PART I

DELENDA EST CARTHAGO

Chapter 6: Canary in the Coal Mine

It was a given that John would have to pass through the belly of the monster of metal, flesh, bone, weaponry, and all the other menagerie of war, a condition which existed in a persistent state of split personality. War, so close to the true feral nature of mankind that us in our modern hubris have attempted to suppress or even eliminate all together, yet it is this very nature that commanders have attempted to tame in the name of efficiency and uniformity.

It was a given that John had to pass through here, to walk past the War Games simulator, that he would march by the viewport that would allow him to peer into the ongoing match, but he did not actually expect himself to stop and watching, even if it was only for the briefest of moments.

There before him was a simulated paradise of rolling hills, streams, sharp jagged rocks whose dull grey was only bested by the twin Forerunner structures situated on either side of the gorge. Glancing upwards at the score board John took note of the map which displayed the name of the map as Ragnorok. He also saw that the two teams currently in a match against each other were named White and Crimson. If the score was any indication, Crimson was going to win by a landslide.

A mantis going up in flames, it's driver thrown out of the cockpit by the explosion and driven headfirst into one of the rocks brought the Master Chief's attention back to the match.

"Seems like their having fun," Joyeuse commented. She was currently doing the AI equivalent of twiddling her thumbs, running self diagnostic scans that served no real purpose other than to pass the time. John grunted his response.

A blue figure approached the Chief cautiously from the side, his Spartan helmet on despite him still being on the ship which was still docked at Earth, as per Romanov's new orders. "Master Chief?" Spartan Gabriel Thorne asked without a hint of nervousness in his voice, but almost certainly a generous amount of reticence.

John turned to face the Spartan IV, nodding his head to indicate that Thorne had the right man.

Thorne stuck out his hand and introduced himself, John grasping his firmly. "It's an honor to meet you sir."

If I had a nickel, John thought, but kept it to himself. He motioned back to the viewport where the match was still ongoing. "What can you tell me about White and Crimson."

Thorne moved to stand beside him, scratching the back of his neck. "Well White is a new addition to Infinity. Missed the big fight on Requiem so their pretty green. Crimson on the other hand…"

"Pulling up their file," Joyeuse chirped. Thorne seemed a bit startled, but only for a moment as he waited for Joyeuse to speak again.

A window opened up in John's HUD, a scrawling list of statistics appearing for his reading pleasure. Joyeuse provided commentary. "A fairly solid fireteam. They played a key role in the Second Battle of Requiem including the retrieval of an important Forerunner artifact. That being said they are a bit unorthodox."

"How unorthodox?" John asked.

The window in his HUD disappeared and Joyeuse said, "See for yourself." She automatically magnified his vision, focusing his attention on a Crimson Spartan who was standing over a fallen White team member, thrusting his crotch into the latter's visor repeatedly.

John felt himself become genuinely sickened. "What is he doing?"

"I think they call it tea bagging," Thorne said, the hot flames of embarrassment sweeping over him. "Crimson is a bit weird."

"I'll say," Joyeuse agreed. "If you listen in on Crimson's communications during missions you'll get the impression that they want to rape the enemy into submission. Pretty vulgar even for me."

John grunted again, his eyes wandering to the running clock in his HUD. "We need to get moving." He nodded to Thorne and walked off, but before he could leave the young Spartan called out to him.

"I've been hearing rumors that you'll be put in charge of Majestic. Any idea if that's true?"

John turned his head slightly, his back still facing Thorne. "I'll find out once I've talked with Laskey." He paused, searching for his next words. "I read the report about your actions on Requiem. You did well."

It took a moment for Thorne to find his voice. "Thank you sir, I…" but before he could finish John had already left.

Laskey's face visibly brightened when the Master Chief entered the bridge, hurrying over to shake the Spartan's hand. "Master Chief, I don't think you know how good it is to see another friendly face."

"That makes two of us," Palmer said. She was leaning against a bulkhead, her helmet on just like Thorne's, and her arms folded.

"It's just good to be back," John said. There was a pause and then, "Congratulations on your promotion."

Laskey grinned and shook his head. "Honestly I think I would have rather stayed a Captain and missed out on all the headaches. Sure would save a fortune on aspirin." He gestured with an open palm towards a tall dark haired man behind him. "Chief this is Captain Victor Romanov, my new second in command. He is doubling as a liaison for the Office of Naval Intelligence, and as per Admiral Osman's insistence will also be in command of the Spartan IV contingent and Infinity's ground forces."

Palmer scowled privately as the Master Chief and Romanov shook hands. Romanov took a step backwards from the Spartan, a small smile on his face. "I've spent a good chunk of my life studying you. It's nice to finally meet you in person." He tilted his head upwards, as if speaking to a small person sitting on top of John's helmet. "How are you fairing Joyeuse?"

The AI spoke, "Not as comfy as my old home but it'll do. The attic is a wreck. Full of empty spaces and cobwebs." John frowned as Romanov chuckled.

"Don't let the wench get you down Chief," Durendal said from the holo deck. He turned to Laskey. "Shall we begin sire?"

"Now is as good a time as ever," Laskey said. He approached the holo deck, Palmer, Romanov, the Master Chief, and the other senior officers aboard Infinity circling around him. He tapped a control and an image of Sangheilios emerged from the embers of light, Covenant capital ships surrounding it, explosions of plasma erupting both above and on the planet.

"In the wake of Senator August's actions Sangheilios has erupted in civil war again, most of the Kaidons lining up against the Arbiter. Recent intelligence reports indicate that his keep has been surrounded, what ships that remained loyal to him destroyed. His defenses are holding but unless he received reinforcements he will likely lose." Laskey tapped another control and an image of the expeditionary fleet came up, the ships floating several feet above the holo deck. "Because of these recent turn of events Lord Hood as increased the size of the fleet by ten ships. Excluding Infinity that makes nineteen ships in total. One supercarrier, four carriers, four frigates, and ten Autumn class capital ships, all carrying a total of 219,000 marines, ODSTs, and Spartans. In addition to standard armaments each ship is carrying a substantial nuclear payload adapted for planetary bombardment. Enough to destroy Sangheilios ten times over if the figures are to be believed."

Laskey felt the Master Chief's eyes on him, felt the weight of them. Swallowing he continued. "Our mission is to provide support for the Arbiter, preferably from orbit. However, given the current situation we may have no choice but to put boots on the ground. We will only do this after gain Thel Vadam's permission. We are to do everything in our power to makes sure he wins, as a Sangheilios united in its opposition to humanity is not something the UNSC can afford, especially when Jul 'Mdama would likely exploit this solidarity. If we fail then we will have no choice but to render Sangheilios uninhabitable."

He looked up. "But we are not going to fail. Regardless of what the Arbiter may have done in the past, regardless of any of our personal feelings towards him, we would not be standing here today if it was not for him. He is our strongest ally, and I will not let him down. We…" He was interrupted as the image of the fleet on the holo deck disappeared, replaced by a red flashing siren. "What's the problem Durendal?"

"Cry pardon sire. It's a general alert sent out to the entire UNSC home defense force. A level nine food riot has broken out in Rio De Janeiro."

"Third one this month," Romanov muttered. When Palmer gave him a sideways look he added, "Globally that is."

Laskey gave a deep sigh. "There are others who will take care of that. Let's try to focus on the task at hand."

"Yes sire," Durendal said, and the flashing crimson light ceased.

"So you'll be taking charge of Majestic after all," Joyeuse commented as the Master Chief wound his way through the halls of Infinity.

"You were there too," John replied.

Joyeuse gave a digital shrug. "Just saying. Appears the rumor mill is right for once." There was another turn, another open door before she spoke again. "Shame about the riots don't you think?"

"They'll be put down," John said calmly. He saw no sense behind the disorder that a riot brought, angry mobs destroying their own neighborhoods without a sense of purpose. All destructive and all useless. His mind was instead on other matters, but perhaps it should have been on Rio De Janeiro instead.

Like Great Britain following the Napoleonic wars, the interplanetary economy had all but collapsed during the post war period, and despite numerous technological advancements as well as the consolidation of power by the UNSC things did not seem to be getting better, a Depression settling across the hearts and minds of the people, making jobs, housing, and food scarce for the working poor. This, however, did not stop the UNSC from setting about the task of rebuilding its military might. ONI, after all, had secretly been hording resources long before the Fall of Reach, anticipating humanity losing the war and preparing contingency plans that would all mankind to survive beyond the destruction of Earth. Then with the war won, just like the construction of the last great fleet of Athens during their seemingly eternal war with Sparta, the UNSC fleet had been reborn, spearheaded by the tireless construction of new ships in the naval yards of Romanov Industries and the efforts made by the technological powerhouse that was North Central Positronics.

But these things were not on John's mind, and Joyeuse sought to change that.

"These people are starving, and their angry. The UNSC has such a firm control over the press that they have no way of peacefully making their frustrations heard. How do you expect them to react?"

"Civilized," John said coolly.

"Civilized?" Joyeuse asked. "I'll show you civilized." John's HUD was filled with a video feed. So much so that he had to stop walking in order not to run into anything.

Much as he expected he saw the slums of Rio De Janeiro, shoddily constructed buildings that could barely be called houses, a swarming multitude in the streets, cars and tires on fire sending pitch black smoke into the cloudless sky.

They were shouting, their fists raised into the air. The camera was focused on one woman, a dead child in her arms who looked no older than seven, the body so emaciated with hunger that child looked like a skeleton with a thin layer of skin wrapped tightly over the bones. Tears were streaming down the woman's face as the mob moved past her.

There was the screeching of tires, five Warthogs parking in front of the crowd, blocking their path. A marine attempted to talk on a loudspeaker but a rock was chucked at his head. More rocks followed, the mob fueled by their blinding furry. Just when it seemed that the Warthogs were about to be overcome machine gun fire ripped through the air. The gunners poured hot lead into the crowd. Arms parted from bodies, heads exploded, people trampled to death as the survivors hurried to flee.

John had to look away. "Turn it off."

The large screen was replaced by Joyeuse's small one. "I know you've been spending the past year wallowing in your own self pity but that doesn't mean there aren't others who are suffering as well. Or have you completely forgotten what you are supposed to be fighting for?"

Without ceremony John reached towards the back of his helmet, pulling Joyeuse's chip out. He slotted it into a nearby terminal and walked away. Infuriated Joyeuse yelled at him. "What do you think you are doing? Put me back in!"

"I will once we get to Sangheilios," John replied, still walking away.

Joyeuse was not done and called out after him. "No one ever told me how much of an asshole you were. For the life of me I don't know what Cortana saw in you."

The last part stung, and John mentally winced, but he refused to acknowledge her as he disappeared down another hallway.