"Shepard, I'm glad to see you're no longer hung-over. I find myself in the unpleasant position of asking for your help," Miranda told him as he walked into her office. "I don't like discussing personal matters but this is important."
"Miranda, you're part of my crew. What do you need?" Shepard responded.
"Do you remember what I told you about my father building a dynasty? There was another reason that I went to Cerberus for protection," Miranda began as she stood up and walked to the porthole. "I have a sister, a genetic twin, and he's still hunting her. Cerberus has kept her safe until now. She's living a normal life on Ilium. Safe and hidden from my father."
"I'm guessing your father tracked her down," Shepard said. He could tell that this was going to hurt.
"Precisely, Commander. My sources indicate that he knows that she's on Ilium. I've tried to keep her hidden without impacting her life but I'm out of options. He's too close. I need to relocate my sister's family before it's too late," Miranda said.
"Is your sister's family okay with relocating? How much do they know?" Shepard asked.
"They know nothing. They're completely uninvolved. Normal even," Miranda told him.
"So are we talking a spouse and some kids?" Shepard asked.
"An adult couple and a teenage girl," Miranda said.
"Do we have to worry about the parents at all?" Shepard asked.
"They'll be fine," Miranda told him. She was hiding something.
"Miranda, I need to know everything so we can plan accordingly," Shepard told her.
Miranda sighed, "She's genetically my twin but she's sixteen years younger than me. She turns 19 in a week. The adult couple is her foster parents."
"I see," Shepard said. "What kind of resistance can we expect?"
"My father likes to use local mercenary forces. On Ilium, that means Eclipse," Miranda said.
"Okay so we can expect a lot of tech and Biotics when things go SNAFU. Luckily you're good with both and I can take care of most enemies with a simple charge. Who else should we take?" Shepard asked. They both came to the same conclusion at once.
"The Master Chief," Miranda said, beating him to the punch.
"It would give us another chance to see what he's got," Shepard agreed. "Oh and thanks for telling me about our stowaway. I would've hated to find out the hard way," Shepard said. The hard way here meaning when the new AI decides to vent the atmosphere into space and watch them asphyxiate.
They both went down to the Master Chief's area of the Hangar to find him outside of his armor and standing over a panting Grunt. "I may be bigger and stronger than any human you know but weak points are the same: joints, spine, major arteries, and the base of my skull. You have to find and exploit them. That's enough for today."
"Wrex told me to take him under my wing; I guess he asked you to teach him a few things yourself?" Shepard asked as Grunt got into the elevator.
The Master Chief shook his head, "Grunt is strong but reckless and wild. Pure strength won't always be enough. Our lives may depend on him one day."
Spoken like a true professional. "We have another mission we want to evaluate you on," Shepard said. The Master Chief nodded so he continued, "We're providing support for an extraction team sent for Miranda's sister's family. We expect to engage Eclipse mercenaries who are versed in tech and Biotic warfare. Miranda and I are going to be a distraction if necessary and we want you providing Guardian Angel support from a rooftop in case things get hairy. If it seems like we need direct support, you're to get in a sky car and move in ASAP."
"Understood," he said.
Shepard left but Miranda hung back a moment longer, "This mission is very important to me. Oriana is the only family I have."
"We'll protect her," the Master Chief said resolutely.
Miranda nodded, "We'll be at Ilium in two days. I promise that I'll do everything that I can for your friend."
"Thank you," he told her.
"I made a promise," she explained. Apparently keeping promises was something else that they had in common.
The Master Chief zoomed in on the sky car that Shepard and Lawson were taking. Earlier they had radioed that something had gone wrong but were sparse on details in case anybody was listening. The sky car was flanked by two gunships; the Master Chief quickly was about to shoot them down before Shepard radioed in, "Hold fire. We're going to see if we can't reason with them."
The Master Chief tapped his COM twice in acknowledgment. The sky car pulled over into a docking bay, giving the Master Chief a clear line of sight. Several Eclipse mercenaries stepped out of the gunships. One of them walked toward Shepard and Lawson.
"Since you're not firing yet, I trust you know who I am," Miranda said
"Yeah. They said you'd be in the car. You're the bitch who kidnapped our boss' little girl," the Master Chief heard the man respond over Miranda's mike.
"Kidnapped?" Miranda responded incredulously. "This doesn't involve you. I suggest you take your men and go."
"You think you've got it all lined up, huh? Captain Enyala's already moving in on the kid. She knows about Niket. He won't be helping you," The mercenary leader responded smugly.
"What do you mean, Niket won't be helping us?" Shepard asked. The Master Chief sensed something was wrong.
"Nothing you need to worry about. Nobody's going to get killed unless you do something stupid," the mercenary leader said. "You walk away now and the girl goes back to her father, and everybody's happy."
"Everybody but my sister… and me," Miranda said coldly.
"Should we be talking to Captain Enyala about this?" Shepard asked. While the Master Chief understood the need to gather intelligence, the man had already shown he wasn't willing to negotiate so he wasn't sure why Shepard didn't just signal for the Master Chief to kill him.
"You don't want to talk to the captain. She's not as polite as I am," The mercenary leader said. "She's the best commando I've ever seen. I've seen her tear people in half with her Biotics. And she's getting paid a lot to stop you."
"If she gets in my way, she'll never have a chance to spend it," a very unimpressed Miranda responded.
"You're not getting Miranda's sister. If you push this, it'll go badly for you," Shepard said. That was his cue. Remember: get your natural point of aim, slow and steady breathing, slow and steady squeeze.
"Captain Enyala ordered us to give you one chance to walk away. But this whole time we've been talking, my men have been lining up shots," the Mercenary leader said as his head exploded. Before the mercenaries could respond, a shipping container, previously suspended by a heavy chain, fell onto a half dozen mercenaries. Then they heard the sonic boom of two 14.5mm High Explosive, Armor Piercing Incendiary rounds. The confusion that followed gave Shepard and Miranda plenty of time to head for cover.
"Hey! Leave one for Miranda and me!" Shepard said half-joking over the radio. Sure enough, the Master Chief sent one bullet within an inch of the heads of the final two survivors, overloading their shields. They almost breathed a sigh of relief before they remembered too late that Shepard and Lawson were still active players on the field. One was thrown face first into a shipping container, breaking his neck. The other didn't even have time to think before an Omni-blade was driven through his neck at speeds only possible with Biotics.
Shepard and Miranda walked towards an elevator before Miranda picked something up off the ground. "Hang on, I've got one of their radios. I'll patch us in; see if we can get an idea of what we're up against."
"If Eclipse knows where Oriana is, they'll be moving in on her soon. We need to hurry," Shepard said
"Agreed. But I'm a bit worried about what the mercenary said," Miranda responded. "If they've gotten to Niket somehow, this is going to be harder than I'd planned. According to the specs I've reviewed, we'll need to cut through the cargo processing yard to get to Oriana."
"Can you tell me anything about the cargo processing yard?" Shepard asked.
"We'll be moving through conveyor systems. There'll be a lot of movement. Finding targets won't be easy so we'll need to stay sharp," she told him. "And these cargo transports carry hazardous materials so watch what you shoot at."
"Of course they are. Did you catch that, Guardian Angel?" Shepard asked. Why he had insisted on giving the Master Chief a code name that described his job exactly was beyond him. He simply tapped his mike in response.
"I hope your friend can be trusted," Shepard said although he had a feeling that it wasn't the case.
"Absolutely, Niket is one of my closest friends. I suppose that you could say that he was my only real friend," Miranda responded somewhat less confident than she'd intended to sound.
"Is there a chance your father could be using Niket to get to you?" Shepard asked.
"I'm sure that he's tried but Niket is one of the few people who understands what my father is really like," she was more confident this time. "I trusted him with my life when I ran from my father, Shepard. He wouldn't betray me now."
"Then let's go find Niket and Oriana," Shepard said. "Guardian Angel, we're taking an elevator to the cargo yard. I'm sending you the coordinates so you can get a better position." The Master Chief again tapped his mike in acknowledgement. Would it kill him to speak sentences now and then? Shepard thought. Bringing the Master Chief was less like bringing a companion on a mission and more like playing an RPG with God-mode unlocked. Still, he wasn't complaining as long as he could let the Master Chief loose on the Reapers and/or Collectors. The elevator ride was mercifully short. "Guardian Angel, are you in position?" Shepard asked.
"Negative. Stuck in traffic," the Master Chief responded. Shepard had forgotten about rush hour on Ilium.
"We don't have time to wait, I'll keep you updated on our movements so catch up when you can," Shepard told him. The Master Chief tapped his mike in acknowledgment.
Miranda saw them when Shepard did. "They're on the far side of the conveyor line. Time your shots!" Sure enough, the cargo containers would occasionally pass between the two groups.
The two of them took cover behind some shipping containers and lay down suppressive fire as they moved closer to get a better shot. Seeing an opening, Shepard attacked a cargo container marked "flammable, highly reactive" that was a bit too close to some mercenaries. Or perfectly close depending on your perspective. Between her Biotic Warp and his bullets sparking the container, the mercenaries found out too late what they were planning. This lead Shepard to wonder who exactly paid for Eclipse mercenaries. Does anybody with Biotic potential or technical prowess get in? Is there any kind of training period or screening process? A kid could read a book on infantry tactics and come out a better fighter than these guys.
The other mercenaries made sure to stay away from the containers that proved hazardous to their colleagues' health but several found bullets in their brains before they found suitable cover. An M-9 Tempest may not be the most powerful infantry weapon but at 900 rounds per minute, most shields would collapse in less than two seconds if he got every bullet on target. A little trick he had learned during N7 training was to use his Biotics whenever he fired a weapon so that he could resist recoil more. That and Cerberus' upgrades meant his normally inaccurate weapon may as well have laser targeting. The Alliance really needed to stop selling contracts off to the lowest bidder*. That meant that any time an Eclipse mercenary decided to stick their head out of cover, they would find themselves shorter by six or seven inches.
"This is Enyala, keep the bitch back. The kid is nearing the transport terminal," an Asari voice came over the radio. They needed to hurry. They moved down the hallway and kept pressing forward. A few mercenaries tried to ambush them with the help of a few mechs and found out what it meant to be on the wrong side of two very good, very angry Biotics.
"I don't care how many mechs you lose! Just stall them, damn it!" Enyala said. What a charming lady. They cut their way through another several dozen mercenaries, either using their submachine guns or Biotics to leave a trail of carnage that would do Jack proud.
"Master Chief, where are you?" Shepard asked as he and Miranda rounded a corner, coming face to face with two YMIR mechs. The mechs aimed their missile launchers at the duo so Shepard grabbed Miranda and used a Biotic Charge to get them behind cover. They immediately threw up a Barrier as their cover was destroyed by the hail of missiles. The Master Chief fell, like an Archangel, directly on the head of one of the YMIR mechs. His half ton mass falling from several hundred feet built enough momentum to crush the thing even if he hadn't made a point to drive his fist through the CPU, which was conveniently placed in the "head" for some reason. The other YMIR mech tried to level its machinegun at the Master Chief, only to have it batted aside with enough force to break a Krogan's jaw.
"Niket has reached the terminal. He'll switch the family over to our transport," Captain Enyala said over the radio.
Shepard and Miranda fired their SMGs at the thing but with that level of armor, they may as well have been throwing rocks but he didn't want to risk using a heavy weapon since the Master Chief decided to engage it in CQB. "Go on ahead. I'll catch up," the Master Chief told them. Understanding the urgency, they complied.
STG Operative 16807-G was running his routine scans over Ilium when he noticed some of the spy-cams weren't sending any signals. There was a lot of Electromagnetic Interference in the way. He sent a drone to investigate, only for it to stop responding as well. Something was seriously wrong so he sent another, this time, making it keep its distance. What he saw surprised him. An entire cargo bay looked to be the ground zero for a multi-ton bomb. What's more is that there seemed to be the sounds of a battle around the corner where the drone couldn't fly. 16807-G scrambled a STG recon unit to the site, hoping they can get there in time to figure what exactly is going on and who was involved. Just in case.
Sekok Volane moved into position as soon as he could. The trail of carnage was horrifying. Many of the bodies looked as if they had been shot with explosive projectiles. Others were missing limbs entirely and several shipping containers had exploded or been gutted, spilling their contents. The sounds of combat was getting faint; they had to hurry. He and his team ran as fast as they could while keeping their profile to a minimum to avoid detection. What they saw was… unnerving. A fairly large mech was ripping a YMIR apart with its bare hands. Mind you that this YMIR was twice the size of the other mech. Next to the two combatants, was another destroyed YMIR that looked to have been crushed by a tank. The green mech broke the YMIR's legs off and executed it with a stomp to the CPU before running off. The recon team tried to keep up but it ran fast enough to keep up with a sky car on a highway. The aesthetics were odd. The mech looked like it had been designed by a Krogan but with the shape of a human. Whereas most Council races had a sleek, pleasing appearance, this thing was bulky and tough like everything the Krogan built. As if it was made for the express purpose of killing Krogan. The weapons were also of a pre-contact Human appearance but as far as he knew, no human organization could build something like this.
One member of the team accidentally got too close to the mech. It turned around, drew its rifle and fired two bullets at the Salarian's head despite the cloaking he wore. It then walked towards the downed Salarian and looked around. The team drew their weapons in a vain attempt to defend themselves. The mech put one other Salarian down with two headshots before the surviving two members of the team opened fire and hit empty space as the mech moved so fast he seemed to teleport. Did it use Biotics? The thought of a Biotic mech was terrifying. Before he could ponder the thought, Volane saw the mech rip his teammate's head off with one hand and then shot Volane three times in the stomach.
"Niket? But… that can't be right. Maybe the captain knows we're listening in and she's feeding misinformation about Niket making a switch," Miranda said as Shepard pressed the button for the appropriate level on the elevator. "Or maybe it means something else. Niket wouldn't do that. Damn it, why won't this thing go any faster?" She used her Omni-tool to hack the elevator to move faster.
"What makes you so sure that Niket wouldn't turn on you?" Shepard asked.
"He could've turned on me when I ran away. I'm sure my father tried to buy him off. If he didn't do it then, why would he do it now?" Miranda said, still trying to convince herself.
"Did Niket know that you took Oriana from her father?" Shepard asked.
"No. He just found out about that recently. It was too personal to involve someone else. I never really thought about it, but maybe… no. He'd have to understand why I did it. He knows what I went through," she told him.
Shepard nodded, "You know him better than I do." They exited the elevator and heard voices.
"Listen to me. I've got authorization to change their booking!" Niket said to an Asari Transport Officer.
"I'm sorry, sir. We're under security lockdown. Until the situation in the cargo terminal is resolved, no passengers can be rebooked," the Transport Officer said in that way that let you know she'd been doing customer service for way too long and couldn't bring herself to care anymore.
"This isn't worth my time, Niket. I get paid regardless of how the girl gets there," Captain Enyala said.
"No! I was told that I could handle this my way. We're not traumatizing the family any more than we—" Niket saw Shepard and Miranda round the corner. "Miri…" he said as realization slapped him in the face.
"This should be fun," Captain Enyala said as she lifted a Claymore shotgun and aimed it at Miranda. It would've been comical to watch had they not been on the business end of it. Shepard and Miranda raised their pistols in response. The Asari Transport Officer tried to run, only to receive a shotgun blast in the back, mangling her entire body for her trouble.
"Niket. You sold me out," Miranda said in a voice Shepard hadn't heard in a long time.
"Your call, Miranda," Shepard said.
"Why, Niket? You were my friend. You helped me get away from my father," Miranda said
"Yes! Because you wanted to leave. That was your choice! But if I'd known that you'd stolen a baby—" he responded.
"I didn't steal her, I rescued her!" Miranda stated.
"From a life of wealth and happiness? You weren't saving her! You were getting back at your father!" Niket shot back.
"How did Miranda's father turn you?" Shepard asked.
"They told me that you'd kidnapped your baby sister all those years ago. They said I could help get her back peacefully with no trauma to the family. I told them that you'd never do that and that they could go to hell. Then you finally told me what you'd done. I called them back that night," he said.
"Why didn't you call me, Niket? We've been through a lot. You should've let me explain!" Miranda demanded.
"I deserved to know that you'd stolen your sister, Miri. I deserved to know you were with Cerberus. But I had to hear it from your father first," he said bitterly.
"How much did Miranda's father pay you?" Shepard asked.
"A great deal," Niket said.
"Damn it, Niket! You were the only one I trusted from that life!" Miranda said.
"He knew you felt that way. That's why he bought me," Niket said.
"So you just took his money," Miranda said disappointed.
"Don't get holy with me, Miri. You took his money for years," Niket said.
"Whether or not you agree with Miranda, Oriana has been with her family for years now," Shepard said to Niket.
"Her father can still give her a better life," Niket responded.
"You don't know what my father wants for her," Miranda said.
"I know that I've been poor, Miri. I didn't much care for it."
"He wants to take a girl away from the only family she's ever known. Doesn't that tell you something?" Miranda asked.
Meanwhile, Shepard tapped his mike, the Master Chief responded, "En route. Keep stalling."
"I knew Eclipse was willing to get their hands dirty but kidnapping a kid?" Shepard asked Captain Enyala.
"I'm not stealing her, I'm rescuing her. Come on, Niket. Let's finish this bitch off and get out of here." Enyala said.
"Take your best shot," Miranda said.
"If you're working for Miranda's father, that means he knows about Oriana. We need a new solution," Shepard said.
"Miranda's father has no information about Oriana," Niket said sadly. "I knew you had spy programs in your father's system, Miri, so I kept it private. I'm the only one who knows."
"That also means that you're the only loose end. This isn't how I wanted it to end, Niket. I'm going to miss you…" Miranda said as she began to pull the trigger.
Shepard made her point her gun away, "Miranda, wait! You don't want to do this."
"This has to end here, Shepard. My father will never stop trying to find Oriana," she told him.
"Maybe Niket can help… he can talk to your father and say that you got here first," Shepard said.
"I'll… I'll tell him that you hid her. That I don't know where she is," Niket said pleading.
"I never want to see you again, Niket," Miranda said as the air was filled with the sound of an Anti Aircraft cannon.
"Done. Now if you don't mind, I have a shipment to deliver," Captain Enyala said. Miranda used her Biotics to lift her up and launch her across the bay. The two of them were quickly surrounded by Eclipse mercenaries. Before any of them had a chance to open fire, a large crate was launched towards the largest group of mercenaries, crushing them. That gave Miranda the opening she needed to go after Enyala. Meanwhile, several Eclipse mercenaries discovered what happened on the wrong end of a .300 Winchester Super Magnum DMR. Namely that heads explode, limbs fly, and people scream.
One mercenary, a Salarian, ran as fast as he could in a random direction only to run face first into a green metal wall. He looked up to see a bronze face plate and realized that it wasn't a wall he had run into but some kind of mech. He didn't have time to process anything else before his skull was caved in by a large boot. The entire bay was filled with explosive ordnance as two Biotics and a walking tank unleashed hell on the mercenaries. The final mercenary was whimpering in the fetal position behind a crate as the Master Chief walked up to him.
"There could be more Eclipse mercenaries near the shuttle," Miranda said. "I want to make sure that Oriana and her family get on safely."
"Understood," Shepard said to her as they both watched the Master Chief walk up to them.
"I can't believe Niket sold me out," Miranda said as they got onto the elevator. "I didn't even see it coming."
"Even with all of your upgrades, you're human just like the rest of us," Shepard told her.
"But I let it get personal… and I screwed up," Miranda said, now on the verge of tears. Why didn't you let me kill him? I could've handled that. But watching him get gunned down by that Asari bitch…"
"Because you still cared for him, even if he betrayed you," Shepard said.
"You're right. And my father knew it. He used that against me. It's always been like this. My father gave me anything I ever wanted, but there was always a hook, an angle for his long-term plan. I threw away everything he ever gave me when I ran. Except Niket. Weakness on my part," Miranda said.
"You can't toss aside everything you care about just to be safe," Shepard said.
"It's okay, Shepard. My father hurt me, but he didn't break me. As much as he tried to turn me into exactly what he wanted, I'm my own person," Miranda responded.
"Any other old friends that your father might use against you?" Shepard asked, he really didn't want to go through this again if he could help it.
"No. I cut ties with everyone else. Anyone I'm close to now works for Cerberus… or you. My father's powerful but he won't cross The Illusive Man," Miranda said.
"You still have Oriana," Shepard said, trying to reassure her.
"My father didn't give her to me, I rescued her. But… yes. You're right. I still have something. Thank you," Miranda said.
A little while later, they checked the perimeter of the family. "No sign of Eclipse. It looks like we're clear," Miranda told them. "There she is," she gestured to a family with, impossibly enough, another girl who was as beautiful as Miranda. "She's safe… with her family. Come on. We should go."
"Don't you even want to say hello?" Shepard asked in a way that made it seem less like a question and more like an order.
"It's not about what I want. It's about what's right for her," she said. "The less that she knows about me, the better. She's got a family, a life. I'll just complicate that for her."
"She doesn't need any details, but would it really be so bad for her to know she has a sister who loves her?" Shepard asked. "Besides, something tells me that she's a brilliant young woman."
"I guess not," Miranda conceded.
"Go on… we'll wait here," Shepard told her. Miranda went to meet her sister.
Later, Shepard was talking to Joker in the cockpit. "So, Commander. You figure Miranda would ever lighten up a bit and…" they both burst into laughter, "I can't even finish saying it." Shepard left and told him to take care of himself. Shepard went to check on Miranda in her office.
"Thanks again, for taking the time to help me with my sister, Shepard," Miranda said as he walked in the office. "I couldn't have reached Oriana in time without your help." She stood up and walked towards the window. "I'm glad that Niket tried to redeem himself… for what good it did. Thank you for stopping me, Commander."
"Sounds like you had a soft spot for Niket after all," Shepard responded.
"I didn't have many friends. Niket was one of them. He never wanted anything from me. He was… safe. Comfortable. A reminder of a more innocent time, I suppose," Miranda said.
"Are you happy about your sister's relocation?" Shepard asked.
"She has what I wanted her to have—a normal life, and the freedom to choose her own path. And she knows she has an older sister. A friend," Miranda said.
"You never told me what you talked about," Shepard said.
"I introduced myself. Her family was shocked. She adjusted quickly, of course. She's as smart as I am. She plays the violin and loves the adagio movement of Nielsen's Fifth, just like I do. She wants to work in colony development. Told a joke about it; she's really funny which is something we don't share," Miranda explained.
"Are you going to talk to her again?" Shepard asked.
"I honestly don't know. For once, I haven't planned that far ahead. I'll deal with it after our mission, I have to stay focused, and she needs time to adjust to her new home," Miranda said.
"Okay, let me try this again. Miranda, you are going to talk to your sister when we accomplish our mission. Am I clear?" Shepard asked.
Miranda chuckled and mockingly saluted him, "yes, sir!"
"Good. Take care of yourself, Miri," Shepard grinned as he left her office. It took two full seconds for her to realize what had happened and he was almost to safety.
"You ass," she yelled at his back.
"Oh and one more thing," he said, risking safety a little longer, "I'm not the only one who helped; I think you should thank our big green friend.
"Of course, Shepard. The Master Chief and I already have an understanding but I'll make sure to thank him soon," she said.
"That actually reminds me: has TIM been on your case about getting your hands on certain technology?" Shepard asked.
"The Master Chief has agreed to give unclassified material over to us for now. TIM knows that mission accomplishment has to take priority and we'll see about classified material if we can save the Master Chief's friend. Either way it will have to wait. I told TIM that if we piss off the Master Chief, he may refuse to help or even turn actively hostile," Miranda explained.
"That's good. You know, I don't always agree with Cerberus, but I'm glad they have people like you. As much as I like pissing you off, I can't do this without you, Miri," Shepard said. Miranda lifted him up with her Biotics and kicked him out of her office.
The Master Chief was busy cleaning alien blood out of his gear when Miranda finished her report and came down to check on him. "Ma'am," he greeted her without looking up. He had to get all of the carbon fouling out of the weapon to keep it running at maximum efficiency. Normally this could be done with an Ultrasonic cleaner but he didn't have one at the moment so it had to be done old school.
"I just wanted to thank you for helping me with my sister. It means a lot to me," she said.
"You don't have to thank me," he said.
"Yes I do," she responded.
"You're helping me," he pointed out. She was about to get annoyed with his apparent inability to accept thanks before she realized that nearly three decades of constant warfare had probably taken its toll on his social etiquette.
"Would you like some help cleaning your weapons?" She asked.
"If you'd like," he said. Over the next hour, he instructed her in the basic maintenance for the M392 and SRS99 weapons systems. Naturally, she was a quick study and made a mental note to go over the manuals for them later. It should be unclassified and it's nowhere near breaking her promise. Who knows? She may even be able to offer improvements. The two worked in a comfortable silence.
He waa confused that she didn't leave right after they had finished. "I want you to spar with me," Miranda said. That explains it.
Anybody with military experience will tell you, Mil-Spec is a joke. Our stuff is constantly falling apart and past its shelf-life. That M4/M16 you were issued has been in service longer than your Gunny. That Humvee has about 2 million miles on it so watch as it falls apart every few miles. That plant you're working on? It has to be overhauled every five years or so if you're lucky. Oh and you're not allowed to upgrade or modify your gear in any way or you get an NJP.
Most information for the US Government and US Military is public domain. You can find the M16 and M4 operator's manual with a quick Google search. I figure that the UNSC is structured basically the same way so the small arms manuals should also be unclassified. Obviously there's OPSEC so we can't say where we're going and when but you'd be surprised what the Freedom of Information Act gives civilians access to.