The Reclamation. Chapter 10: Understanding the Enemy

John stared at the holo table and watched the Precursor attack unfold as his new ship the Seedling Star sped towards the colony Talista.

What are they doing? Why are they attacking this way? The Chief didn't expect to fully understand an enemy as old as the Precursors, but their methodology and behavior didn't seem logical. Why the random Slip Space events? Why the attack on Meridian and then the silence? And why were they moving so slowly on Talista? He assumed that if the Precursor's wanted, they could have overwhelmed the planet already. And though there were thousands of them, it seemed to John there could have been hundreds of thousands.

He tried to dig back into his memory to see if he could find something in his past which would help him understand. As Bornstellar he never fought Precursors, but he fought violent Flood attacks encouraged and sometimes directed by the Precursors.

All the Chief got from his memories was fragmented images and an overwhelming feeling of desperation. Though he was grateful Bornstellar's memories weren't invasive and he still remained somewhat himself, it was damn inconvenient he couldn't remember things without a specific sensory trigger.

He sighed, still feeling that same desperation. Desperation is what drove the Forerunners to activate the Halo array.

Whatever happens, we can't do that again.

"Exiting Slip Space," Mendicant Bias' process reported from the ship. John used the holo table to direct his Promethean soldiers down to the planet below.

"Mendicant Bias, can you copy your processes onto the Picket Class?"

"Yes, Bornsteller."

"Good. Do so and take the Seedling Star out of orbit. Await for my signal to come back and pick us up." Though the Seedling Star was the most advanced of the Forerunner's fleet it had been serving as the council's personal ship and it's weapon systems were configured for space combat only. There was no sense in leaving the ship sitting in high orbit if they were not going to use it for combat.

"Understood."

The Chief turned towards Blue Team. "Ready?"

They nodded in unison and began walking towards the Seedling Star's hanger bay.

"We should name the Picket Class ship," Kelly commented.

"Have any ideas?"

"How about…the Phoenix?" Kelly said smiling. "It's fitting, I think."

John smiled to himself. "The Phoenix II it is."

"Mendicant Bias?" John said as soon as they had gotten on board.

"I am here Bornstellar."

"Once we are on the surface I want you to provide air support."

"I understand," he said.

John activated the Orbis and asked it to show him a map of the Talista colony. "Blue Team, our primary objective is to get any remaining civilians to their space port and get them off the planet. The Prometheans will handle the bulk of the Precursor's forces, stopping them just outside this area," the Chief said pointing. "One we've taken care of the civilians we will focus our attack on the remaining Precursors."

"Acknowledged Chief," Fred said nodding.

"There are still more of them than us and the Prometheans, so watch your backs while taking care of the civilians. Let's go."

The Spartan's jumped off the ship and split up. "Alert me when you've finished your sweep."

Hopefully some of these people were able to get off planet, he thought.

John kept his Suppressor up and walked through the streets. Though his new armor made him immune to any human attack, he didn't know how strong the suit would be in regards to the Precursors. The Forerunners were tough, but even they were not immune to the Flood. John imagined it would be similar. He would last longer in an attack, but if he wasn't careful, he could be overrun. I need to act as though nothing has changed.

A Magnum shot went off to his left harmlessly bouncing off of his Combat Skin. John turned and saw a man standing there with the gun pointing at him. "Stay away from me!" he screamed, continuing to shoot.
John held out his hand and gently wrapped a gravity field around the man to hold him in place. He wiggled and tried to scream as John walked over to him.

The Chief disengaged his head piece. "It's alright," he said as gently as possible. "I'm not going to hurt you. I'm here to help."

The man looked into his eyes, confused. "Who are you?"

John released the gravity field. It was a question he wasn't entirely sure how to answer. Who was he exactly? 117, soldier, squad leader, Master Chief, John, Bornstellar, Didact, mostly Human, slightly Forerunner, and all of him was colored by grief and his bond with Cortana.

That's why Forerunners have such long names, he mused. How can you sum up a person in one word?

John looked into the eyes of the bewildered man. It would be a better idea to keep his first identity concealed.

"You may call me Bornstellar," he said seriously.

"Bornstellar," the man mused. "Are you...human?"

"Mostly."

"Did the UNSC send you?"

"No. Tell me what's been happening. We don't have much time."

"About forty minutes ago we saw a massive slip space rupture come on our scanners, and those things came out of it. The Slip Space disturbance didn't destroy anything, so we sent a carrier over to see what had happened after we lost contact. They were all gone."

"Dead?" John asked.

"No, gone. There were no bodies, no anything. It was as if…they never existed."
"Listen to me very carefully. You've got to order a planet wide evacuation. I have a small team here, but it will be a few hours before the rest of my fleet arrives. We'll do what we can, but I would be lying if I thought we could protect you all."

"It's disabled a number of our ships already," the man said. "So far we haven't been able to get anything off the ground."

"Get your people out of here, and we'll do our best to cover you. I'll send the ship I have to escort you off the

planet."

"Yes sir."

"Mendicant Bias I need you to take the Phoenix and cover these people as they evacuate."

"Affirmative."

"Bornstellar," the man said. "Look."

In the distance, John saw a Flood Precursor Form crawling its way towards them. John blasted it with the Suppressor. "Hurry," he said to the man.

The Chief ducked down an ally way and began to jog past several apartments. A light began to blink on his HUD, so he opened the door and walked inside. He attempted to keep his head down, but he was too large to fit in a standard human home. His head broke an overhead light and he ended up breaking a table trying to move past. John made his way up the stairs, following the tracker on his suit. He walked through the sleeping area and opened the closet door.

Huddled in the corner was a small child, about seven years old hugging her knees. Tears stained her face, and her eyes were squeezed shut.

John felt multiple emotions at once. He felt anger this small child was left alone, that her home was being destroyed and he felt grief over the loss of his own children.

Very carefully he knelt down next to her and disengaged his head piece again. "Hello," he said softly.

The little girl opened her eyes and when she saw him, she scooted back.

"I'm not going to hurt you," he said in the same tone. "I promise."

She nodded slowly, continuing to squeeze her knees.

"Where is your family?"

Her lower lip quivered and fresh tears began to fall. "I...don't…know," she said between sobs. "I was playing with…my friend outside. I…went…to the bathroom and when I came back, my friend and her mom were gone," she continued crying. "Is it my fault?"

John was horrified. "No, of course not. I'll try and help you find your parents but we can't stay here."

She nodded.

"It's scary out there," he said quietly. "But I need you to be brave. Think you can do that?"

The small child nodded again.

"Okay. I'll carry you."

She reached her arms out to him. The Chief picked her up and he began to make his way outside.

She's so fragile. What if we get into a firefight?

"See this?" he pointed to his armor. "It's my armor which protects me. I'm going to tell it to protect you, so don't be scared. Ready?"

"Ready," she whispered.

John told his armor to shift some of the pieces on his body and to cover the small child he was carrying. She wasn't completely protected, but it was better than her being exposed.

The Chief took off running, and began to run faster than he ever had before. Because of the Forerunner technology he was now faster than Kelly. He saw a large Precursor and switched directions running down a different street. He needed to avoid getting into a fight. Not only was he running with a small child, but his left side was now exposed due to his armor adjusting.

The little girl remained quiet and as they made their way through the streets. John saw several Flood Forms closing on his position. He took out his Bolt Shot and began to shoot while he ran. The armor began to adjust, moving pieces from his back to his side on account of where the threat was.

The Flood Precursor's screamed and dissipated.

"We're almost there," he told the little girl.

John once again changed direction and ran down a parallel street. The way was blocked with Debris, so John began to scale a nearby building. He pulled himself up with his left arm, grunting under the strain. He felt the little girl's arms tighten around his neck as they climbed. John pulled himself up atop the building and looked out. He saw the staging area for the civilians with several large ships.

"See that?" he said. "We're going to look for your family there."

She adjusted her head and looked the same direction as he was looking. "I'm scared of heights."

"We'll be on the ground in less than one minute," the Chief said looking down from the building.

"How?"

John didn't answer her question, instead he leapt off the side of the building and landed with a thud. "Like that."

"Hold your fire! It's the man I told you about," he heard someone say behind some fortifications. The same man John had seen in the street stepped out, holding an Assault Rifle. "Bornstellar, we didn't expect to see you here."
"I'm helping..." he looked down at the girl he was carrying. "What's your name?"

"Anna," she said softly.

"…Anna find her family."

John knew it was safe and he could disengage the armor pieces, but he still felt very protective of this little girl. He didn't want any harm to come to her.

"We can take her Bornstellar," the man said.

Anna squeezed his neck again, indicating she didn't want to be left alone.

"I can spare a moment," he said.

"I've got a list of separated family members, let me see what I can do."

They waited in silence and John watched the chaos around him. Some people were crying, others looked as if they had no emotions at all.

"I've located her Father," the man said coming back. "He is helping civilians get on a transport. We can take it from here."

"You hear that? They found your Dad," John said as the armor disengaged from around her body.
She looked up at him, her bright shining brown eyes locking with his own. "Was I brave?"

"Tell your Dad you were the bravest girl I've ever known," he said seriously.

She smiled, and pushed her hair out of her face. Then she scooted up and whispered in his ear, "Thank you,Master Chief."

He froze. "You know who I am?" he murmured.

"We listened to Mr. Giraud's messages. He told us about you. He said you were forced to be a soldier when you were smaller than me. Is that true?"

John paused a moment, debating. He wasn't sure what she meant by "Giraud's messages," but he decided it wasn't important. What was important was the truth. "Yes," he whispered back. "But I'm okay with it."

She furrowed her eyebrows and cocked her head. "Why?"

"Because if that hadn't happened I wouldn't be here to help you."

Her eyes widened and she nodded. She kissed him on the cheek and John felt his heart melt. He set her down.

"Goodbye, Anna."

"Goodbye."

She took the hand of the man, and began to walk off, looking back at him.

"Bornstellar," another man said from behind him.

John turned to face him and saw he was with Thirty men. "Yes?"

"I'm Mac, leader of the resistance here on Talista. We'd like to join the fight."

John winced. Their gear was in bad shape and they would have no protection against the Precursor's.

"That gear won't protect you from the enemy."

"We know sir, but this is our home, and we won't run like fucking cowards."

John nodded. "You have coms?"

"Yes sir."

"Blue Team, we've got several men here who are wanting to join the fight. Please refer to me as Bornstellar on the shared channel. We'll also need to change our code signs."

"Acknowledged."

John asked his suit to find their frequency, and then adjusted his and Blue Team's to match.

"Coms check."

"Can hear you loud and clear Bornstellar," Mac said. "What's our orders?"

"Gray Team, what's your status?"

"Doing a final sweep for civilians. The AI's are doing their job, but more enemy targets are breaching the zone."

"Acknowledged."

John disengaged the Orbis and activated it so he could show Mac the status of the battle. Blue Team was scattered, but the fighting was forcing them to converge their positions. He zoomed in and said to Mac, "take your team South West. You'll find my AI's engaging the enemy there. They can give hover above you and give you shields, so please don't shoot them. We're going to force the enemy to clump together, making it easier for my ships to target them. If all goes well we can save at least a portion of the city's infrastructure."

"Best instructions I've heard all day. You heard him! Let's go!"

The Chief made his way back into the combat zone. He still had 40 minutes until Mendicant Bias came with reinforcements.

John saw another large Precursor Form stop about 8 meters in front of him. It had 2 claws for feet, 2 claws for hands and towered above him. It's piercing red eyes stared at him, as if it was waiting for him to do something.

They're observing us, he realized as a sense of dread came up from the pit of his stomach. These aren't random attacks, nor should they be considered attacks. They're testing us, no more, no less. They are gauging our strengths and weaknesses, and seeing how we respond under the pressure of battle.

John switched the Suppressor with the Scattershot and blew its head off. How are we going to survive when they come for us with the full force of their army?

He didn't know the answer. But every shot and every strategy was another piece of data the Precursors could use when they calculated their main assault.

Our memories are not in the Domain, he realized shooting another Precursor. They have to get information the old fashioned way. But if we get to the Domain, we might find something out about them.

Bornstellar," Mendicant Bias' subroutine said, "the humans are safely away. I am coming down with the Phoenix to provide air support."

"Good. Keep forcing the Precursor's into a clump." He saw the ship go overhead.

"I'm getting pinned down Bornstellar," Fred said over the coms. "Could use some additional help."

John activated the Orbis. Fred was in an area with the heaviest Precursor activity and he was getting pushed back. Though the Prometheans were a formidable force, there was still a lot less of them than the Precursor's. "Wolf, Rabbit, meet me at these coordinates."

"Time to give em hell," Linda replied.

"Bornstellar to Phoenix, we're going to need more ammo."

Linda and Kelly were waiting for him at the Rendezvous position and were standing next to a fresh crate of weapons. John reloaded his Suppressor and his Scattershot.

"What is this?" Kelly asked John holding a massive Forerunner weapon.

"That is a Incineration Cannon."

"Sounds fun," Linda commented.

"Only one way to find out," Kelly said putting in her shoulder. She swiped the smile gesture across her helmet.

"Phoenix, this is Bornstellar. Divert Watchers to our position. We will need some cover."

"Understood Bornstellar."

John, Linda and Kelly took off running towards Fred's position with several Promethean Soldiers beside them.

John pointed his Suppressor at a swarm of Flood Forms and fired. A Promethean phased out, then phased back in next to a larger Precursor Form, killing it with the energy sword. The Chief ran ahead of the group, spraying down the thickest concentration of the enemy. John looked up at some of the buildings next to him. They were small, and he could easily get the high ground. He jumped and scaled the building, able to throw caution to the wind. When he was carrying Anna the Chief wasn't willing to take any risks. Now, he could.

I wonder how the Forerunner suit would Ground Pound. John smiled to himself and jumped off the building, fist first into cluster of Precursor's. They screamed, and flew backward, while the buildings on either side rumbled and collapsed. A Promethean Soldier phased out next to him.

"Woah! Easy there Chief!" Kelly called from behind him.

"Sorry."

"Sorry? You'll get us killed if you keep that up," Linda said in an amused tone.

John gunned down the remaining Precursor's.

"Bornstellar, I'm almost out of ammo," Fred said.

"Phoenix, reroute a Promethean and bring the Lion more weapons," the Chief said.

"Understood," Mendicant Bias' processes said. "What do you need?"

"Light Rifle, though some kind of turret would be helpful."

John spun to his left and switched to his Scattershot, shooting a Precursor and killing it. This type of weapon was a lot more helpful in close quarters. His HUD began to alert him.

"Multiple enemies ahead. Go Rabbit!"

John put his fist to the ground and steadied himself. Kelly ran up his back, jumped over him and fired the Incineration Cannon. A Watcher flew overhead and shielded her from the blast as it took out multiple enemies and the building next to it.

"Now you're the one that's going to get us killed," the Chief said lightly. He heard Linda laugh.

"I like it," Kelly said putting the weapon on her back and taking out her Bolt Shot. She fired.

John smiled inside his helmet, pleased he was able to make a joke. Normally he would have kept his thoughts private in the name of maintaining leadership. But he knew that was a poor excuse to keep himself isolated from the people who really mattered. They were family, and it was time he started allowing himself to treat them as such.

"How are you holding up Lion?"

"Had to move to the top of the building I'm on, but I'm good."

"Mac, what's your status?"

"We're doing alright Bornstellar. We've had a few casualties, but we're holding our position."

"Do you need anything?"

"Refreshments."

"Acknowledged."

"Understood Bornstellar," said Mendicant Bias' process.

"Bornstellar, I see Lion," Linda said.

John looked up and saw his brother perched on the building. "Let's clear out the enemy so Lion can join us."

"Holy shit!" Mac said through the coms. "What the hell are these weapons made out of Bornstellar?"

"They're made of light," John said seriously.

"Yeah? You'll have to tell me about where you came from some time."

Not likely, John thought sadly.

"Bornstellar!" John turned toward Linda who held her right hand behind her. The Chief knew what she was doing, so he tossed the Scattershot to her. She killed a slow moving Precursor From that was lumbering towards her and then tossed it back to him.

"Bornstellar this is Dreadnaught one and two. We are here and understand your position," Mendicant Bias said over coms.

John stopped and activated the Orbis. He saw the status of the Precursor army and was pleased they had (for the most part) gone where he hoped. "Good timing," he said to Mendicant Bias. "Tactical assessment."

"Your plan has succeeded, ready to fire on my mark."

"Mac, my reinforcements have arrived. You need to get out of the kill zone."

"Understood Bornstellar, though we may have some trouble."

John asked the Orbis to show him the rebel forces. He frowned. They were completely surrounded.

"Dreadnaught, do you have Phaetons with you?"

"Yes."

"Send them to these coordinates, get those men out of there."

"We need to get out of here," he said to Blue Team. "Lion we're coming to you. Dreadnaught, send us a Phaeton."

"I'll take point," Kelly said.

She ran ahead and Blue Team made their way up to the top of the building Fred was on.
John stepped out of the building, and saw Kelly had already made her way toward Fred. She bumped shoulders with him and swiped the smile gesture across her face.

A Phaeton landed on the roof, and Blue Team got inside. "Once we're clear Dreadnaught, fire."

John turned and looked back. A white light came streaming down towards the city and obliterated the section the Precursor's had been inhabiting.

"97% success," Mendicant Bias reported.

"Send the other Phaetons and remaining Prometheans to track down the rest of the Precursor's. In the meantime, I need to rendezvous with Mac and his team."

The Phaeton changed course and the Chief turned off his coms. "I'll need to meet with them alone."

Fred nodded, and John knew he understood why. The rest of Blue Team still looked like Spartan II's.

John jumped off the Phaeton and walked over to Mac. There were only four of his men standing with him. "How are you?"

"Well, those things don't shoot, but if they get close to you…" his eyes looked away.

"I understand."

"What are they Bornstellar?"

The Chief sighed. "They're an extremely old race called the Precursors."

"What did we do?"

John was beginning to have some idea as to why they had returned, but he couldn't explain it to a man who knew nothing of the bigger picture. John laid a hand on his shoulder, but said nothing.

"Bornstellar," Mendicant Bias said in his ear. "We may have won this battle, but the humans have located the other Guardian. We need to hurry."

"I must leave. I am needed elsewhere, but I will leave a few of my Prometheans behind."
Mac nodded. "Thank you."

John turned and climbed aboard the Phaeton. "I will meet you aboard the Seedling Star," Mendicant Bias said.

Whatever happens next, it won't be this easy, John thought.

Author's Note.

T-4 weeks until the game is released, and I can hardly wait. I'm also really looking forward to sharing with you all the rest of the chapters of this little story. It was short, but it's been a fun ride. I hope I will surprise you. I think I will. :-)

I have to talk a moment about the opening cinematic mission to Blue Team's mission 343i released a few days ago. If you don't want to know what happens, stop reading. SPOILERS.

I was so surprised and proud of 343i for opening it on such a somber note. What a stark contrast to Osiris' Avenger cinematic. Don't get me wrong, I loved Osiris' opening. Hell yeah Buck! However, Blue Team's opening was so gritty. The Chief staring at his helmet, then turning it over and tenderly dragging his thumb over where Cortana should be. That made me hurt. You've also got Blue Team in the back discussing the Chief's mental state. In those few seconds we got the past 8 months summed up in brilliant storytelling. The Chief isn't alright. He still feels her loss and has been pushing himself because he doesn't know what else to do. He's vulnerable, but he hasn't stopped being a bad ass.

It just made me feel protective of Blue Team. Osiris! GTFO and leave them alone. Do your awesome avenger thing, just don't go after the Chief. *Sigh*. Unfortunately, when one goes AWOL, there are consequences to those actions and even our big guy can't escape from them.

Kaestal- You would think right? Unfortunately this is the UNSC's MO. They left several of the Outer Colonies out to dry during the Covenant war. The Precursor's will have to do some more damage before they are willing to get involved.

Guest- thanks for being here! Hope you enjoyed the Battle.

Brown Cow- Thanks for the encouragement! I really appreciate it. For a while 343i wasn't showing any footage of Blue Team beyond their first mission which made me think the Chief might have gotten an upgrade. That theory has been squashed, but I still hope for a couple of my other theories to work out.

Ryan- it was epic. I had a friend who never played through Halo 4, so we decided we'd start playing, and then hours later finished it. Haven't done that in a long time! Also I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks the Chief needs a new suit. I've wondered if 343i is nervous about poking the bear and upset fans for changing something so iconic. The Chief isn't his armor though, at least in my opinion.

I'm planning on updating this thing every Friday until the game release, so see you all next week!