So when I proof-read these footnotes I do so with the voice of the Cinema Sins guy in my head. You should try it, it's hilarious.
Chapter VII
Prossimo
Stone awoke to a thumping next to him. He half opened his eyes and looked at the blurry object beside him. It was moving around a bit, but remained stationary. Stone rubbed his eyes and saw it was Sedena stretching.
"Morning," he said. She looked at him and smiled.
"Good morning," she replied. Stone sat up, groaning in satisfaction as his back and neck popped. He pushed the covers off himself and swung his legs over the bed, placing his woolly socked feet into the boots, as an accustomed habit.
"Sedena," Stone said.
"Hm?" she asked. Stone frowned, hoping he wouldn't upset her, or make her think he wanted to get rid of her, but he thought what he was doing was right. Others of her family should know what happened.
"Do...you have relatives? On your home planet?" he asked.
"Yes," she said.
"Well...I need to contact them. To tell them of the situation...and maybe to take you in," Stone pushed out. Sedena stared at him like he had struck her.
"Why...why would...you said you would take care of me," she said, very upset. Stone wanted to slap himself.
"Well...you need to understand," he clasped her hands in his. He went to say it, but the words got caught on the tip of his throat, on the threshold of his mouth. He took in a slow breath, then pushed it out with all his might. "I love you, Sedena. I love you like you were my own daughter. I don't want you to leave, but you might have to. I'm not your family, I'm not even the same species as you. It...might be better if you go back to your planet-"
"But I don't want to!" Sedena exclaimed, thrusting herself on Stone and hugging him tightly. He wrapped his arms around her and said,
"Sedena, I don't like this as much as you do, but we have to face it. You know, your relatives might let us stay with each other. If I convince them-"
"I'll tell them," said Sedena, letting go and looking at him. Stone was impressed, and in all honesty a little frightened, with the fire in Sedena's eyes. Only a little girl that didn't want to be separated from her father would have that same look in her eyes. "And...I'll...I'll cut them up with my knife if I have to!" Stone didn't know whether to laugh or to tell her that wasn't the way think, because usually he would agree with her. Instead, he changed the subject.
"What are your relatives?" he asked.
"My grandfather and grandmother."
"Whose side of your parents?"
"Ex-Father's." Stone was worried they might be as big a fuckhead as Sedena's fa...ex-father.
"...well...I guess we're going to have to contact them. We have to. It would be cruel to have them think all of their family is dead, even though you're alive." Sedena nodded, defeated.
"Yes, I understand," she said quietly. Stone wanted to say something comforting to her, but he could hardly comfort himself. So he just said,
"Let's get some breakfast first." Stone stood and led Sedena out of the bunk room. Several families had died in here, but they had hauled the bodies to the infirmary, so the rest of the surviving families could stay here. What made Stone very grateful was that Niuon and Asora had stayed behind to act as company for him and Sedena, even though all the other Elite families had gone back to the ships.
Stone and Sedena entered the cafeteria and saw Niuon and Asora sitting next to each other. Asora smiled and beckoned them over. Stone and Sedena approached.
"Here, we ordered extra for you," said Niuon, pushing two egg, sausage, and cheese English muffin sandwiches to them.
"Thanks," said Stone sitting down with Sedena. "And...um, thanks for staying with us. It was very kind of you."
"It's no trouble at all. We figured we would help you in the search for Sedena's relatives," Asora said.
"Heh, I was going to ask you for help this morning. Thanks," said Stone gratefully, even though he raged inside with fear of losing Sedena. In fact, he almost hated her grandparents, and even Asora and Niuon. But he pushed those feelings aside; they were good people, reaching out a hand of friendship through over thirty years of prejudice and genocide.
"How do we contact them?" asked Stone.
"Unfortunately it will take couriers to bring the messages to and from Earth and Sangheilios. I don't doubt Elites will begin trading, and offering help to rebuild with you to fill our guilty consciouses. Bottom line, communication to and fro may be a long process, but it will be sustainable. Sedena can stay with you until we receive word from her relatives," Niuon explained. Stone nodded.
"We will need to return to Sangheilios, but we can always visit you and Sedena...if her relatives agree to let you adopt her," Asora said. Stone was surprised she knew he felt so much for Sedena, and showed it on his face. Both Asora and Niuon smiled.
"We see it in you both; anybody can see it," said Asora. "I'm sure Sedena's relatives are understandable people, and don't let Sedena's father taint his parent's image. The Ini family are understandable people, I've met them before." Stone felt comforted at Asora's words.
"So, since me and Asora will, unfortunately, have to leave you soon; tell us where you might stay to live, so we can visit sometime in the future," Niuon said.
"I will." Stone reached into his pocket and extracted a piece of paper. "This is the address; I have a good friend that lives a couple of streets from that house, he said he would hold it for me when I manage to move down there."
"Thank you," said Niuon taking the paper. Heavy footsteps approached from behind them and they turned to see the newcomer. They were all surprised to see the Arbiter.
"Hail," he said nodding to them.
"Hail, Arbiter," said Niuon bowing his head.
"I am just here to say that I have found Sedena's grandparents, and I will personally see that they know of her presence on Earth. I have no doubt they will want to come themselves. I need a...certificate of your permanent whereabouts, Stone. Where you will live," the Arbiter said to Stone.
"Here," said Niuon handing the Arbiter the fold of paper with Stone's house address. The Arbiter took it and looked at it.
"Will I trust you will be moved into that dwelling, so not to confuse Sedena's grandparents if you're not there?" asked the Arbiter.
"We'll be there," said Stone. "How long will it take for them to get word and arrive?"
"One Earth week," said the Arbiter.
"Alright," said Stone.
"Unless you wish to stay here, you will need to leave for the Shadow of Intent in half a unit," said the Arbiter to Niuon and Asora.
"We'll arrive soon, Arbiter," said Niuon. The Arbiter nodded to them then strode away. Stone sighed and stood, along with Asora and Niuon. Stone held out his hand to Niuon.
"You have my address memorized?" asked Stone, smiling.
"I do," replied Niuon, shaking his hand. "We will come in...well, we want to have our child first. It takes seven of your months for Sangheili children to develop and be born. So I hope you don't mind our child."
"Not at all," said Stone. He then shook hands with Asora.
"It's...been an education," she said, smiling. Stone laughed.
"Yeah it sure has," he agreed.
"Goodbye, Sedena Hakrenini," said Asora kneeling down and giving her a short hug.
"Goodbye, Asora Vasiv," she replied. Asora stood and she and Niuon rapped their arms around each other's shoulders.
"Take care of yourselves," Niuon said to them.
"We will," said Stone.
"Wait," said Sedena as Niuon and Asora went to turn and leave.
"What is it?" asked Niuon.
"Asora...when did you meet my grandparents?"
"I was younger, it was on High Charity. They had visited to see your birth, and at the time I lived next door to your father and mother." Asora told her. Sedena nodded.
"Goodbye, both of you," said Asora again, then she and Niuon turned and walked away to return to Sangheilios. Stone sighed. He had never known many people in his life with this kind of depth, but the few people he did know...saying goodbye was a depressing yet happy thing at the same time. He wrapped his arm around Sedena's shoulder and they both stared at the hall Asora and Niuon had disappeared in. After a minute, Stone said,
"Sedena...now that everything has started to settle down, I think I ought to bring you to your new home." She looked at him, very grateful. "I just need to give a heads up to the Colonel." The two made their way to Natasha Erna's office. He buzzed the intercom and received permission to enter. When Stone and Sedena stepped through the door, the Colonel looked up from her computer.
"What do you need, Private?" she asked.
"Well, my first question is 'what do you need?'" Erna gave him a hard look then said,
"I see you wish to depart with Sedena. Do you wish to be discharged from the Marines?"
"Yes. But not until everything is set with Earth, to make it as safe as possible," Stone replied.
"We have everything under control, Stone. The Elites helped very much in cleaning Earth of the rest of the Covenant. A large majority of the Covenant had been in the parts of Africa that had been glassed, and the ones that tried to escape were destroyed. We're secure, Private. You can rest your head easy tonight knowing that." Stone didn't know what to say now, so Erna said for him,
"You will be honorably discharged." Stone looked surprised.
"Honorably? I barely did anything," he said.
"No. You survived Delta Halo, volunteered to assassinate the Prophets, even though you failed to do so; but you most of all had the courage and honor to defend an innocent," Erna nodded to Sedena.
"Any marine would have," said Stone.
"Maybe, maybe not," said Erna. "You have permission to leave. I will provide you transportation so you can go wherever you need to go. Where?"
"Albuquerque, New Mexico," Stone said.
"Yes. The people there are lucky. The Brutes were too fuck-stupid to thoroughly make a sweep of the desert and other rural areas of Earth. We, however, made sure everyone was alright...but, we're not without loss," sighed Erna, looking downcast.
"How many are left?" asked Stone.
"Only two hundred million."
"Two hundred million!?" burst out Stone, not meaning too. But it staggered him that over five billion people died. He never got used to the numbers of dead.
"We can't even begin to identify the dead. We're not even bothering rebuilding the desolated cities, since there's practically no one to populate them anymore. It's going to take a long time to recover, but...as it is, we're all relieved we can live in peace. The few cities that we still populate, even moderately, are being rebuilt."
"And...we're just going to let the other cities decay?" he asked.
"Unless an extra five billion humans pop up out of nowhere, those cities are pretty useless. What this war has taught us is not to take this planet for granted. We're not going to leach off it like we did before, nor other planets. We're all to weary to keep those cities up and running anyway."
"What about the El..." Stone trailed off. Erna chuckled.
"They have plenty of planetary colonies, and from what I've heard, their home planet is still intact. They're basically the masters of the galaxy now, but they're gracious enough to help us when we need them. They won't feel right populating our old cities anyway, especially with all the dead bodies. I know, it seems like a waste and disrespectful to the dead, but...you know how it is." Stone nodded. A long silence then enveloped them then. A natural silence that seemed respect enough for the lost, but they were both sure that the dead would not want them to dwell on their bodies. After all, they were just bodies, and they were either going to rot in the street or piled on top of each other in trenches. Then Erna's phone rang, bringing them out of their trance. She held up her index finger to them to tell them to wait as she lifted the phone to her ear.
"Colonel Erna speaking," she said. She paused and listened. "Really?...w...wow. That's terrific news! Who would have thought!?" she then laughed joyously. "Yes, Admiral, I will." She then hung up and looked at Stone, eyes bright.
"Several Elite ships discovered an entire fleet of outdated UNSC ships arriving at Earth. Apparently survivalists had taken about five hundred million people in a fleet of ships that were hidden from the UNSC. They were rebels."
"The rebels?" asked Stone in surprise.
"Seems that a little bit of humanity comes out in everybody when there's horrible danger. They've promised the UNSC that they'll devote themselves to help rebuilding Earth, that they're putting aside the war between each other. To add to the good news, Elite volunteers have agreed to help repair the cities for the extra survivors to live in. They said that they will do all of the repairing, so to act as some sort of payment for what's happened over the last thirty years."
"Yeah they're not so bad when they're not killing you," joked Stone. Erna chuckled.
"Well Private, I have a Pelican full of people heading to New Mexico. I'll add you to the list. You should go to the garage right now, they leave in ten minutes."
"Yes, ma'am," said Stone, giving her a salute. She stood and saluted as well, then directed her attention to Sedena.
"It was good to meet you, Sedena. I hope you make use of your talent in the future."
"I will," said Sedena. That made Stone wonder if she would join the Elite military when she came of age...if they would let her in, that is. He had never heard of Elite females fighting in the Covenant, but that was the Covenant. The Elites probably had their own private military.
Stone and Sedena left and headed to the garage bay. There the Pelican was just powering up, a group of people inside, all looking equally devastated and relieved. He felt nervous for Sedena, for some of them looked reproachful of her presence. He gave them a look that said, "Back the fuck off" and they turned their attention else ware. Stone and Sedena sat well away from the people, right up to the wall that separated the passenger area and cockpit. Stone made Sedena sit by the wall and he stayed close. He knew he would have to keep a loose hold on her, if she was going to get anywhere socially with more forgiving humans, but at the moment he was going to be on people like a junkyard dog if they made the slightest threatening move toward her.
The back door of the Pelican closed and they felt it lift into the air, then at a great speed, it zoomed off towards USA, New Mexico.
0000000000
The flight took four hours. Pelicans may not be maneuverable, but they sure were fast. The ride was uncomfortable, but no one cared, they just knew that they weren't being gutted by Brutes. When they arrived at Albuquerque, it was 10:00 at night. They arrived at a spaceport, which was mildly busy, since survivors from the rebel ships must have been dropping off the residents. And who knew how many other people were hiding in this big old world of theirs? There could be allot more survivors then previously recorded.
Sedena stayed close to Stone as they walked through the terminal, a healthy number of equally happy and sorrowful people moving around. Shouts were heard from everywhere as friends and family were reunited, and families cried together at the news of a lost loved one. It would take them a long time to heal, and it would take even longer to break the tension with the Elites. But Stone was confident his friend that was holding the house for him was going to be pleasantly surprised by Sedena.
As Sedena and Stone walked out of the terminal, they entered the cool desert night air. It was February, and snow was present around. Many people would be surprised by snow in the desert, but Northern New Mexico still got cold. Sedena however looked around with wide eyes.
"What is this stuff?" she asked.
"You don't know what snow is?" asked Stone in surprise. Then he reminded himself her home planet had three suns, and no doubt High Charity had been devoid of snow in the Elite artificial environments. She crouched down and took a handful, then flicked it off as the cold substance made her hand feel raw and aching.
"It's frozen rain. It freezes when it's really high up there in the sky, then comes down in microscopic flakes. But that's in Winter, and it gets plenty hot in the Summer in New Mexico...but one hundred and ten degrees might seem like iffy weather to you," Stone said, smiling at her. She giggled a bit, but shivered.
"I'll get you a coat sometime...wow, I'm gonna need a tailor for when you grow bigger," Stone said. Then he thought of other Elite needs. He was sure those two toed hooves of hers would require some sort of maintenance, much like humans needed to clip their toenails. A file maybe. And he had to be careful about what he fed her, a certain fruit or vegetable could make her sick. He knew she was fine with beef atleast. And eggs and cheese. Stone looked around, now even more troubled.
"I...hope they have some sort of shuttle, since the town we're supposed to live in is, like, two and half hours away."
"They're lending cars," said someone behind them. Stone turned to see a young black man and woman standing behind them. "In there," he said pointing at the multi-leveled parking building that went up in the dark sky. "Basically, about ninety-percent of the resources are free since all those people died. Some would view that as good, but if what had happened hadn't, then we wouldn't even be in this situation," he said.
"Yeah," muttered Stone.
"If you don't mind me asking...why is she here?" asked the woman, looking at Sedena. She didn't look hatefully at her like a majority of the people had in the spaceport terminal, but her expression was light enough to be deemed friendly...or atleast neutral.
"Her parents died, and I've been taking care of her," said Stone. "It's a long story."
"This war hurts everybody, war always hurts everybody, no matter who's winning," said the man. "What's your names?"
"Stone Gossard."
"Sedena Hakrenini."
"I'm Rashad, this is my sister, Sarah. Where'd you arrive from?"
"Africa," Stone told him.
"Africa?" asked Sarah in surprise. "You survived that glassing?"
"Yeah. I was a marine, but I resigned for Sedena," said Stone.
"Well thanks man. You guys have more balls than anybody," said Rashad.
"I'd prefer only to have two," cracked Stone. Rashad laughed, Sarah just rolled her eyes.
"Men and cock jokes," she said in annoyance.
"So, where you two headed?" asked Rashad.
"Truth Or Consequences. You?"
"Los Cruces," replied Sarah. "You have family in T or C?"
"No. I lost all my family on Reach," said Stone.
"Shit," whispered Rashad in sympathy. "We're sorry man. Everybody is. It's just unbelievable how many people died...it's almost like this isn't even happening. Like a dream."
"I know what you mean," said Stone. He glanced down and noticed Sedena was shivering. Rashad glanced at her and said to Stone,
"Well, we don't wanna keep you waiting. We all need to go home."
"Well goodbye then," said Stone nodding at Sarah and Rashad.
"Goodbye Stone, Sedena," said Sarah smiling at them. Sedena smiled back and said,
"Bye." They all then went their separate ways. As Stone walked to the car lot with Sedena, he said,
"I'm sorry, I didn't realize you were freezing to death."
"It's okay...just as long as the car will be warm."
"It will," he said. He then pulled off his jacket and gave it to Sedena. "You need it more than me," he said. Sedena rapped herself in the heavy Carhartt jacket and smiled in pleasure as the body warmth left by Stone warmed her. They entered the car lot and saw a team of people sitting outside a mobile home, around a small fold out table with a game of chess underway on it. One woman stood to greet them, but paused when she saw Sedena. Stone prepared himself to get in a row with her, if she refused them a vehicle.
"What the hell is that doing here?" asked an old man, glaring at Sedena. She didn't shy away, but glared defiantly back. Stone felt a burst of pride, but pushed that aside to let some anger work its way through this situation.
"She is Sedena, and she lost just as much as you or I did. She's gonna live with me. Don't fuck with me, I'm a marine and I am not happy."
"Can we not give you a vehicle?" sneered a kid about the age of fifteen.
"Can your dick touch your asshole?" asked Stone abruptly. The kid looked taken aback by the question, but smirked.
"Yeah man, it sure can-"
"Then go fuck yourself, and give me car keys," snapped Stone. The kid turned beet red. The old man and woman didn't look happy about it, but tossed Stone some keys to a Chevy pick-up. He didn't say anything else as he left them, making his way to the parked truck, the location handily written down on a tag on the key chain.
"You alright, Sedena?" asked Stone.
"I'm fine," she mumbled.
"Don't worry. When you get bigger nobody will give you shit," said Stone patting her on the shoulder. She smiled at that, and Stone smiled too. He unlocked the truck and got in the driver seat. Sedena climbed into the other side of the bucket seat that took up the front of the truck. Stone slammed the door shut and so did Sedena with hers. Stone started the truck and it rumbled to life, the gauge of hydrogen reading full. He then drove out of the terminal, through the city and out to the highway, which was pretty barren. He drove slower than the speed limit, as to not run into abandon or wrecked vehicles that were scattered on some parts of the highway. Stone put the heater way up for Sedena, even though it was a little too hot for him. She took off the jacket and laid it in the middle of the bucket seat.
They were silent for a long time. Stone watched the road while Sedena looked out her window at the stars above, studying the new star patterns. Stone wondered if there would be as much hostility in Truth Or Consequences as with those vehicle people. One thing he knew for sure, he would have to keep a very close eye on Sedena. Two eyes, as a matter of fact. Or atleast until he got comfortable enough with trustful people that might be more accepting of her, then he would only leave one eye on her. Since his friend in T Or C was an ex-Sergeant from Harvest, he was a little worried he might react negatively to Sedena. But he didn't think so. Master Sergeant Johnathan Cutler, whom he had been chummy with before the man had retired, was understanding. And he was sure he would excuse what the Elites had done in Sedena's case, since she was a little girl.
Stone sighed slowly and softly, then decided to play some music to let his worries escape him. He played it at a quiet volume, and played acoustic music so it wouldn't bother Sedena. He felt relaxed as "Epiphany" by Staind began playing. Stone was surprised an Internet connection still existed now, since he had punched in a code to his personal playlist stored on a website. That was the nifty thing about Internet radios.
Sedena squirmed uncomfortably beside Stone. He glanced over and saw she was trying to sleep.
"Is the music bothering you?" he asked.
"No...it's helping me sleep but...I'm uncomfortable," she said as she rubbed her neck.
"Use my jacket as a pillow," said Stone holding it out for her. She took it and then laid her head on it, leaning against the door of the car. An hour passed and Stone came within Los Cruces. The city was half awake, a few cars were idling along, lights in apartment buildings shined bright, but no stores or restaurants or bars were open. Stone understood. Everyone was mourning everyone. He looked over at Sedena, who was sound asleep. It took another hour to arrive at Truth Or Consequences. It wasn't a city, just a town; fairly developed, had some suburbs (not the ones with clone houses). He drove through into the suburbs, looking for Yucca street. The Yucca cacti planted around were the first giveaway, then the sign. He turned on the road and found the address to the dark house. A single ranch house, basically a rectangle, save for the part that jutted out the side, but that was a garage. Stone parked in the driveway, to the right was the main house and the front door. The outside light was on, but he saw a small post-it note on the door. Stone killed the engine and gingerly shook Sedena's shoulder. She stirred and opened her glazed eyes.
"We're here," he said to her. She sat up and rubbed her eyes, then stretched her long neck up in the air, so it was sticking up straight. Stone opened the door and stepped out in the cool air. It was marginally warmer than Albuquerque had been; there was no snow present either. Sedena stepped out her side of the door and looked at the house. She and Stone walked up to the front door and he read the note,
"Stone, I live five houses up, I left my ancient 2010 Ford Shelby Mustang in the driveway, you can't miss it. No one can! Just knock on the door, I guarantee you'll see me through the living room window; TV on, laid back and snoring on my recliner with a shot glass and a half-empty bottle of Jack Daniel's on the side table. I have the key to the house, I didn't wanna leave it under the door mat. It'd be the first damn place hoodlums would look. When you arrive at my house, perform retrieval operation five dash echo.
Sincerely, Master Sergeant Johnathan Cutler."
Stone smiled. He knew what Retrieval Operation Five Dash Echo was, but the hoodlums Johnathan had talked about wouldn't have a clue.
"We've gotta take a short walk to my friend's house, he's got the key," said Stone to Sedena. She nodded and they set out. Stone stuck close to Sedena and looked in every shadow for potential threats. Whether it be legitimate adult violence addicts, or just stupid eighth graders trying to make themselves look tough. But it was a short walk up a hill, where Johnathan's house sat on a corner, a beautiful 2010 Shelby Mustang with white stripes and black body paint sat in the drive way. They walked up to the door and Stone performed the operation. He opened the unlocked door and walked right in then tapped Johnathan on the head (he also had a cigar to go with the Jack Daniel's). He snorted and looked up at Stone in surprise. The old man hadn't put on an ounce of weight. This was one marine that wouldn't let himself go...though he has a better taste for alcohol now. Johnathan grinned and so did Stone.
"Welcome, soldier," said Johnathan as he stood and saluted. Stone saluted back then both men shook hands. "So how are ya, Stone? You still in the marines or did you resign?"
"I resigned," Stone said.
"Well, I don't blame ya," said Johnathan as he turned around and opened the drawer to the side table next to his recliner. He pulled out a shot glass and poured some Jack Daniel's in it. "Want some?" he asked, offering the glass.
"Sure, why not?" asked Stone as he took the glass.
"There we go," chuckled Johnathan as he re-lit his half burnt cigar and puffed it.
"So what's up with you?" asked Stone after a sip of his whiskey.
"The usual marine retiree activities. Watching kids for m' neighbors," Johnathan gestured to a couch, an amused look in his eye, along with anticipation. Stone looked and he almost choked on his whiskey when he saw an Elite, about looking the same age as Sedena, laying under covers on the couch, fast asleep.
"Holy shit..." said Stone.
"Poor boy lost his parents on that Covy spaceship city, Something Charity," said Johnathan in a low voice, watching the kid.
"He's male?" asked Stone.
"Uh huh. His foster mother, a doctor over at the T Or C Memorial Hospital, found him in a crashed Phantom, nearly dead; his apparent mother and father died in the crash...he was in their arms. They gave their lives for his," said Johnathan sadly. "A war effects everyone. Even the assholes behind the war."
"You'll be interested to meet my companion then," said Stone. He looked back at the door and said, "Sedena, come in, meet my friend." It was Johnathan's turn to nearly choke on his whiskey (straight from the bottle, not bothering with a glass). Sedena stepped in and walked to Stone's side.
"This is Sedena Hakrenini, I was actually on High Charity when the civil war happened."
"You're shittin' me?" said Johnathan in wonder. "And you were on that Halo thing too?"
"The second one, yes. I was on Commander Miranda Keyes' old Frigate, I was one of the teams sent to assassinate the Prophets. Well, that was an epic fail. I got captured, I ran into Sedena...or more like she ran into me," said Stone, placing his hand on Sedena's shoulder.
"Johnathan?" asked the other Elite child as he sat up. Sedena gave a short gasp of surprise at seeing her fellow here. He looked at Stone, then looked as surprised as Sedena when he laid eyes on her.
"Hey, good morn..." Johnathan looked at his watch and chuckled. "It is mornin' technically; mornin', Zuli. I want you to meet Stone Gossard, and Sedena Hakrenini." Zuli got up from the couch and walked over.
"Hello," he said, looking at Sedena.
"Hi," she replied.
"So I better get your key then," said Johnathan as he rummaged in another drawer of his side table.
"You came from High Charity?" asked Zuli of Sedena.
"Yes."
"...where did you get an affix like 'Bladerunner'?" he asked.
"Oh," Sedena blushed slightly. "I'm good with knives."
"Knives eh?" asked Johnathan as he handed a key over to Stone. "You kill a Brute or something?" Johnathan, and Stone smirked at him. Johnathan noticed the smirk and looked at Sedena.
"Did you really?" he asked.
"Yes...but it was lucky," she replied.
"It wasn't lucky when you fought off those men back at the refugee base," Stone said. Sedena flushed again.
"Wow," said Zuli. "That's a very good name."
"Thanks," said Sedena smiling at him. Stone yawned.
"Alright ever'body, it's late. We should be in bed," said Johnathan as he shut off the TV. "I'll see you round tomorrow, Stone?" asked Johnathan.
"For sure, Sarge," said Stone shaking Johnathan's hand.
"Good, now get to bed, Private, heh heh." Stone chuckled a bit.
"Goodbye Zuli," said Sedena.
"Bye," he replied. Stone and Sedena then left for their house again.
"I can't believe it," Sedena said after they had got on the street.
"Me neither. I was kinda worried you'd be...alone," Stone said.
"I'm not alone," Sedena said as she pressed against Stone. He rapped his arm around her shoulder and they went to their house. Stone unlocked the door and entered. He felt very relaxed now with a home of his own. To the right was the living room, complete with a big couch, a desk and computer, entertainment center and even a hearth. To the left was a hall to the bedrooms, and the kitchen.
"You want anything to eat before we get to bed?" asked Stone.
"No," said Sedena.
"Alright, guess we should pick our rooms," he said as they walked down the hall. To the immediate left was a small bedroom, down at the end of the hall was the bathroom door, two other doors on the right wall, and one other on the left. The first right door after the first bedroom was a laundry room and access to the garage, the door after the laundry room was another bedroom, and the left door was a third bedroom.
"It's a bit too big for my taste," commented Stone. He was a modest man who believed that something should fit the situation perfectly rather than being too big or too small. "But whatever, it's ours now. Which bedroom?" he asked Sedena.
"I'll take that one," she said as she stepped into the left bedroom. Stone chose the second right bedroom. As he looked around he found an PlayBox 720 game console in the closet, along with a good collection of games.
"You never cease to amaze me, Sarge," said Stone as he smiled at the games.
"Thank you, Stone," said Sedena suddenly. He turned to her, a quizzical expression on his face.
"Thanks for what?" he asked.
"For taking care of me...I love you," she said as she hugged him. He knelt down and hugged back.
"You know I love you too. You don't have to thank me. I would never even dream of leaving you alone." He let go. "We should get sleep. Tomorrow morning we can go get some new clothes. You've been wearing that dress for days, and it's kinda gross," Stone said. Sedena giggled. She went off to bed, and Stone went to bed also. As he laid there he wondered of Sedena's grandparents. The worry of losing her threatened to take over again, so he pushed those thoughts away and thought of tomorrow.
Damn, I'm gonna need a job though. And I am not washing fucking dishes! He smiled at the prospect of a hardened marine like him busing a restaurant after closing time.
Across the hall, Sedena hugged one of her extra pillows and worried sick of her grandparents. She didn't want to be taken away from Stone. He had taken care of her, no matter what sort of creature or person attacked them. The thought of being torn from him made her sick, and she hugged the pillow tighter. What help was that going to do? It's just a damn pillow, something you rest your head on. She then grabbed the energy cutlass that sat on her nightstand. She started to feel sated with the blade in her grasp. She felt invincible with it, strong; a force to be reckoned with. She had no idea she could feel so powerful with such a small object.
My affix isn't "Bladerunner" for no reason, she said to herself. She wouldn't cut up her grandparents, no. She didn't want to stoop to those lows. She would convince them though, if they didn't want her with Stone. She pushed the thoughts of her grandparents away, then thought of Asora. She was like Stone, only she wasn't with her for so long. But she would see her soon...hopefully. She thought of what she said to her.
"You should let your talent flourish..." Sedena imagined herself a proud warrior when she was older, her specialty with bladed weapons. Not energy swords, but cold, hard steel; razor sharp, and deadly in her hands. She smiled.
I'm going to let my talent flourish.
(1) "Stone awoke to a thumping next to him. He half opened his eyes and looked at the blurry object beside him. It was moving around a bit, but remained stationary." Could've sworn the pronz was way off...
(2) Sedena gets upset over the idea of seeing more of her family after losing her mother and brother. Ugh, this kid has a few loose screws.
(3) "...reaching out a hand of friendship through over thirty years of prejudice and genocide." And with sudden and blinding clarity I realize that that line is going to be hamfisted relentlessly, in case you didn't get the theme of the story from the first thirty times I said it.
(4) LOL wait, hold on. Suddenly Asora knows the Ini family/Sedena's grandparents, claiming to have met them before. Oh my God, there are so many things wrong with that I don't know where to begin. First off, she learns of Sedena's family name way before this scene, and yet she had no reaction or even asked Sedena about her grandparents. Secondly, there could be lots of Ini families on Sanghelios: it's a planet of 8 billion people ffs. She could be talking about any schmucks with Ini as a family name. Plus, Asora nonchalantly says this to them, like she was just mentioning she had seen that movie before and it was pretty good. And finally Sedena herself doesn't even question Asora. At all. Wow, so many holes and contradictions spawned just by one thoughtless line of dialogue. I can't even...
(5) And immediately after that Stone tells them about this magical man who owns a spare house just for Stone when he's ready to take it. Not only is that completely retarded, again it contradicts the original "fact" that Stone only lived on Earth in ONE PLACE since escaping Reach. If this story was a cheese, it would be swiss.
(6) AND THEN ARBITER COMES IN AND SAYS "O HAI I FOUND SEDENA'S GRANDPARENTS" AND I'M LIKE WTF AJSNAIODNOIADNASDOSADNSDAN (I guess at this point I just wanted them to get the fuck out of the refugee camp and get to home, so I rushed the shit out of this).
And the Arbiter is just going around looking out for one girl out of the countless Sangheili families that have been displaced by the civil war. Yeah, pretty sure he has far bigger issues he needs to address than what happens to refugees, let alone one individual.
YEAH, it's gonna take just a week for Sedena's grandparents to receive word and haul ass to Earth.
I swear to God I'm going to go full-on Trevor not even by the mid-point of this shlock.
(7) Oh horehorehore, it takes seven months for Sangheili women to produce children, a seven reference, huehuehue *shoots self*
(8) Oh, NOW Sedena asks about Asora meeting her grandparents. But the fact that... ugh, I can't even...
(9) "Stone sighed. He had never known many people in his life with this kind of depth..." YOU KNEW THEM FOR ONE FUCKING DAY!
(10) Stone goes to the Colonel to see if he can get discharged, but to his credit he actually asks if he can leave instead of just using his Gary-Stu powers of throwing a tantrum to flabbergast the Colonel into discharging him. Ahh, but who needs Stu powers when you have Author powers! Of course he's going to be discharged even though the UNSC needs every able-bodied person it can get, just for Sedena's sake.
(11) Extra 500 million humans just appear... you know what, I'm just going to ignore the whole population thing. My head hurts after the trauma from earlier.
(12) "There could be allot more survivors then previously recorded." Man, I really had a problem with the 200,000,000 number for some reason.
(13) So I state that Sanghelios has no snow, but officially the lowest average temperature the planet has is down to 23 degrees farenheit (-5 degrees celcius). Not as cold as Earth gets, but definitely snow-worthy in certain parts, where ever they may be. My headcanon is aggravating me. But, like I said, I'll oh-so happily pick apart everything wrong with my depiction of Sanghelios when we actually get there.
(14) "'Well thanks man. You guys have more balls than anybody,' said Rashad.
'I'd prefer only to have two,' cracked Stone. Rashad laughed, Sarah just rolled her eyes.
'Men and cock jokes,' she said in annoyance."
Oh Jesus, this reminded me of all the politically-correct gender wars prevalent throughout almost all of the story. Yuck.
Oh, and that joke was fucking stupid and no one should laugh at it, ever, and you should feel bad if you did.
(15) "Sedena rapped herself in the heavy Carhartt jacket and smiled in pleasure as the body warmth left by Stone warmed her."
This moment was brought to you by, Carhart. Carharts: they warm aliens and use the same word twice in one sentence. No, I don't care if they were two variations, it was still the same word. Seriously, though, I still wear Carharts. They're beasts when it comes to winter-wear. Also: *WRAPPED!
(16) "'Don't worry. When you get bigger nobody will give you shit,' said Stone patting her on the shoulder. She smiled at that, and Stone smiled too." She'll still be a social outcast among a species that generally hates her, but at least she'll be tall.
(17) "She took off the jacket and laid it in the middle of the bucket seat." No, me; bucket seats are just the single seats for the front of vehicles. You're thinking of bench seats. And yeah, like the year 2553 would have pick-ups with bench seats in the front.
(18) "One thing he knew for sure, he would have to keep a very close eye on Sedena. Two eyes, as a matter of fact." *cough* Gandalf the Grey *cough*
(19) "Stone was surprised an Internet connection still existed now, since he had punched in a code to his personal playlist stored on a website. That was the nifty thing about Internet radios." Ugh, the readers don't care, me! You don't have to explain how the fucking music works.
(20) "It took another hour to arrive at Truth Or Consequences. It wasn't a city, just a town; fairly developed, had some suburbs (not the ones with clone houses)." Yup, T or C hasn't changed in the five hundred years since I stayed there.
(21) "'Stone, I live five houses up, I left my ancient 2010 Ford Shelby Mustang in the driveway..." I couldn't just say 2550 Mustang? It had to be from 2010? *eyeroll*
"...I guarantee you'll see me through the living room window; TV on, laid back and snoring on my recliner with a shot glass and a half-empty bottle of Jack Daniel's on the side table..." Oh you're such a Good Ol' Boy in the future. My God, I never comprehended until now the levels of product placement I have in this story. Like, Man Of Steel levels. I DON'T EVEN DRINK WHY WOULD I BOTHER PROMOTING WHISKEY WITH A SPECIFIC BRAND?! Because it's one most people will recognize? Okay, I guess... still stupid.
"...When you arrive at my house, perform retrieval operation five dash echo..." Wat?
"Stone smiled. He knew what Retrieval Operation Five Dash Echo was, but the hoodlums Johnathan had talked about wouldn't have a clue." Okay, story, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt. But I'm still reserving my right to assume it's stupid.
(22) "...Whether it be legitimate adult violence addicts..." I really don't know what I was trying to say here.
(23) "They walked up to the door and Stone performed the operation. He opened the unlocked door and walked right in then tapped Johnathan on the head..." Aaaaand it's stupid.
"The old man hadn't put on an ounce of weight. This was one marine that wouldn't let himself go...though he has a better taste for alcohol now." Yeah, Jack Daniels, he's a seasoned connoisseur of hard liquor.
"It was Johnathan's turn to nearly choke on his whiskey (straight from the bottle, not bothering with a glass)." Ew, and he pours that for guests.
"'...where did you get an affix like 'Bladerunner'?' [Zuli] asked.
'Oh,' Sedena blushed slightly. 'I'm good with knives.'" Yeah, just good with knives? She "earned" one of the most prestigious warrior affixes just for being "good with knives." Hey, I can slice vegetables and bread nice and neat, I'm good with knives. Can I have the super special awesome sexy warrior name too? (Disclaimer: I suck at cutting ingredients and bread).
"'...I was kinda worried you'd be...alone,' Stone said.
'I'm not alone,' Sedena said as she pressed against Stone." I cringed so hard I imploded.
(24) "He rapped his arm..." OMG IT'S 'WRAPPED' NOT 'RAPPED' SPELL IT RIGHT FFS! UIEIASNZCOIASNC *dies*
(25) So when we arrive at the house I give a lengthy description. No, not one that's rich with details about its atmosphere, how it looks, or what Stone or Sedena think. It's just me describing a blueprint layout of the rooms. Why? Because of course it was the house I lived in with my buddy, and I only had to give a basic description and let everyone else fill in the blanks.
So, kids, when people say 'write what you know,' don't half-ass it like I did. Have a little more finesse if you're narrating a place or an event you experienced.
(26) "PlayBox 720." OMG IM SO CLEVER. And somehow Stone is amazed Johnathan picked out these games for him. Why? I mean, sure, we would be amazed if a guy twice our age had an extensive taste in games; but games came after their time. It's the ye- Ugh, you know what, I'm just gonna stop here. Point is, I do a poor job of trying to get us to relate to the future and vice versa, and I shall further not beat the horse corpse.
(27) "She started to feel sated with the blade in her grasp. She felt invincible with it, strong; a force to be reckoned with. She had no idea she could feel so powerful with such a small object." Uhhh, that's a bit psychotic, looking back. Especially considering she's thinking about her grandparents.
Ew, that whole closing segment is creepy. Actually, it's sort of funny. Imagine there was a movie trailer based on this chapter, then you could totally edit it to make it look like a horror movie. Ha. I love it.
