Chapter 9: Oh, So That's How it Is

Yayap wasn't going to die; he had gone through too much to lose now.

"If I ever fight on a sacred site again it will be too soon!" Yayap declared. "It's always too soon." The Spirits and Phantoms abandoned High Charity and went down toward Installation 05. The various Covenant drop ships had no problem avoiding the cruisers and Seraph fighters that fought with each other.

It was only when they had reached the atmosphere of the Sacred Ring that they encountered trouble. The Phantom carrying Yayap and the other Unggoy attracted the attention of a Vampire. The Covenant Vampire was a V-shaped air unit designed to shoot down other aircraft. Vampires' primary weapon was a heavy needler turret on top of the craft. They also had a plasma turret on each wing and a stasis generator for freezing enemy air units.

The Separatists had no idea if the Vampire was loyalist or not, or whether it new the affiliation of the ship it was attacking. Or the Vampire could have been stolen by humans or the Flood for all the Grunts knew.

A pair of Banshees flew up and attacked the Vampire. The anti-air aircraft turned its attention away from the transports. The first Banshee blew up in a spectacular, pink blast after the Vampire hit it with its needler turret. The Vampire's starboard-side plasma turret grazed the second Banshee, causing the smaller air unit to spiral out of control and smash into its opponent. Then the Vampire lost control and came spinning down towards the Sacred Ring.

The Grunts had no idea what side to root for, but the important part was that they were safe, and faced no further threat as they landed. They put down in the jungle area of a mountain that was near a beach.

"What are we doing here?" Zakap demanded as they got out.

"The jungle will conceal our presence," 'Kotoree explained.

"You coward. We fought off wave after wave of the Flood. The Jiralhanae don't scare me," Zakap answered.

"Hopefully they won't be our enemies any longer," Yayap told Zakap. "The Flood are a bigger problem that no one can ignore."

"Oh, I think they're ignoring it," Curlap pointed.

Ahead they could see corpses of Unggoy and Sangheili thrown about the jungle floor.

"What the?" 'Balatee went to inspect the corpses. Everyone else followed. Yayap felt a wave a sadness wash over him.

"Check for survivors," Curlap instructed.

After a few minutes of checking around the graveyard it was clear that no one was alive. There was blue and purple blood everywhere. Many of the Sangheili were badly cut and/or missing limbs, clearly the work of the brute shot's blade. There were no Jiralhanae bodies anyone could find. The Loyalists must have seriously kicked ass in the battle. The smell of death was unbearable. Even with their masks, the Unggoy got a full blast of the stench.

"I'm gonna be sick," Nomnom avoided puking in his mask.

The group heard movement up ahead. Curlap motioned for everyone to stay back and silently pointed out the Special Ops troopers to follow him. Yayap, Zakap, and Deadside followed the Grunt Ultra, and they all activated their active camouflage.

The invisible warriors did not have to travel far before they came across a group of four Brutes: two Minors, a Major and an Ultra. "Killing Unggoy is too easy," the Brute Major kicked a Grunt corpse. "I could kill Unggoy all day with my eyes closed."

"Is that so?" a voice rang out. It was Zakap's. "You think Unggoy are weak do you?"

"Show yourself, Unggoy!" the Brute Major demanded.

"Why should I? You said you could kill Unggoy with your eyes closed. Why don't you demonstrate this ability? Try and kill me!" Zakap's voice came from a different direction. The Special Ops Grunt had climbed up a tree.

The Brute Major wildly fired his plasma rifle; the red plasma bolts hitting nothing but the trees. The two Brute Minors tried to sniff Zakap out, but couldn't find the smell of the living Grunt amidst the stench of all the dead ones.

The Brute Major randomly tossed a plasma grenade. Howling in frustration.

"Is that the best you can do?" Zakap taunted. Now he had snuck around behind the Brute squad. This time the Brutes had an idea of where Zakap was, as his voice was clearly coming from a completely different direction than before.

With the Brutes' attention now in Zakap's new direction, and away from the others, Curlap and Yayap both primed plasma grenades and sent them flying towards the two Brute Minors.

Both grenades stuck their marks and the two low ranking Brutes exploded. The Major was furious, but the Brute Ultra kept his cool. Yayap and Curlap hid behind some trees and re-activated their camouflage as soon as they were able.

"We should withdraw and get reinforcements," the Ultra Brute stated.

"No! I will not run from some Unggoy! Come out and face me you cowards!" the Major thundered.

Deadside shut off his camouflage and revealed himself to be right behind the Brute Ultra. The Major saw him and roared a warning to his superior. The Ultra turned around just in time to see the Special Ops Hunter. Then Deadside killed him with one swift blow.

The Brute Major uselessly fired his plasma rifle at the Hunter, though the plasma bolts did nothing to Deadside's shield.

"Your opponent is me!" Zakap had shut off his camouflage and rushed the Brute. The half-crazed Grunt jumped onto the Brute and stared him down face to face.

"Killing Jiralhanae is too easy," Zakap mimicked what the Brute had said earlier about Unggoy. The Brute Major was stunned; Zakap's sudden attack wasn't so physically damaging as it was physiologically surprising. Zakap took a spike grenade he had lifted off the Major when he first jumped and him, and slammed the grenade right into his face.

Zakap dived away from the Brute just as the spike grenade detonated, leaving the Brute's head a pulpy mess. Bits of helmet and brain matter splattered on the jungle floor.

"It was over this way," the Grunts heard a Jackal hiss. The voice of a Jackal they recognized.

"You!" Yok hissed at the Yayap and the others when he came into view.

"Oh good. We've been looking for you," Zakap taunted.

A few Drones flew in from behind the Jackal Zealot. Gagaw, Mehmep, Nomnom, and the Elites came up to stand with the Special Ops Separatists.

For a brief moment, neither side attacked the other, everyone merely observing their opponents. Then the jungle lit up in a firefight.

Half the Drones went down in the first rounds of shots. Most of the Drones were latched onto the sides of trees or standing on the ground, making them much easier targets than if they had been flying in the air.

Yok had stripped 'Kotoree of his shields with an overcharged shot from his plasma pistol. But the Jackal fled from the fight when he noticed all of his Drones had been defeated.

"Get back here you little shit, I didn't say you could live!" Zakap chased after the fleeing Zealot.

Yok fled through a doorway built in the side of the mountain.

"Hurry, we have a Jackal to kill," Zakap told the others as they followed through the door.


Originally, Natarus and the Jiralhanae transports ships that escaped High Charity were going down towards the Sacred Ring like the Unggoy-held ships were. The situation was a complete mess, and Natarus struggled to make sense of the situation.

Natarus had never been a devout member of the Covenant. In truth he found the entire concept of the Great Journey to be highly suspect. But the tiniest doubt held in Natarus' mind that he had been wrong and they were soon to become gods. The possibility of flying down to the Sacred Ring and just laying low until they became immortal crossed his mind. Why risk death when invincibility was soon at hand? But Natarus quickly banished such a cowardly thought from his mind. Whether the Great Journey was real or not, Natarus knew Tartarus would not need his assistance down on the Sacred Ring. The Brute Ultra Captain resolved to turn his transports around and send them towards the fleet where they could have the greatest impact.

Natarus' Phantom was easily able to avoid attention and safely land in the hangar of a Jiralhanae-controlled cruiser. Though once Natarus and his pack left the Phantom they quickly realized that it was actually safer in space.

A group of Unggoy was engaged in combat against Kig-yar and a few Jiralhanae. The Grunts had held the advantage of superior numbers, until Natarus and his pack joined in on the fight. What surprised Natarus was the fact that the Grunts were rebelling on their own without an Elite to lead them or Hunters to assist them. They surely must have known they would lose; yet they fought anyway.

A Grunt Major was able to stick a few needler rounds into Natarus' leg, though the Brute responded by sending a few spiker rounds into his face.

An overexcited Grunt Minor activated a pair of plasma grenades and made a suicide run straight into a trio of Jackals. "Enjoy my bright, blue, balls!" The explosion sent Unggoy and Kig-yar limbs flying everywhere.

Once the last of the Unggoy had been killed Natarus stomped over to the highest-ranking Jiralhanae he saw in the hangar.

"Do you not command mastery of your own ship?" Natarus demanded of the Brute Captain.

"No," the Brute Captain hesitated. "Our Unggoy and Mgalekgolo have rebelled against us."

"How do you not command the respect of the lower ranks?" Natarus accusingly pointed his finger. The Grunts and Hunters rebelling alongside the Elites on High Charity was understandable, but for Grunts and Hunters to be rebelling on a Brute-controlled cruiser was unthinkable.

"This situation is under control. We still maintain mastery of our ship. We will soon break their will to fight, or kill them," the Captain sounded more confident now.

Before the pair could continue to converse any further a new Phantom flew into the hangar, but it dropped off not Brutes, but Elites. "I think they're here to inspire your mutineers to continue to fight," Natarus told the Brute Captain.

Various Elites spilled out onto the hangar deck, most of them low-ranking Minors. After the first thirty seconds of battle it was excruciatingly obvious that Natarus' pack of Brute Stalkers were far too skilled for the Sangheili. Any move the Elites made was swiftly countered by the more experienced Brutes. The Unggoy that Natarus and his pack had just fought in the hangar had put up a better challenge than the new Elite boarding party was.

A misfired grenade from a brute shot detonated on a plasma grenade that was lying on the floor, causing an explosion that engulfed other plasma grenades lying around. The series of detonations caught most of the Elites. Some had been blown to smithereens, their remains decorating the walls, floor, ceiling, and their surviving comrades. The Elites that did survive had lost their energy shields to the explosions, and were even easier prey for the Brutes.

After the Elite boarding action had finally been repelled, the shipmaster had contacted Natarus with an assignment. Apparently Natarus' actions had not gone unnoticed since he had entered the cruiser but the Brute Captain Ultra found that he was being ordered off the ship.

"What? I don't get it," Moartorus was confused as to why they were re-boarding their Phantom. "Aren't they having a mutineer problem?"

"Yes," Natarus answered patiently. Now was the time to follow orders, not question them, but Natarus spelled out the situation to Moartorus anyway. "But, those Sangheili cruisers pose a greater threat than a few ill-tempered Unggoy." Natarus and his pack were being sent to board and capture a Sangheili cruiser.


"What was that Zealot's problem?" a Brute Minor asked a Captain Major. Yok had run by screeching, though he didn't bother to warn his allies of what was coming.

"Dunno," the Brute Captain Major crossed his arms.

Suddenly both Brutes turned and saw a Special Ops Hunter barreling down on them. Just as they raised their rifles, Deadside smashed into the two Jiralhanae.

The Grunts came in after the Hunter and shot the two Brutes to death as they tried to pick themselves off the floor.

A Jackal sniper tried to pick off Gagaw with a needle rifle but missed. Snee 'Balatee killed the enemy sniper.

The cave where the Separatists had chased Yok to was dark, though the Unggoy could easily see the glowing wrist shields of the Kig-yar. There were plenty of cyan and violet shields of the Minors and Majors but no orange glow to be found, it seemed that Yok had fled the area completely.

The fighting inspired a pair of Grunt Minors to come out of hiding from behind some supply crates. The two new Unggoy helped Yayap deal with a pair of Jackal Minors. Yayap had no idea how long those Grunts had been hiding, but it seemed that they were ready to fight now.

Just as the cave was nearly clear of Loyalists, a swarm of Yanme'e came through a door. Most of the Drones took to the air but found that there just wasn't a lot of room to maneuver in the cramped area.

The Grunts took out most of the Yanme'e but Mntis 'Kotoree was the one who killed the Drone Leader.

The Separatists went through the door where the Drones had come from. They went down a series of hallways, some littered with the corpses of Unggoy and Sangheili. They occasionally checked to see if any were still alive, and got quite a surprise when they found that one of the Grunt Minors had been faking death. It was difficult, but they were able to persuade the scarred Unggoy to join them. The scared Minor ended up sticking very close to Curlap.

The Covenant Separatists fought a few small groups of Jackals and Skirmishers in the rooms connected by the hallways, though it was nothing that they couldn't handle.

They at last came upon a room filled with weapons amongst the bodies of the dead. Yayap took a purple fuel rod gun and Mehmep acquired a gold fuel rod cannon.

The Separatists made their way back outside to the jungle. A quartet of Jackals greeted them as they walked out into the sunlight, and the Kig-yar were promptly killed.

They only traveled but a few meters further when a Brute driving a Ghost barred their way. Yayap led his target and fired, but had aimed a bit too far ahead. The Ghost drove into the blast, causing it to somersault and eject its pilot. 'Balatee filled the Brute with needles from his newly acquired needle rifle.

As the Grunts got closer to the flipped Ghost a team of Skirmishers intercepted them. 'Kotoree headshot the first three Skirmishers with his carbine. The instant deaths of their comrades didn't faze the remaining Skirmishers in the slightest, but the power of Deadside did.

Yayap and Zakap flipped over the Ghost. "You want it?" Zakap asked.

"Sure," Yayap gave his friend the fuel rod gun and took control of the Ghost.

Yayap led of the way, and quickly discovered a pair of abandoned Ghosts. Gagaw and Nomnom took these. They heard sounds of battle nearby and pressed onward.

The Grunts came across a clearing where Jiralhanae and Kig-yar fought against Sangheili and Mgalekgolo. The massive amount of Separatists from Yayap's group prompted some Unggoy to come out from hiding in the bushes to join in on the fight.

A Brute jumped on top of Gagaw's Ghost but Yayap was able to shoot him off before the Jiralhanae could steal it. Yayap turned his Ghost to the left and boosted forward, trying to run down a Minor Jackal. The Kig-yar dove out of the way just in time, but Yayap was easily able to gun him down with the Ghost's plasma cannons.

Mehmep and Zakap fired their fuel rod weapons at a Brute Captain Ultra that had control of a shielded plasma turret. The Brute abandoned the turret right before it blew up but was killed by Deadside's needler cannon.

"Forward! Keep pushing forward! Show theses scum what Unggoy can do!" Curlap ended up having to oversee the new Grunts their group had picked up along the way.

A lance of Jackals came in from behind Curlap's squad. Yayap turned his Ghost around and plastered straight through the Jackal group, smashed into and killing three. Curlap and the other Grunts were able to deal with the rest.

The battle was going poorly for the Loyalists. A frustrated Brute Minor had gone berserk, but was run over by Nomnom's Ghost.

A few of the Jackals tried to flee, but the Ghost-riding Grunts were easily able to chase them down and kill them. Before they were killed, the Kig-yar had tried to follow a shallow stream. Now the Separatists followed it. As they followed the stream the Separatists came across small groups of Skirmishers and Drones, all of which tried to flee before them. The Separatist group had grown too large for the small Loyalist patrols to fight.

Eventually the Grunts, Hunters, and Elites did come across a Loyalist force large enough to challenge them. A Specter filled with Elites and a Prowler carrying Brutes were already fighting one another.

Yayap, Gagaw and Nomnom drove in to help but were cut off by a pair of Brute Choppers. The Ghost-riding Grunts decided to focus on the Choppers rather than the Prowler.

Curlap and his squad of Grunts noticed a trio of Jackals that were picking on an Unggoy Heavy. Curlap and his Grunts rushed over, firing their plasma pistols and needlers. The trio of Jackals went down without even putting up a fight. The Grunt Heavy then took control of a nearby plasma turret and started firing at the Prowler.

A Brute Major wielding a brute shot took out two Minor Elites with one grenade, killing off the last of the Sangheili that the Separatists had picked up along the way. 'Kotoree headshot the Brute with his Covenant carbine.

The Brute Prowler ended up defeating the Elite Specter but the victory was short lived as the various Separatist Hunters took turned shooting at it until the vehicle was destroyed.

The last surviving Brutes and Jackals retreated down the stream all the way down until it emptied out into the sea. At the beach they made their final stand, and were slaughtered by the Separatists (though the Hunters did most of the killing).

Yayap abandoned his Ghost, it had taken a lot of damage and he didn't want to be riding it when it finally gave out. Just as Yayap dismounted, a Needler Wraith appeared from out of the jungle trees and approached the Separatists on the beach. Unlike the standard Wraiths that had a plasma mortar or the Anti-air Wraiths that had fuel rod cannons, the Needler Wraith was equipped with two needler pods that were perfect for destroying armored vehicles or aircraft.

The Needler Wraith didn't attack and neither did any of the Covenant soldiers. A moment passed, then the hatch on the Wraith opened up, revealing the one-eyed Grunt Ultra they met on High Charity. Soon Grunts and Hunters came out of the jungle where the Wraith had. The Separatists that had fled High Charity with them were all together again.

"You gave us a scare there," Curlap called out.

The other Grunt Ultra let out a chuckle. "You want it? I was never any good with Wraiths myself."

"Sure, I'll take it," Zakap said. Yayap ended up manning the Wraith's anti-infantry plasma turret.

The Grunts and Hunters now formed a small army. 'Kotoree and 'Balatee felt isolated. They were the only Elites in the whole group.

The Separatist army pushed along the beach, with the Needler Wraith leading the way. They encountered a few Jiralhanae-controlled Choppers, Prowlers, Wraiths, and Anti-air Wraiths, all of which the Needler Wraith was able to destroy with some help from the Hunters and two Elites. Gagaw and Nomnom also helped some but for Unggoy acting as infantry, the battles on the beach were more or less just a leisurely stroll.

Everything was going fine until the Separatists stopped coming across Jiralhanae vehicles. As mass of Jackals, Skirmishers, and Drones barred their way, led by a single Jackal Zealot, Yok. Needler Wraiths did not excel at killing individual infantry. Zakap did not immediately attack, instead waiting for all the infantry to catch up to the tank.

"You decided to stop running like a little bitch?" Yayap taunted Yok.

"You're all going to die right here and now," Yok was wielding a spiker.

"We'll just see about that," Curlap tossed a plasma grenade and started the fight.

The Needler Wraith opened fire, homing needles going every which way. The large amount of Drones that choked the air prevented the needles from getting a lock.

The attacks from the Hunters proved just as ineffective as the Jackals and Skirmishers all broke ranks and rushed the Separatists.

The Grunts, with help from the two Elites, ended up doing most of the killing. The Grunts' plasma pistols were perfect for shorting out the Jackals shields, and the handheld needlers were able to swat down the airborne Drones.

Yok fired his spiker in vain at a Red Hunter. He had to dive out of the way when Gagaw tried to run him over. Nomnom then took his turn at trying to run over the Zealot with his Ghost. After avoiding Nomnom, Yok had to run from Mehmep and a Gold Hunter that had targeted him.

The Jackal Zealot ran right into the fighting mass of Jackals and Grunts, trying to avoid any more attention to himself. Yok hoped he wouldn't attract any more heavy weapons with so many Grunts nearby. And he was right, the only things he had to worry about were a few needler rounds and plasma pistol bursts. Nothing his shield couldn't handle. But Yok knew his side couldn't win the fight unless he did something about the Needler Wraith. It wasn't being very effective, but his team had no weapons with which to destroy it. So Yok took it upon himself to get rid of the tank's occupants. He ditched his spiker and activated his energy cutlass.

Yok ran for the Needler Wraith, but Yayap saw him and tried to gun him down. The few rounds that did hit only impacted on the Zealot's wrist shield. Yok got to the Wraith and ran up the front of the tank. Yayap got out of the gunner seat to avoid being cut up but Yok stopped him from jumping off the Wraith. Yok tried to stab him but Yayap caught the Jackal by his sword arm and wouldn't let go. The two struggled for a hectic moment, neither of them able to overpower the other.

Gagaw was still driving his Ghost about the beach battlefield when he saw Yayap grappling with Yok. He took careful aim and sent of short stream of plasma towards the Zealot. The shots hit Yok, sending the Jackal tumbling off the Wraith. Though the Zealot still hadn't let Yayap go, so the Special Ops Grunt went down with him.

When they hit the sand they finally separated. Yok had dropped his cutlass. Yayap and Yok both got up off the sand at the same time, and both were unarmed. They eyed each other for a brief moment and then both of them dove for the energy cutlass lying in the sand.

Luckily, Yayap was closer to the cutlass and managed to grab it before Yok, though the Jackal was upon him the moment he had the weapon in hand. They struggled again, Yok trying to get the weapon back. A wild shot from a plasma pistol hit Yok in the leg, but the Jackal came at Yayap again.

But Yayap had caught Yok right in the beak with the cutlass from an uppercut. Yok stumbled back, no longer able to speak normally. There were only sputtering squawks as the Kig-yar tried to curse the Unggoy. Yayap plunged the energy cutlass deep into Yok's chest, and the Kig-yar fell over dead.

Not long after Yok's death, the rest of the Loyalists had been defeated. When the last Kig-yar fell the Unggoy cheered and congratulated one another on a battle well fought. The Hunters gave out victory roars. 'Kotoree and 'Balatee even joined in, the two Sangheili were impressed that they were able to do so well with only two Elites on their side. Yayap caught a lot of praise for killing Yok, the Zealot leader of the enemy group. The short celebration died down and the Separatist army continued their journey across the beach.


Natarus and his Brute Stalkers had infiltrated the Sangheili ship through the hangar and had been fighting their way to the command bridge. The Elites fell and the Grunts fled before their mighty strength and skill. The Brute pack had been fortunate enough not to encounter any Hunters so far.

When the Brutes finally did reach the bridge, they merely had to walk through the doors and they opened automatically. Natarus couldn't believe the Sangheili were so stupid that they couldn't lock the doors to the bridge. Though the Jiralhanae realized that the Sangheili wanted them to reach the bridge. The Shipmaster and the command crew had their weapons ready. They were well aware that the Jiralhanae squad had been wreaking havoc throughout their ship and they were itching for some payback.

Naturally, Natarus took on the Shipmaster himself. The Elite charged at him with energy sword drawn, but Natarus didn't have his spikers out at the ready. Natarus chose to fight unarmed. When the Elite swung his sword, Natarus caught him by the wrist mid-strike. Natarus then twisted the Elite's wrist, breaking it. The Sangheili tried to stumble back but Natarus wouldn't let go. He grabbed one of the Elite's mandibles with his free hand and ripped it off. Natarus finally released the Elite, grabbed his energy sword, and shoved in through the Shipmaster's skull.

Natarus' Brute Stalkers likewise decimated their Elite opponents, though not in such a bloody fashion as their leader had done.

The Elites were dead and the bridge was taken. Several Brutes assumed control of the computer consoles while Moartorus and Boartorus guarded the doors in case more Elites tried to retake the bridge. Natarus tapped a few buttons and opened up a communications channel with the Jiralhanae.

"Shipmaster, we have captured the enemy's command bridge," Natarus reported back to the leader of the Jiralhanae cruiser he had previously assisted.

"Good work," a gruff voice came back through. "Lock a collision course for enemy cruiser marked zero-three and report back to my ship immediately."

"But sir, what about the other strike team?"

"They're taking too long. I've ordered them to retreat. We're short on time. We must hurry and follow the Prophet of Truth to Earth. I will not allow our holy hierarch to be without a proper escort."

"Understood. Setting collision course. We will report back immediately."

"Good. Make haste or I will leave you behind."

Natarus wondered why he wasn't being left behind but realized that the Shipmaster knew his value as a warrior and would spend the time to reacquire such a skilled Jiralhanae. Natarus had, after all, taken a Sangheili cruiser with just a single squad of Brute Stalkers.

The Brutes locked in the course and abandoned ship. As their Phantom returned to the Brute ship, Natarus was unable to view the collision between the two Sangheili cruisers. He knew the explosion must have been spectacular and that it was a military marvel that the mission was a success, but he still wished that he saw the destruction of the two cruisers with his own eyes.


The Grunts traversed the beach until the came across a motionless Scarab pointing towards an island out in the sea. There were several Grunts and Hunters idling about underneath the Scarab.

"What is that place?" Yayap asked a Grunt Ultra, who he assumed to be the leader of the group.

"I dunno," the Ultra Grunt answered. "Many Sangheili and humans went there though, chasing after some Jiralhanae."

"Humans?" Mehmep asked. "With the Sangheili?"

"That's where we gotta go," Zakap said.

"Why we gotta go there?" Nomnom asked.

"Cause there's nothing left to kill here," Zakap answered.

"How are we gonna get there?" Gagaw pointed at the water separating them from their new target destination. "I can't swim."

The answer to their dilemma appeared in the sky. One of the Phantoms they had used to escape from High Charity had swung around and landed. Some of the Separatists loaded up and flew over to the large door the Scarab had blown open.

They slowly made their way through the smoldering wreckage. The Scarab had certainly done a good deal of damage. They reached an area that had been untouched by the power of the Scarab, but noted that there were bloody Jiralhanae bodies scattered about everywhere.

They went through another hallway and came to the Control Room. The Grunts walked along a straight walkway that abruptly dropped off. From the edge they could see a three-floor structure with a gravity lift in the middle. There were corpses of high-ranking Sangheili and Jiralhanae all over the place, the mighty Tartarus among the dead.

Though Yayap noticed that the Arbiter was still alive, as well as two humans and the Oracle.


Author's Note: I played the levels Uprising and The Great Journey from Halo 2 to get a feel of how this chapter would go.

I got the idea for a Needler Wraith from playing Halo Wars. The turrets that protect the Covenant bases can be upgraded with either a plasma mortar, fuel rod cannons, or needlers. The regular Wraith has a plasma mortar and the Anti-air Wraith has fuel rod cannons, so I decided that it is entirely plausible that there could be a Needler Wraith.