November 19, 2552

Underground, St. Louis, MO

1015 CST

Eric woke slowly, a dull headache throbbing from all sides. Several of the squad's statuses read greenish-yellow, but no one was seriously injured. A bright green light circled in his returning vision. "Great. I've got a concussion for sure."

"Oh my!" A female voice exclaimed, the light getting brighter. "You are alive! How wonderful to finally receive Reclaimers; after all this time!"

"And there are the voices." Thurson shook his head slowly, sitting up.

"You do not have a concussion, Gunnery Sergeant." Melissa assured him. "There is some manner of construct here with us."

A metal orb floated around Eric-the source of the green light. As his vision returned it seemed less harsh. Bits of rubble from the ship lay scattered around the squad, though the cryo-deck was not above them; Eric assumed they had either slid a distance or been moved. Faintly luminescent, grey metal surrounded them, lines and patterns of blue light decorating and illuminating the passageway they were in.

"Are you well, Reclaimer?" The orb drifted closer to Eric, tilting slightly and looking almost curious.

"I'm fine. Who, or what, are you?"

"Ah! But of course, how rude of me." It bobbed slightly, as though bowing. "I am 495 Breathless Wonder. I am the Monitor of Erde Tyrene, and the Custodian of the Sol Record."

Eric stood, a moment of dizziness passing. "Not a word of that made sense. You're the Monitor? What do you monitor?"

The monitor's central eye moved from side to side as she searched for an answer, momentarily confused at his question. "Why, this facility, of course, and indeed all facilities on this planet. Your kind has already accessed the portal to the Ark, though it was uncovered by a faction that calls themselves 'The Covenant'. Records show this is the first time in nearly 100,000 years that any Reclaimer has set foot in the Sol Record: the facility that we are in now."

Eric looked around as the remainder of the Helbound came to. "This is a record—like a library? What's it for?"

"It contains your legacy. Knowledge and locations of every artifact and technology left to you by my creators in this solar system."

"Initial scans indicate this facility is quite large." Melissa said. "Whatever is housed here would certainly be worth reporting."

"Oh, how marvelous!" Wonder said excitedly, picking up on Melissa's scans. "Your ancilla is quite advanced, compared to that of other species in this era. The Librarian prepared you well for the Reclamation across all spectrums of your biological and technological progress."

"Sounds like a peach," Hackett said, removing her helmet to rub the back of her head, "do we get to meet her? I could use some painkiller progress right about now."

Breathless Wonder drifted lower. "Sadly, no. Her location is unknown to me, though I believe that information has been intentionally removed as a failsafe against the Flood. But I would be happy to show you the Sol Record, when you are prepared."

Eric turned to the squad. "Gather yourselves ODST, take it slow. We'll find out just what this facility has for us when everyone's green."

Esa dropped to the ground, the gaping maw of the cryo-deck above him. It had been no small task for the Sangheili to climb down into the cavern, but with care and patience they had done so.

"Blood-kin, look!" The Zealot said, breathless, as he saw what lay before them. "Architecture of the Forerunners, here all this time. Perhaps this is what the Prophets sought on this world?"

Nosu scowled darkly. "Not just the San'Shyuum, but the Jiralhanae as well. Yet the humans have stumbled upon it, treading blindly along its shining paths before us all."

"It is not as though they intended to discover it, brother." Esa cast an odd look at his subordinate. "Even still, we know it is not blasphemy that they should be here. The Prophet's lies no long cloud our judgment."

"You are wrong." Nosu growled.

Esa snarled as plasma snapped behind him. He rolled to the side as Nosu's sword thrust forward where his chest had been. "'Vadam! Why?"

Nosu slashed to the side, the tip of his blade skating across the Zealot's energy shield. "To follow our Kaidon, fool that he is, was but a minor annoyance that I long endured to reach this goal. Yet to allow the humans this far, to tread the pathways of the gods, I can no longer ignore."

The Minor grunted as Esa kicked him away, activating his own sword. "To think that I took you under my tutelage, guiding you towards a path of honor!" He lunged towards Nosu, his blade flashing as it arced towards the Minor's combat harness. Sparks flew as his energy sword sprang backwards, throwing the veteran warrior off balance. "Impossible…"

Nosu chuckled. "Honor. Such has been the ideology that has weakened our people for far too long. Honor has blinded you, led you to believe that because of the colors I wear, I am your inferior."

He slashed towards Esa, growling in frustration as the Zealot blocked his cut. "Skill is not measured in colors or ranks, brother, this is the truth." He pressed a small device at his side, and both of their shields overloaded and burst. Before Esa could react, Nosu's energy dagger sprang into being, and he drove it into the other's side.

Esa roared in pain, clumsily elbowing the Minor away. He staggered back, clutching his side. The flesh was cauterized, but cracked as he moved and indigo blood seeped through his fingers. His training, his discipline—all ran from him with the blow of Nosu's betrayal and the unshakable shame of his blood being spilled. Suddenly he was on his back, the traitor looming over him as his energy sword skirted away.

"Look where honor has gotten you, Zealot." Nosu slowly pushed his blade into Esa's chest, piercing his first heart. The elder Sangheili roared weakly in pain, the breath pushed from his lungs with the heat of the blade. "You play lapdog to vermin, you forsake the gods, and now you will die short of their glory." His foot stomped down on Esa's hand as the Zealot reached feebly for his sword.

"The Bishop will reward me well for this, when I bring him the humans' heads. And yours as well, brother; proof of my conviction as a true Servant to the Abiding Truth."

"You…" Esa gasped, indigo blood now staining his mandibles, "will suffer for this. You will never make it from this place alive!"

Nosu moved his foot onto the Zealots chest, leering over him triumphantly. "Perhaps, perhaps not. The ships that I have alerted to this location, however, will see that neither do your human masters. Your failure will be proof to the incompetence of your Arbiter, and the folly of his treaty."

The Minor drove his energy sword through Esa's chest again, the Zealot screaming in rage and pain as his second heart was pierced. He pushed weakly against Nosu, soon perishing ashamed.

Nosu collected his sword, fastening both to his hips. "Would that you had seen the truth." He said, stepping over Esa's corpse. "It might not have come to this."

Eric took a look around the room they were in, making sure to record what he saw through his visor. As the squad recovered, Janissary swatted at Wonder as she circled around the Marine's head.

"Simply fascinating." The Monitor remarked. "You are most certainly human, yet your genetic structure is slightly more advanced than your companions."

Jan gave an exasperated sigh. "You can tell all that from looking at me? I bet you're real fun on dates."

"Well, no." Wonder objected. "I analyzed your blood, from when you fell from the ship that crashed above the Record. As was protocol, of course, to ensure that none of you were Infected."

"Charming."

Yakushev looked confused. "Infected?" She approached the Monitor. "What would we be infected with?"

Wonder turned to her. "Oh, a most dangerous organism. My creators and your ancestors called it 'The Flood.' It is an extra-galactic species that is quite resilient, and highly infectious. Though parasitic, they behave as a virus."

Maria's brow furrowed. "This plague, it has come to Earth?"

The Monitor dipped, mimicking a nod. "Recent records indicate a most troubling situation. A ship belonging to the Covenant entered the atmosphere of Erde Tyrene over the Ark Portal. It carried the Flood. As a contingency against global infection, the Sangheili incinerated large portions of the region that saw minor Flood outbreaks, going so far as the Northern Pole."

Yakushev gave a sigh, shaking her head. "That is… good to know. Thank you."

Eric looked to the Monitor, his brow furrowed. "But none of us are infected, right?"

"Oh, of course not." Wonder confirmed. "Had there been any presence of infection, I would have incinerated the host immediately."

Jersey's eyes went wide. "Incinerated? As in burned us alive!?"

"Simmer down, Morelli," Hays said with a smirk, "she said we're fine."

The Gunny motioned further into the facility. "I'd like to see this Record that you keep mentioning. It might be something that we can use."

"It would be my pleasure, Reclaimer." Breathless Wonder said excitedly. "After all, it was meant to help guide your species, when you were ready."

The squad followed Wonder down the halls of the complex. Hays shouldered her rifle, looking up at the monitor. "You said 'when we were ready'; ready for what?"

Jersey scoffed. "I'd say were ready for damn near anything. Covenant invasions, plague outbreaks, what's next?"

Breathless Wonder dipped curiously. "Perhaps. Humanity has shown far more restraint in this galactic war than previous ones. Considering reports from other facilities, I believe you are ready to attain the Mantle."

"The Mantle?" Eric asked, a brow raised. "That's some archaic language for something that seems so advanced."

Hays smirked. "Boss, this thing did say it's a hundred thousand years old."

The hallway opened up into a large cavern. A single light bridge extended from the hall, crossing over an immensely deep chasm. It ended at what looked to be a central structure—a mass of stalactites made of Forerunner metal hung over a solitary dais. The monitor led the ODST across the bridge, circling around the dais as they approached.

"This is the Greater Luminary." She explained. "It connects to all luminaries throughout the Sol System, and, as said before, maintains an up-to-date record – in conjunction with the Janus Key and the Absolute Record – of the location and status of all Forerunner technology throughout the galaxy—which is now yours, Reclaimers."

Thurson stepped towards the dais. It was a simple enough column that ended in a hexagon-patterned sphere. Something in the back of his mind – an instinct – whispered to him, urging him to touch the device. The sphere rotated as his hand drew near, flashing blue along the lines as skin met steel. The stalactites above flashed at the points, light filling the cavern in an instant and fading just as fast. What remained formed a detailed layout of the entire Sol System; every planet was mapped in large, and every planetoid, asteroid, and comet in between. The Gunny could see a symbol blinking on the Eastern side of South Africa. "That must be the portal that you mentioned."

Wonder moved to the display, following the continent as the planetary display rotated. "Indeed, and I am glad to see that it is fully functional! Perhaps there is even hope that my creators might return, to aid in this most troubling issue regarding the Flood."

Yakushev eyed a red scar that stretched up from the Portal, dotting the continent all the way up towards Scandinavia. "It certainly does not miss anything, does it?"

"Take one last long look at your planet, humans," a Sangheili voice echoed across the room, "for you will never see it again." The squad turned, confused. Nosu stood at the edge of the light bridge, an active energy sword in hand.