Halo: Reach – Jorge & Noble Six – "This Love Is Ours" (2nd Version)
{~~~Long Night of Solace~~~}
About 2 days later, the Covenant was going to go all full force of Reach. Kat had a plan, a crazy one, I might add.
We were to board the Covenant corvette. My team and I defeated the crew and locked the ship. Jorge arrived in a Pelican carrying a Slipspace drive, which was taken from the UNSC Savannah. The plan was that the slipspace drive would be used as an improvised bomb, to be activated inside the corvette's hangar while it is close proximity of the supercarrier, Long Night of Solace, in order to jump a section of the supercarrier, destroying it. However, Covenant forces soon arrived to try to destroy the slipspace drive. But we kicked their asses.
Jorge attempted to set the Slipspace drive timer, but it wasn't responding. I noticed Jorge's movements. He was hesitating. He was thinking about something.
"Damn… so it's gonna be like that." He said, and then hit the timer in frustration.
"Jorge?" I called out. "Everything okay?" I asked.
"Nope." He walked up to me. "I got good news and bad news. This bird took some fire and her thruster gimbal is toast. Which means the only way off this slag heap is gravity."
Man, that was bad. "And the good news?"
He sighed. "That was the good news." He proceeded to taking off his helmet. He tossed it onto the floor.
I titled my head in confusion. "Jorge, what are you doing?"
"Bad news is, the timer's fried. I'm gonna have to fire it manually."
"Manually? That means-" I then realized what he was going to do.
"Yep."
"That's a one way trip!" I said.
"We all make it sooner or later." Jorge paused for a heartbeat. "Better get going, Krysta. They're gonna need you down there."
"I'm not going anywhere without you! We came on this mission together, and we're leaving together!" I argued, completely dumbfounded at his decision.
Jorge remained calm. "Krysta, in this line of duty, we all have sacrifices to make. I think this is my time now."
"But… you can't. You can't leave me like this."
"I don't have a choice, Krysta!"
"Then, I'm staying here with you!"
"No, you're not." He said. "I'm not letting you go down like this. The Team is going to need you."
I hung my head. "But… I need you."
Jorge didn't give me an answer for that. He knew what I was trying to say. "Krysta…"
"You promised me, Jorge. You promised me that we'd be together after this war ends." Tears were forming in my eyes. I tried not to break down in front of him. "How can you break it?"
"I'm not, Krysta. I don't want to break it. But duty calls." He tried to reason with me. "I have to do this. To help Reach. But I can't let you stay here either. It goes against everything I promised I wouldn't let happen to you. If doing this helps Reach, and it also assures your survival, then I'm willing to do this."
I listened patiently. I never knew how much he really cared for me. How much he really loved me. But the thought of Jorge doing this, the thought of me never being able to see him again, was what I hated.
"Sweetheart," He took a step closer to me. "I'm going to miss you too." He whispered. He had just read my mind.
I looked up. "I hate it when you read my mind." I mumbled.
He grinned playfully. He then proceeded to taking off my helmet for me. "I need to see you. One last time." Jorge was looking right into my teary green eyes, and a tear rolled down.
He wiped it away. "Sweetheart, please don't cry."
"Well, you're making me!" I argued. "I can't… I can't do this, Jorge. I can't leave you! Please don't make me do this!" I sobbed. "Please don't-"
I was cut off the moment Jorge ran his armoured hands up my face and kissed me hard. Without thinking, I ran my hands through his hair. That kiss was making me forget about the current situation. Jorge pulled back, a really short distance away from my lips, before kissing me again. I was enjoying this. And so was he.
He pulled back. "Sorry. I had to shut you up."
"And I like your method." I couldn't help but say.
His thumbs caressed my cheeks. I closed my eyes, enjoying the gentleness of his touch. "It's time to go, Sweetheart."
"Jorge, no." My voice started to crack, as I was trying not to cry.
"Hey. It's gonna be okay." He said in a comforting voice. "Remember: The Covies have taken a lot of things from us. But the one thing that they can't take, is our love. This love will always be ours, Krysta. Remember that."
I nodded. "I will."
"Promise me you will. And that you'll take good care of yourself. And the Team."
A tear rolled down my cheek. "I promise."
Jorge picked up my helmet and put it on back for me. "Make me proud… Noble Six." He removed his dog tags and clasped them in between our hands. "Keep these for me. I can't think of anyone else better I'd give them to."
I wished so freaking badly he could see my smile. "I love you, Jorge." I stared straight into his eyes.
Jorge lifted me up from the ground, and gave me the last sweet smile I would ever see. "I love you too, Krysta." Loosening his grip, he tossed me out of the hanger, and I began to fall back to Reach.
The next thing I knew, a massive slipspace rift opened near the Supercarrier's midsection. The Corvette disappeared almost immediately, and the Supercarrier severed in two as its entire midsection disappeared into the slipspace rift…
Taking Jorge along with it.
As I continued to fall back to Reach, I closed my eyes very tightly, and let the tears escape from them.
{~~~~"Exodus"~~~~}
When I awoke, not only with a terrible throbbing in my head, but I was looking the crashed Long Night of Solace, having fallen from orbit. I slowly got up, feeling a sharp pain in both my left leg and left arm. But hey, I'm strong. I can shake this off. I'll be fine.
I slowly started to remember the last seconds before I was knocked out. It's all coming back to me, but kind of fuzzy. The timer was busted… Jorge had to make a, a sacrifice… his hazel eyes…. his words…
"I love you too, Krysta."
"No… no! Jorge! Jorge, where are you?" I called out. Why was I even doing that? He wasn't even here. Was I hoping that all this never happened? That he was still here? "Jorge! Please!" I screamed, before dropping to my knees onto the snow, crying.
After wandering through the wilderness, I had arrived at New Alexandria. I saw that UNSC Forces were outnumbered being by the Covenant. Staring at the falling city, Jorge's dog tags were hung from my hand, as they shone brightly in the sunlight.
{~~~~"Lone Wolfe"~~~~}
I stood alone on a raised platform, stranded on Reach. I had destroyed an approaching Covenant cruiser, allowing the Pillar of Autumn to depart into space. Phantoms start to approach my position, and I got ready for my final fate.
In the corner of my eye, she spotted an Ultra Elite, wielding a Plasma Rifle. Just in front of me, a Zealot and General appeared… with Energy Swords. They gradually advanced towards me. Damn, they were ugly.
I wasn't scared. Not even a little bit, no. If this is how it's going to be, then fine. I'll accept it, fight one hell of a good fight and go down.
I wanted Jorge to be here with me. To maybe crack a joke about the Elites, and then we proceed on to kicking ass. But no. He wasn't here. But I clearly remember what he said to me.
"Remember: The Covies have taken a lot of things from us. But the one thing that they can't take, is our love. This love will always be ours, Krysta. Remember that."
"Yes, Jorge… I remember." I angled my Shotgun to the direction of the Zealot's face. It roared like an animal.
"C'mon, you split-chin, ugly bastards!" I yelled. "You can't kill me! And you can't take what's ours!"
I got a sea of roars as a respond. "I'm coming, Jorge. I'm coming. I'm on my way to you right now. You just wait."
"I love you, Jorge."
And yep, this does contain some content from the 1st version.
This is not the end yet! Look out for the next and last chapter, which is the alternative ending to this chapter ;)