Merry late Chrismas everyone! I was hoping to get chapter 8 by Christmas but, I hit a major writer's block. I didn't know how a specific door was gonna open. So that was... yea. I don't like doors now. Anyways here is chapter 8.


Day 4 of 31 at the Sanghelious complex

Tuse left on day 2 but today she is coming back, with a special guest. I had just gotten off shift, barely able to keep my eyes open any longer when Vevo's voice came blaring over the building's intercom.

"All personnel, including hybrids, are to suit up and prepare for a special guest arrival. Be in the main hall at 0715 hours." I sighed, why did stuff like this always happen in the mornings, why not in the evenings before I go on shift. I then shuffled my way down the westward hallway to the main hall.

By the time I got there, all the guards were lined up on either side of the hallway. Some were whispering to each other about who they thought it was. Most of the guards were in ornate armor. Higher rank guards wore capes and frilled helmets, while others wore their family's crest or symbol on their upper arm plate. From what I could tell the higher ranks were closest to the door at the north entrance and the lower ranks were farther away.

Feeling like I knew where I fit in here I stood at the end of the line on the right side of the hallway. One of the guards on the opposite side of the hall saw me and walked over. He put his hands on my shoulders and scooted me five feet farther down the hall before returning to his position. Evidently, even the end of the line was too high of an honor for me. The hybrids soon joined us lining up across the end of the hall, facing the door. They were standing two feet to my left.

"Ha," I thought, they were a lesser rank than I. Maybe this guard thing wasn't so bad after all. Vevo finally came into view.

He had just exited a door right next to me. He wore a well polished, heavily adorned, officer rank armor. It was polished to its brightest sunset orange color. Not a single part of it was dented or battle worn. He turned his face to me and I saw the giant gash in his helmet. It matched his scar on his face. I guessed that when he got it the helmet's cut edges were sharp, but now the edges were cut to an elegant 45-degree angle, directing attention to the battle wound.

I wasn't expecting Vevo to be such a low rank, I thought he would at least be a general. The way he stood was that of a Shipmaster, the way he spoke to those of lower authority, and the way he commanded a group all pointed that either he was a natural born leader or he had a higher rank once. Demotion in the Covenant was worthy of becoming an Arbiter or death. Vevo definitely had some secrets worth finding at some point in time.

Before I could think of anything else I heard the motors of a phantom overhead outside the building. Even inside and down the hall I could still hear the loud thud of feet which I guessed had just jumped out of the phantom. The entrance door to the main hall abruptly slid away to reveal a massive Sangheili clad in Zealot armor. Like Vevo's armor, it was polished to the extreme. It almost looked like the Sangheili was wearing maroon glass. The Sangheili was obviously male, and he was almost twice as large (and probably strong too) as Vevo. As he entered the Sangheili sidestepped allowing his daughter to enter.

Tuse, grinning happily, strutted in wearing her, now polished, version of her father's armor. Vevo walked up the ranks towards this newcomer, extending one of his arms outwards towards Tuse's father in welcome.

"Why if it isn't the mighty zealot Thyt 'Kunshaaee, back from the field of battle, welcome brother," Vevo announced, greeting him with a slight head bow.

I remembered when Vevo had first seen Tuse, he had remarked to N'thyvu saying, "Kunshaaee's." Vevo either knew Thyt very well or Thyt was quite famous among the Sangheili ranks.

"It is good to see you again Vevo." Thyt said, unlike Vevo, Thyt was less formal in his speech and had a deeper voice, "Have the prophets been kind to you all these years?" Thyt gave him a friendly slap on the back that left Vevo a little winded.

"Same as usual; with some exceptions," Vevo replied. They continued walking down the hall casually having a conversion; until Thyt locked eyes with me. He stopped talking and his face looked like he had seen a ghost. He looked from Vevo to me before he broke into a mocking smile. Vevo averted his view downward.

"What shame you must feel." Thyt scoffed. Confusion must have had shown in my expression because Thyt looked back at Vevo. "Does she not know?" He inquired.

"Its best she not." Vevo retorted giving Thyt a menacing glare.

So Vevo was hiding something! But what had I done to Vevo to cause him shame? I didn't have time now to think about this. I'd come up with ideas during my watch when I had nothing better to do. Vevo moved on to show Thyt the rest of the hybrids. Thyt followed giving a slight smirk of amusement. After Vevo showed of the hybrids we were allowed to leave and return to our posts. Vevo then quickly whisked Thyt away for a tour.

I then drowsily trudged back to my room and slept for 10 hours. My appetite had extremely decreased over the past four days and I found it was getting harder to sleep too. At 1900 I went to my post. My mind was flooded with thoughts from earlier today. Thoughts bounced back and forth, and back and forth. What had I done to shame Vevo? I never knew him until 4 days ago! But what could I have done? It's nothing recent, I think. It isn't otherwise Thyt wouldn't have known. What was all about that expression he had given me? Why did he say that I had shamed Vevo? What had I done to shame Vevo? And so these thoughts continued for hours. I began fidgeting with my sword.

I had found out why the sword had been forgotten. It didn't work. Like me it had been abandoned by its makers, out of self-pity, I decided to keep it. I opened it along its horizontal seams, trying to see if I could fix it. Inside the sword was a jumbled mess of cords, resistors, and other components I didn't know the name of. With a slender finger, I shifted the balled up cordage. It was such a wreck that I couldn't tell one thing from the other in there. So I tried to activate the sword while it was still in two.

Sparks exploded from my hand. Startled, I quickly dropped it and scooted away. The blade didn't activate but continued sparking from a singular point amidst the wires. I cautiously stretched out one of my two toes towards the sword and promptly turned it off. The sparks left as abruptly as they began, I flicked it with my toe to make sure it was done. Nothing happened. I reached out and picked it up, and used a fingertip to brush aside massive amounts of wires to see if I could identify the problem. I couldn't make out much in the darkness and noted it to do another time.

The cold was beginning to bite through my armor, so I huddled in the corner of the doorframe. I went into a haze. Still being aware of my surroundings but yet light nausea sat at the bottom of my stomach. All of my senses except for my hearing hazed over into oblivion. Around 2400 I was stirred from my "stasis" by the almost impossible to hear footsteps. They were getting closer. My slight nausea faded as adrenaline began to prepare me for what to come, friend or foe.

I pushed myself farther into the corner and got my feet underneath my hunched form. It was extremely dark outside and nothing could be seen for miles. The light footsteps stopped at the edge of the building corner.

Being in the indent of the doorframe, which was inset about four feet from the exterior walls, I couldn't see around the corner. So I sat there in dead silence as I waited for this something to round the corner. A small breeze from the east began to pick up blowing part of a black cloak into view. Quickly I shoved my face and e front half of my body into the corner and hoped I'd go unnoticed.

Desert bandits were rare and were usually Sangheili of little or no honor. They come in the nighttime hours in search of blood or valuables. The worst wear black cloaks, or so I had been told during my training on High Charity when I had snuck to one of the trade spines. Even strong Sangheili warriors with weaponry couldn't take down these bandits, and I realized how much trouble I was in.

I heard the sudden jump to the center of the entryway but I didn't move. Then the quiet expression of confusion through a grunt, as something was holstered. Now was my best shot. I slightly shifted my head and positioned for my attack. I lunged at the dark cloaked figure. I tripped his right leg bringing him to his knee before I swung around to latch onto his neck, as I had with Tuse. I planted one foot on his lower back and the other on his middle back. Then all I had to do was hold on.