Chapter 9: Survival and a Friend

At the ruins of the Insurrectionist Skyscraper, a green armored hand shot out from under a pile of rubble. The hand cleared away the debris around it to reveal a soldier with battered green armor with blue highlights.

Unknown to anyone in Project Freelancer, Agent Rhode Island was still very much alive. And mightily ticked off. He had noticed that the blast that shot through the building had undoubtedly belonged to the Mother of Invention's main cannon. No other blast was that big.

As his helmet fell off, he knew he couldn't show his face at the Project again. He ruffled his messy black hair and wondered if he should try to contact Carolina or somebody secretly and tell them what happened. But he decided against that. For all he knew, the Project monitored all radio messages by the Freelancers. It wasn't worth the risk. Plus, there was no way that he could break into the Mother of Invention without getting caught. He remembered what happened last time he tried stealth.

The best he could do is lay low until this war ends. Only problem was that he wasn't in the best condition. All he had was near broken armor, a near busted sniper rifle with no ammo, no money, no home, and he felt that his robot arm might be a bit loose. Even he hadn't started this bad after his family died.

Then he noticed a nearby building that was covered in dust by the skyscraper collapse. He looked closer and saw that it was an Insurrectionist ship port with dozens of perfectly fine Pelican ships in it. And all of those Pelicans had a year's worth of food in them. And nobody was in sight.

He smiled to himself, "There's my ticket out of here."

He hardwired the nearest one, raided the others, and took off. He thought about where to go and Earth's UNSC building was the first place that came to mind. He had to tell the Chairman what had happened. Only problem was that he had no proof.

So, he went to the only place he could go: his old home. He thought he'd never have to see the place again since he had made Project Freelancer his home. But it was all he had left.

XXX

When he arrived a year later (a Pelican can only be so fast), he visited the cemetery first to pay his respects.

"Mom," he said, "Dad. I know you probably can't hear me... But I miss you. Especially now. I have no one left..."

After that, he headed back towards where his old house used to be.

But where the house was, there was now a shack, smaller than an old gas station.

"What happened here?" He wondered out loud.

"I don't know," a female voice said behind him, "Why are you staring at my house?"

Rhode jumped and looked behind him. There was a girl probably five years younger than him with pigtails, freckles on her cheeks, and a yellow shirt.

"Ummm," he said, not sure what to say, "This used to be where my old house was."

"Well it's where my house is now," the girl answered, "So you better go now before I call someone."

"Umm, you can't arrest someone for staring at a house," he told her.

"What, are you a cop or something?" She asked, (A/N: I think you know who this is now) "Cause if you are, you have to tell me. That's totally a law or something."

"I'm not a cop," Rhode rolled his eyes, "And that's not a real law."

"Well if you're not a cop, then how do you know it's not a real law? Busted!"

"I'm not- I don't- You know what? I give up. Who are you?"

"Like I'm gonna tell you my name, COP!!!"

"I'm not a cop!" Rhode snapped, "My entire family died here, I've lost my new family, and I just want freaking answers!!"

She was silent for a moment, registering his words, "...Oh. Well, I'm sorry. I guess I understand. My dad's been dead for a while, my mom ran away to join the circus, and my brother is in the army."

"... Okay..." Rhode said, calming down a bit, also a bit confused by the circus comment, "Well, you can call me Rhode. What's your name?"

"Name's Kaikaina Grif," she said, now with a smile on her face, "But you can call me Sister!"

"Well... Sister," he said with a nervous grin, "When did you move here?"

"Well, me and my brother Dexter were on our own for a while before we built this. Well, I built it. He's a bit lazy."

"I bet," Rhode said, looking at the shack that could fall down at any second.

"We lived here for about a year until he joined the army. I think he went to this place called 'Blood Gulch'."

Rhode raised an eyebrow. He barely remembered hearing about a base called Blood Gulch. It was a simulation facility for Freelancers to practice. Her brother was most likely dead right now, but he didn't say that.

"Yeah, well," he said, "I'm actually ex-military myself. I guess you could say I'm deserting, even though everyone thinks I'm dead."

"Wow. Well, why haven't you told your friends you're alive?"

"...It's a long and complicated story."

"Hey! I got time. Nothing ever happens around here."

He didn't know why he told Sister, but he just did. He supposed it just felt good to let it all out.

When he finished, Sister asked, "Well, since you've had nowhere to go for a while, why don't you stay here?"

"Two reasons. One: I can't ask you to do that. Too nice. But thanks. And two: I've grown used to the Pelican I've been on. I'll be fine staying in that."

"Oh, okay. But if you need a place to stay..."

"I get it. Thanks."

XXX

And that's how it was for two years. Rhode stayed near Sister's house and the two talked like they were next door neighbors. Rhode managed to fix his armor and rifle, and get ammo and a pistol. But two years later, the war ended and Rhode was leaving.

"Do you really have to leave?" Sister asked.

"Yeah," he answered, "I've got to find my friends. They're out there somewhere."

"Okay... Well good luck with Carolina!"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Oh, nothing."

He gave a smirk and a two fingered salute and walked onto the ship. But when he turned on the ship, he intercepted a call that a base needed help. They addressed themselves as Blood Gulch Outpost Number One.

Rhode's eyes widened when he heard that. Then he looked at the spare closet and opened it. He never thought he'd have to use this extra suit of yellow armor, but now he had an idea. The trip would only take about five minutes too, since Blood Gulch was only one system away.

"Hey Sister!" He yelled, "You wanna see your brother again?"

XXX

"Okay," he said to Sister once she'd gotten her new yellow armor on, just minutes later, "Here's your story: You're part of Blue Team, you joined the army, heard the signal, took this ship, and arrived at Blood Gulch to replace their killed leader, Butch Flowers. You can improvise from there."

"Why aren't we telling them the truth again?" Sister asked, "And how do you know all that stuff?"

"Because I'm not sure if these guys are fond of Freelancers. I don't want to risk it. Also, I did some research on this ship. It took a bit of hacking, but I discovered a lot about these outposts."

They started their descent on the planet and Rhode pulled a lever for the landing gear. Nothing happened.

"Umm, Sister?" He called, "Strap in! Things are about to get crashy!"

They hit the ground with a big thud and Rhode's head hit the ceiling. Before he passed out, he heard two male voices say:

"Ship's here."

"Shotgun!"

XXX

And now Rhode has arrived in that bloody gulch! I'm scared I didn't get Sister's character right, but that shouldn't be a problem now, since this is the time she appears in the show. Till next time guys!