or DF- its official name, the Outdoor Central Congregation Area, was in disuse.
Cole lined up with Team Falcon amongst the hundreds of recruits. Everyone stood next to at least one squadmate- Mendez's first lesson had obviously been taken to heart. Cole sighed, wondering where on earth the Chief was- hadn't he been the one who said he'd punish latecomers?
As if on cue, the rumble of an engine sounded in the distance, just as a small plume of dust rose on the horizon, emerging from the woods that wrapped themselves around Twin Forks River. Within minutes, every one of the three hundred Spartan trainees could recognize the Chief's vehicle- an M-12 Light Reconnaissance Vehicle- generally known as a Warthog. A full five minutes late, the Warthog pulled up to the Drop Field, and an aging man in a blue uniform stepped out. Mendez was wearing his trademark crooked smile, and as Cole absorbed the sight, the muscles in the back of his neck tightened- this could not be a good sign.
"Attention all recruits!" the Chief called out, "I was planning on having you do your first field exercise tomorrow. But since you all showed how eager you were to get down and dirty, I've decided to move it up a day."
The Chief reached into a pocket and withdrew a small folded slip of paper. He promptly unfolded it and displayed it to the gathered crowd. "This is a map of the area- Camp Currahee, the northern forest, Twin Forks River, El Morro Point. There are some things missing from this map, but nothing that is on it isn't there."
As he spoke, DIs- drill instructors- walked among the candidates, handing each team a small map. Everyone in Falcon glanced down at theirs- it was a map of the area all right- the forest, El Morro Point, Twin Forks River and the camp. A small red X on the map was labeled 'OBJECTIVE'. There were a series of red circles labeled 'PILLBOX' scattered across the area of the map. Cole had a slight feeling of misgiving in his gut- this all looked too easy- the pillboxes were spaced far apart- if they avoided them, they'd be far out of range, even if the guards used artillery. But everyone else seemed satisfied, Leon had even said, "Seems simple enough." A drill instructor passed by as he said that, and Cole could have sworn he'd seen the man smirk as he walked past. What was so funny? But before he could explore that thought, Mendez spoke again.
"Now that you've all had a good look at your maps, I'd like to show you all a few things. This-" he pulled a huge red flag from the back of the Warthog- "is your objective. You have to capture it and take it back to the DF. I will be waiting here to receive it. And understand that we'd like to keep you alive if possible, so the guards will not be using live ammunition."
He gave them all a moment to digest the information, and then spoke again. "You have until 1800 to work out whatever plans you like for accomplishing the objective. At 1800 hours, report to the drop field and the exercise will begin. From that point on you have 36 hours to complete the task- you may use any means necessary to take the flag. You are dismissed."
And with that, the crowd broke up. Falcon hurried back to their barracks, not wanting anyone to hear what they'd cook up. Between Leon's right hook, Naomi's athletics, Eve's sharp wit, and Tyler's level-headedness, they'd be sure to win. Cole began to get the distinct impression that he wasn't adding much to the team, but did not voice this misgiving. Mendez had never said anything about Spartans transferring between squads, and he didn't want to be the first to ask.
The steel-grey door slammed shut behind Falcon, and the squad promptly huddled around the map on the floor to observe it more closely. It seemed simple enough- they could simply go straight north from the camp to the flag, and go due south to get back. And if things went downhill they could move across the plain and pass El Morro point on a curving route to the flag- the map showed no bunkers or pillboxes there.
"So," Leon remarked to no-one in particular, "what do you think?"
Cole cleared his throat. "I saw a DI sniggering when he passed us by- think it means anythin'?"
"Leon, did you fart again?" Eve's grin went from ear to ear.
"For the last time, that wasn't me! And no- I didn't- let anything out when he passed. Maybe he just thinks we're stupid or something. Thinks we'll charge the bunkers, or some other dumb move."
There was a general nod from the rest of Falcon- the DIs were generally disdainful of the candidates, and did not think much of their capabilities. It was time to change that perception.
Leon interrupted this train of thought. "All right- we get packed and ready for the op. Take what we need- flashlights, rations, rope, field gear- just like the Chief said. No spare clothes. We're going light. Let's go- we only got five hours left."
And so it went- Team Falcon spent the rest of the afternoon getting ready, running around the base to acquire rations and rope, as they already had other basic supplies and equipment in their barracks. On occasion, they'd run into one of the other teams- Viper, Orca, Jackal, or some other squad, but it was typically the two groups passing and looking at each other through narrowed eyes. Finally, after four and a half hours of lugging supplies at a full sprint across the camp, Falcon collapsed onto their bunks back at the barracks. Apparently Team Wolf Pack had taken the last of the rope in one of the storerooms, and they'd been held up by the Chief for almost an hour when they accidentally tried to force entry to Lieutenant Ambrose's quarters, thinking it was a supply shed.
"All right team, let's catch a breather- we'll be running like hell in a few hours…"
Seeing no reason to disagree, Cole sank back against his bed. What would Team Raven be doing right now? Cole's eyes shot open and he sat bolt upright- how did that thought get into his head?
Leon raised and craned his head to observe the sudden motion. Seeing Cole, he nodded. "Good idea. We should get there early- we'll be first off the block that way."
Four other heads turned to look at the clock. They had twenty more minutes; something Tyler had no trouble expressing.
"Oh come on, Leon- do you want EVERYONE to see you picking your nose as they arrive?"
Leon scowled- not an uncommon occurrence. Tyler lay back down grinning widely, apparently satisfied. By contrast, Leon stood up and put on a dark green-gray hooded shirt, picking up his pack when he was through. The shirt, according to Leon, had been his brother's. That much seemed obvious to Cole- it looked more than a little large for him, and with the hood pulled down Leon looked faceless.
Cole sighed and stood- Tyler might put a dent in Leon's ego, but not his stubbornness. Already Eve and Naomi were pulling their packs on- even Tyler was pulling gloves on, inch by inch. Pulling the strap of his own bag over his shoulder, Cole walked over to the door and held it open, regretting it almost immediately. As Leon walked over, his grin lop-sided, he laughed and muttered, "A polite Spartan- imagine that…" and with that he exited the room. Eve and Naomi passed him, giggling- apparently voices carried in the barracks. Tyler then walked past, looking half-asleep as ever. With a look back into the now-bare room, Cole exited, feverish with excitement and sweating with anxiety all at once.
To his disbelief, there were already almost a dozen people gathered on the drop field as Team Falcon approached. As they got closer, they could begin to make out some of the individuals- there was Shane, resting his weight on one of his legs in preference to the other, and Robert, with several scars on his face and a slightly flattened nose- word had it that the two had had a boxing match on Initiation night- Cole found it funny that they should end up in the same unit. Together with Jane, short and with her middle tooth missing, and Nicholas, holding the strap of his bag in his dominant left hand, they formed Team Wolf Pack. A tiny fuse hissed in the back of Cole's head- they were responsible for an hour of hell Team Falcon had endured at the Chief's hands. But they were still Spartans- they were all in this together, weren't they?
The second team on the field was Team Raven. Cole found that name somewhat fitting- all were slightly below average height, and all had black or extremely dark brown hair. Now that Cole thought about it, Wolf Pack's name was somewhat fitting too, if the way Shane and Robert had torn into each other on Initiation night were any indication. Maybe that's how they pick names… but before Cole could complete the thought, hundreds of muffled footsteps sounded as the rest of Alpha Company left their barracks and made their way towards the DF.
The Chief's gotta be listening for us or something, Cole mused silently, as he heard a Warthog's engine revving. Just as everyone else arrived on the field, the Warthog screeched to a halt in front of Alpha Company. Cole stole a sideways glance at Leon's wristwatch- like his shirt; it had been his brother's. And like his shirt; it was too large- it was wrapped around his knuckles. As Cole observed the hands, he noticed they were exactly opposite each other- it was 1800 hours. Go time, in other words.
The Chief's voice rang out across the field for the second time that day. "All right recruits, it is 1800 hours. As of now, you have thirty-six hours to retrieve the flag and return it here." When no-one moved, the Chief glanced down at his own watch, and then called out to everyone at large, "Thirty-five hours fifty-nine minutes." At that, all of Alpha Company broke into a full sprint straight for the woods- they'd be back with the flag in no time.
But even as Team Falcon ran past the Chief, Cole glanced at him. He held a cigar in his right hand, and wore a crooked smile on his face. But before Cole could read into it, he was out of close sight, and the rest of Alpha was passing them by. He put his head back down and picked up the pace. But a small thought kept running through his mind: This is too easy.
And he didn't like that one bit.