Shattered Space
Sorry for the delay, but I was right; this was the longest chapter I've ever written, anyway, enjoy.
Six POV
Strange birds call out to one another like the gulls of Earth as they flew in flocks along the coastline. Foamy water crashes onto the rocky beach with a vengeance as gravity pushes it harder than it has in the past. The sky was tinted blue with rolling white clouds spaced out across the heavens; the scene would have been lovely if it wasn't for the attacking aliens.
Six watches as the human base on the shore line of Farkas Lake takes a beating as a low flying space crafts assaulted the fortress designed to hold of an attack by human insurgents, not alien invaders. Plasma rounds, mortars and torpedoes slam into the stronghold as the human defenders rush to either hold off the Covenant forces or to purge the base of any "classified" material.
Six was starting to regret coming up with the crazy idea that the team was now following, but it was too late to change his mind, the plan was already in motion, the Saber squadron was already assembled within the facility and now all they needed is their fourth member to join them.
Jorge was sitting next to Six, as the Falcon gets closer to their objective, the large Spartan leans close to Six and asks, "are you sure?"
Six turns to Jorge and nods. He had chosen Jorge to be his co-pilot for three main reasons. One, he knew how to properly use a computer, something Emile somehow by passed during training. Two, they were going to hijack a vessel, so he needed someone who was good in close quarter fighting. Three, he was reliable, not that no one else is reliable in Noble team, but secretly Jorge was the closest thing Six had to a best friend and he needed some reassurance.
Six couldn't retain a snort, he already has a friend up in space, the question was how would the rest of the team, no, how would the rest of humanity react to it.
Before boarding the helicopters Carter pulled Six to the side and sternly told him to not tell anyone else of Shress's existence. Until they know for sure her alliance with the UNSC is stone solid, they decided not to inform the admirals of Earth until this operation is complete, if everything Shress said was true and if she empties the ship of most combatants, than Carter will start to consider trusting her.
Six glances upward as if he could see the ship, The Long Night of Solace as Shress had called it. She said she was riding on the Corvette they were going to take over, but that doesn't mean she won't be in the line of fire. Holland told them they will be given a Frigate to help soften the resistance, so she might get hit in the cross fire, or worse, a boarding party member may gun her down before he could tell them to stand down.
At this he glances at Jorge. His home is under attack and though he doesn't say it, he shows it through his body language that he found this unacceptable and is willing to kill every Covenant on sight. Hopefully Six could stop him before they come upon Shress. He had tried to convince Carter to let him tell Jorge about Shress but Carter refused, only if it was "absolutely necessary" can Six tell Jorge about his other worldly friend.
"We are touch down in three, two, one," as the pilot counts down, the Falcon sweeps in low to the ground, allowing the Spartans to jump off and fan out as the helicopter took off again. Six, Jorge, Kat and Carter checks their sectors before falling back into formation.
Once it was deemed safe, Carter got on his comms, "Jun, statues."
"Emile and I are on station," Jun replied, "want us to come down? Emile is getting twitchy up here."
"Negative," answers Carter, "provide air support but do not engage, you're our only ride out of here."
"Confirm Commander, will stay on station, over," Jun says before ending transmission.
Jorge lumbers forward and nods to the base, "Bit of a walk to the launch facility."
"Any closer would be too hot," Carter explains.
"Copy that Commander," Kat says.
"Alright, let's move it Noble," Carter orders, gesturing Jorge to take the lead. He and Kat sprinted forward, Six was about to follow when Carter puts a hand on his shoulder and whispers, "I hope your "Informant," he stresses, "is reliable, I'm risking my team by following this plan."
Six nods back, "Its ok Carter, I'll watch his back."
Carter continues to stare at him before asking, "And this Shress?"
Six hesitates, "Well she trusts me, and so I suppose she'll watch out for Jorge as well, but if things go as plan, she should be off the ship along with most of the crew."
Carter didn't nod nor shake his head, he just steps back and says, "I hope your right Six," before turning and sprinting after Noble Team. Six silently sighs under his breath, "me too," before taking off after his CO.
They ran alongside the coastline, their heavy alloy exteriors causes them to sink into the wet sand, but other than that nothing got in their way. As they approach the Spartans soon saw that the defenders of the base were on the wrong side of a losing fight. Dark plumes of smoke rose to the skies along with the death toll no doubt. The base was already full of holes and judging by the crisscrossing bolts of energy that shot out of them, it seems ground troops are engaging in close quarters combat.
They were less than a hundred yards away when they heard a strange squeal fill the air. Noble Team looks up just in time to see the first pod drop. It landed directly in front of them before the main hatch pops open, allowing an Elite Ranger to jump out. They divided and seek cover behind boulders stretch out across the beach before the alien began firing.
The plasma bolt ate away at the rocks that provided the team protection while additional pods crash inland. Four more Elites were on the beach, this time there are regular soldiers, and one pod brought along five Grunts.
It was a pitiful excuse of a fight. Noble team focused their fire on the Ranger until it dropped. Seeing their leader fall caused the Grunts to panic, forcing the Elites to break ranks in an attempt to restore order, but all they did just made themselves easier targets. Barley five minutes passes before corpses littered the seashore and Noble was once again moving.
The Eastern entrance defenses were battered to a pulp. Burning Warthogs and overturn Wraiths marks the spot of a major engagement. Bodies, both human and Covenant were cast around the area like broken toys. As Noble ran forward, Six couldn't help but notice the light crunching noise of glass as they ran towards the door. Position in front of the entrance way was a mountain of sandbags and other wreckage hastily piled in a futile attempt to keep any outsider out. The Spartans easily jumps over the obstacle, with the exception of Jorge who had to first throw his gun over before jumping himself.
Carter got on comms once more, "Noble to Launch Base, we are directly outside the Eastern Entrance, open up."
It wasn't long before the doors open to reveal two weary face Marines. Their eyes were wide, armor coated in gore and their limbs refused to stop shaking, these soldiers weren't far off from shell shock.
Behind the soldiers was an equally battle endured Staff Sergeant, but her hard looks suggest she was the most levelheaded of the group at the moment as she shouts behind her, "Spartans coming in, watch your fire!"
Gracefully, the Spartans enters and reduces their sprint to a steady trot. The hallway they were in was evidence that the enemy was inside as well as outside. Panels were torn open, pipes were loose and hiss out vapor as they pass by and though there was no broken forms scatter about, the walls were splattered with a multiple number of bloods, ranging from dark red, lime green, and bright purple. Six couldn't help but wonder how many soldiers died here.
They reach a pressure door that was supposed to lead to the command center, but when they pass through to the other side, there was nothing but wreckage. The roof partially caved in and buried most of the room while another gaping hole revealed the open court yard outside that was, at the moment, full of Covenant troops and Wraith tanks. The only personnel in the room are a handful of Marines who were playing sharp shooter through the gap in the hole. One of them, a Sergeant Major, was helping a wounded man to safety; it wasn't long until after making their observation did Noble realizes he's the highest ranking soldier present.
Carter walks over to the Marine and asks, "Where's Commander Kelvin?"
The Marine seems unfazed to be speaking with a Spartan, he just gave Carter a sad glance and said, "He's over there," referring to the pile of wreckage behind him.
Carter didn't miss a beat, "where's the launch pad?"
The Sergeant jerks his head to his left, "through those doors, we've mostly cleared the halls of Covenant…mostly."
Carter nods and says, "Once the Sabers are clear, pull your people back and withdrawal to check point Gamma, transport will be waiting for you and your team."
The Sergeant lets out a heavy sigh, "another retreat sir?"
"This will be the last one," reassures the Spartan.
The Sergeant turns and walks away, but calls over his shoulder, "heard that one before."
Carter didn't comment, he turns to his team and says, "Alright, let's move it people."
The Spartan moves down the indicated hallway, passing more and more signs of bloody warfare. On the wall Six saw a sign indicating the launch center wasn't too far away.
Suddenly a side door open and a human Marine was thrown through it. His scream was cut short when he hit the opposite wall with a sickening crunch before falling limp to the floor. Following the flying Marine was an Elite regular, its blue armor slightly tinted red with human blood.
It turns at the sound of pounding feet and lets out a roar. Kat was the closest to the alien, who seem to have thought her small demeanor marks her as a weak target. Big mistake. The Elite made to smack Kat with it's oversized hand but Kat duck and ran forward. She kicked the alien's out bent knee, causing a loud crack that made the leg twist in an unnatural position. The alien went down, howling in pain, Kat ended its suffering by pushing the muzzle of her Magnum under it's helmet and pulls the trigger. The alien was drop in less than a minute. Maybe the exaggeration that Spartans were demons weren't so farfetched, Six thought.
The Spartans ran deeper into the facility until they reached the control room. The technical marvel would have shock just about anybody, the high tech computers, the advance systems, and the mere futuristic appearance was breath taking. It was ruin by the bodies, white coat scientists and battle grimed Marines were spaced out on the floor, across the consoles or slump in their chairs.
This would have driven anyone mad, but the trained Spartans march by the carcasses as if they weren't there. Kat got on the main computer and started typing in five hundred words and numbers per minute. The rest of Noble locks down the room, mostly checking all the shadows and locking the door. To keep himself busy, Six began to police the bodies for any critical data or in the case of the Marines, taking their dog tags.
He pauses and guiltily takes a shot gun from a deceased soldier. He was train to use any and all available equipment to his use, but he felt uncomfortable taking things from the dead, even if he doesn't need it anymore.
"Got it," Kat says mildly.
The blast shields that was covering ceiling to floor windows open to reveal the Saber. The Saber was the first space plane and only one of its kind; smaller than a Long Sword but more effective than a Short sword as well. It sported three thruster rockets, a maneuverable shape, multiple missile pods and a thirty mm Gatling gun. Most space craft are mostly design for air-to-ground engagements, but after the first encounter with the Covenant, ONI had begun investing and creating ship-to-ship attack planes, a new era of space warfare.
It was with the greatest of luck that ONI first constructed the Saber prototype on Onyx, the training facility of the Spartan IIIs. Lieutenant Ambrose realized he had the opportunity of creating the ultimate lone wolf since he had all the equipment and the advance technology to hone the soldier into a one man army. Six remembers the excruciating training and the brutal mental mathematics he had to perform to learn how to pilot the thing. Even now, years later, Six glares at the contraption remembering the intense work he had to put into the effort to fly.
"Checking circuitry," Kat reports as she continues to type, "and…done, ship is prep all systems go."
"Jorge and Six, get on that Saber and get going," Carter orders.
"What about you and Kat?" Jorge asks.
"We'll exfil on Jun and Emile's Falcon while providing support for the Marines while they fall back, now get going you," Carter said.
"Come on, let's move Six," Jorge says with sudden determination before turning and starts jogging to the door that led to the Saber. Six quickly slings his new shotgun onto his back and follows.
The door to the launch area opens to reveal an Elite, but before either of the Spartans could fire, the alien fell forward and landed in a heap in front of them, fresh bullet holes were visible on its back.
Glad not to be delayed, the Spartans runs forward. Along the railing that led to the Saber, Marines stood at full attention, giving the Spartans a salute which was against protocol; never salute in combat, you're just make your CO easier to locate and assassinate. Six just ignore them, they were probably caught up in the moment, a valiant last stand, two heroes about to fly off on a suicide mission and the prospect of their world being saved must have been enough to get the Marines to act as if this was a big movie. Everyone here must be turning into a nut case.
Finally they reach the ship. The thing Six didn't like about the ship was the vertical insertion. The Saber were well known for being able to launch into space without the need of being cargo on a shuttle ship. This remarkable and evolutional idea however didn't suit Six nor his near ton partner. Using their upper body strength, the Spartans lifted themselves into the cockpit. There was barely enough room for them, the ship was design to carry average sized pilots wearing coveralls, not six foot Spartans in their MJONIR armor.
Once inside, Six places his weapons under his seat, partially jamming them into the confide space. Jorge however was force to leave his machine gun behind and had to hope that Anchor Nine can provide him with a replacement.
Once he was buckle in, Six starts to twist knobs and press buttons, feeling instinct take over. The years of repetitive practice finally paying off.
"Prepare to do a system check," Six says to Jorge.
The co-pilot pauses before asking, "Didn't Kat already do that?"
"Yeah, but I don't trust machines," says Six, "its also basic protocol to do one last manual check before taking flight in any and all aircraft, and besides, this will get you familiarized with the equipment you are going to use."
"Alright then Six, what do I do?"
"Switch on the console, first flick all the switches on your left, twist the blue knob in the upper left hand corner of your screen and connect the system to your HUD so it'll be easier for you to keep track of things," Six instructs.
He listens as Jorge performs the following actions and heard him mutter, "Whatever happened to the simple on-and-off switch?"
Once Six saw the console begin to glow he continues in giving instructions, "check the manifest data and tell me our load."
"Missile pods; full," Jorge reports, "Gatling gun; full, rocket fuel; full on all engines, shields; is one hundred percent charge, and the radar is fully functional as well."
Six nods and says, "I'm going to test our engines; they won't ignite, but tell me if the images of the rockets are highlighted as I check them."
"Roger" was Jorge's answer as he focuses on the screen in front of him.
Six presses on the buttons and pulls on the stick in front of him.
After a few minutes of repeating the process Jorge says, "All rockets are ready to go."
"Ok, all systems are check and I suppose we'll just have to test the weapons once we leave the atmosphere, ready?" asks Six.
"No, but let's do it," Jorge said.
Six taps in more commands into the dashboard in front of him and uploaded the controls to his HUD as he speaks into his radio, "This is Saber 2-4 reporting in, over."
"About time 2-4" says a voice with a local dialect, "all Sabers prepare to launch, in T minus twenty seconds."
Six starts flipping switches and taking off the safeties to the booster rockets that were strap to the side of their ship. After flipping the last button, alarms begins to flare and the railing that attaches itself to the ship begins to slowly move away. Energy levels within the Saber's rockets begin to build as well as the countdown continues.
"Launch in T minus five," counts the voice of the Saber squad leader, "four, three two, one, launch."
The entire world seems to shake as the booster rockets sparks to life and begins blowing out thick white smoke. It felt like the ship was going to shake itself apart, but instead of crumbling to the ground, the ship began to ascend into the sky. Throughout the facility, three more Sabers were taking to the air as well, all billowing white smoke as they blow upwards like a corks from a champagne bottle. The four space craft's soon became small dots as they head to the blackness of the cosmos.
Despite the dire situation, Six couldn't help but feel excited, he quite enjoys launches, from the heart stomping actions to the changing scenery of blue sky into dark space was quite interesting. He couldn't help but challenge himself to keep his eyes open against the G force pushing him into the cushions of his seat. He could hear Jorge slightly moving, probably uncomfortable by the sudden and violent movement, this take off was quite different from a regular shuttle or space elevator lift off.
The atmosphere tries its hardest to keep the Spartans lock on the planet by burning the area around the cockpit. Bright orange flames seem to originate from the ship as they hurl to the stars. Finally, they pass the point of no return and the flames died as they left the skies of Reach and enters the universe.
No sooner did they pass this point, the rockets stop blowing and the Saber begins to float, suspended in the eerie blackness. The rockets begin to break away from the Saber, stripping the ship bear until it looks as if it has drop thrice its body size.
Such a waste, Six thought as he watches the booster rockets drift away, he had once read somewhere that this was how the first shuttles were able to get into space, I wonder if that's why there's so much junk flying around Earth, Six wonders.
"Activating primary thrusters now," Six reports unnecessarily as the ship begins moving forward. The other three attack space crafts already lost their rockets and flew in a formation. It's been a while since Six has last flew a Saber and now he struggles to remain in perfect formation.
"Large structure at our twelve o'clock," says Jorge, "I think it's Anchor Nine."
Sure enough, a large ship appears in the debris field, revealing itself to be a massive space station. It was nearly the size of a skyscraper, and the enormous Frigate currently dock within it proves that fact. Anchor Nine looks just that, like an anchor, three shielded openings marks the landing strips for small crafts. Hundreds of mechanical arms protruded from its exterior as it tends to the needs of any and all ships, most of them are deactivated, and the only ones that are moving are currently tending to the needs of the Frigate.
"Anchor Nine, this is Saber one-four, is the package ready, over?" asks the squad leader.
"Not yet one-four," another voice answers, "give us a few minutes and we should…hang one…Sabers we have slip space disruptors, it's the Covenant!"
As if on cue, there was a small bang and coming right at them are a dozen space Seraph fighters.
Six preps the ship for combat, "guess now's a good time to test the weapon's system."
Shress POV
Shress watches as the Phantoms, Spirits and Banshees left the ship and travels to the surface of the human world, still unable to believe she was able to get them to leave.
At first the Shipmasters of the Ardent Prayer and The Long Night of Solace, were against her the moment she voices her proposal. They wanted everything to go smoothly with the arrival of the Prophet of Mercy and so thought that the presence of a large crowd would please him. Though they did not voice it, Shress knew they also didn't want to be taking, or even consider listening, to the idea of a female.
It took all of Shress's self-control not to roar in the Shipmaster's faces, instead she patiently went through the reasons she has invented why the troops should be sent to the surface. She states what could be more glorious in welcoming a Prophet other than a victory against the humans? The show of their might may interest the Prophet of Mercy who may bestow honor among the fleet for their accomplishment. Furthermore there's no doubt once the Prophet arrives he will wish to begin working on the Navigator which Shress points out was still in human territory and suggests to use the ground troops to take the location. At first both fleet leaders were planning of glassing the site clean of the human presence until She points out that they may accidently damage the Forerunner artifact and may be executed for their actions. Regretfully the Shipmasters acknowledge her claims and allow her to deport her soldiers from the Corvette.
Her small army followed her command for departure but they grumble among themselves, muttering about leaving the safety of the ship to fight in a battle that could easily be won without their help.
And to think I'm doing you a favor, she thought as a group of Sangheilis walks by, cursing the human world for the tough ground they'll have to sleep on that night. They won't realize how lucky they are leaving a doomed ship until after it's destroyed.
That is if the humans succeed, Shress silently ponders to herself. She has never seen a space battle where the humans are the victors, what chance could they have now?
Well they have Michael, she reasons and then pauses at the thought. What did that mean?
Now that she wonders about it, she has been thinking about Michael a lot lately. She longs for his presence, he was the only one that comforts and bestows confidence upon her, the only one that does so willingly and not just because of her rank. She wishes to speak to him, to rid her mind of worries just for a bit; to ask of the abnormality of the human life and how being a demon made him different from other humans. She wants to look at his face, an alien that wishes not to kill her, a strange appearance that has caught her attention more effectively than that of any other human, or Sangheili for that matter.
She also wants to feel his warm and reassuring hand touching hers and now,after getting over the initial shock, she enjoyed having him rest a hand on her shoulder. It just felt so…so…alien. Four long clawed fingers, that was the hand of a Sangheili, the only hand that has ever touch her skin, the smaller and five digit hand of a human though was quite different. Especially with the lack of distance between the two's bodies, normally by Sangheili standards to touch a female would mean the male wanted to court her, but the way Michael does it suggests that this was not the case with humans. Her observations of humans touching each other proves that point, she remembers watching human soldiers as they casually grab and slap each other's hands, backs or other sorts of places, which suggest their emotions aren't so reserved either.
I wonder how Michael sees me, she next muses over, am I really as different from my brethren as he says I am? Does he see me as an alien? After all he did admit he forgets I am different from him, did he really mean that? I wonder if he's just interested in my figure like the other males I have come to know.
Suddenly her thinking cease and she felt herself froze after that last thought. Did she really just think that? Why, oh why did she think something as stupid as that? He's a friend, she told herself, he's also a human, there's no way he could ever think of me in that way and even if he did it just wouldn't work out, especially now, at the rate of risks I'm taking at the moment, it wouldn't be so surprising if I end up dead in the coming week.
"Commander," a voice growls at her.
Shress wasn't surprise when she turns from the loading docks and faces Dinjit. He kept his gaze down and his whole body was rigid. She moans within herself, how long until this fool gets all his anger out?
Despite the irritation inside of her, she spoke in a tolerant voice, "yes Dinjit?"
"All the soldiers are on board, we are awaiting you to join us," he rasps.
Shress nods before picking up her bag at her feet, "very well Dinjit, let us depart before-"
"Commander," another voice calls out, when she turns to face the new speaker behind her, both she and Dinjit bows their head when they saw the golden armor of the Ardent Prayer's Shipmaster.
"Yes sir?" She asks.
"The Prophet of Regret will be here soon, as such he wishes to see you, so I suggest you put someone in command of your legion while you wait for his arrival here on the Ardent Prayer," explains the Shipmaster.
Shress felt the air leave her lungs as she repeats the words she has heard in her mind. The Prophet of Regret wants to see me? Why? Is it true he can see into the future? Is it possible that he saw me betraying the Covenant?
As suddenly as they came she shook these thoughts from her mind. The Prophets are liars, and with them in their chairs, she doubts they have any power at all, now that she thinks about it, if the Prophets are so powerful then why do they not heal themselves so that they may walk? Still, they are the strong leaders of the Covenant and her people will not hesitate to follow their orders.
She takes a shaky breath and says, "very well, thank you Shipmaster," she says, not daring to look up for fear the shipmaster will see the raging battle of emotions within through her eyes.
The Shipmaster only grunts before walking away. Shress puts her bag down and turns to Dinjit, "Ranger, I want you to lead the legion while I wait for the Prophet's arrival."
She expected Dinjit to look happy at the short term promotion, instead he sneers, "Me? Not Kova?"
Shress turns to Dinjit and lets out an angry growl. So that's what this is about, she bitterly thought. How dare he!? Kova is a mated male, she would never do something as disrespectful as to try and steal him from his mate.
"Dinjit," she says in a deadly toneless voice that causes the Ranger to step back slightly, "I am a Zealot, a Zealot, if you accuse me or even suggest that I perform unclean acts with my own soldiers again, I will personal rip your heart out and force you to eat it!" she suddenly roars to get his full attention, "understand?" she asks in a calmer tone now.
Dinjit's mandibles were slightly agape as he took her fury, but he bows his head, "Yes Zealot Vdamee, please forgive me, Dinjit Darbee, for my disrespectfulness."
The use of the formal apology didn't move Shress, she just shocked the Ranger, and she doubts his apology was sincere.
"Just…go and keep my soldiers under control," she says.
Dinjit nods before walking to the Phantoms and starts to bark orders.
With that matter settled, Shress sighs and silently prays that the human attack would be successful, even if it means her death. At the moment she rather be anywhere else in the galaxy than to be in the presence of a prophet.
Six POV
"Come on! Hold still!" Six mutters.
His Saber flew after a pesky Seraph fighter that kept evading his attacks. If it wasn't for its purple exterior and the trail of blue energy it left behind, he was sure he would have lost it. The Seraph flew through debris fields and cutting close to Anchor Nine's hull, its petite body making tight turns that threaten to overbear the Saber. Once it made a sharp turn and fired its weapons, nearly hitting the Spartans ship. Raw determination fills Six as he press downs on the thrusts and closes in on the target.
"Gatling gun?" he asks his co-pilot.
"Spinning hot," was Jorge's reply.
Six pulls the trigger and watches as bright yellow light suddenly flashes on the nose of his craft as the bullets flew at the Covenant fighter. The shields glows a bright blue, then purple, then red, trying not to lose its protection. Finally the shields fades away, leaving the ship vulnerable.
Six has made the mistake of trying to destroy he ship with the gun during their last encounter, not wanting to risk it escaping again, he calls out "Missile pods?"
"Armed and ready."
"Firing," Six warns before releasing the pay load.
Four red dots blasts from the openings on either side of the cockpit before the casing releases the armed missiles within and bright yellow replaces the red dots as the ordinance flew to their target. The Seraph desperately tries to get away, but it was too late, the missiles slam into the ship. It flips in circles after the first two hits before the third and fourth finishes it off, causing the ship to disappear in a ball of flames. The bright blue light broke the blackness for a bit before it fades away and the crispy remains of the alien craft floats away to join the rest of the trash floating in space.
Satisfied that the threat was neutralized, Six spins the ship around and heads back to Anchor Nine, preparing for another engagement. However once he got there, Jorge reports, "radar says area is clean."
The lack of shooting and the floating destroyed Covenant space ships confirms that fact. The Saber squadron fell back into formation as they received a transmission from Anchor Nine.
"Spartans, space is clear, you are now authorized to link with the station, over," says a voice.
"About time," Six says and directs their Saber to head to the space station. As they approach the station, both Spartans couldn't help but marvel at the massive command center. It's a floating glorified garage, Six thought to himself.
They dock outside the third entrance of the station, long metallic arms reaches out and held their craft in place.
"Spartans, to your left is the Slip Space drive, we already modified it and attached a detonator to it, it is now a fully prime bomb," the voice says again.
Both Spartans turn and saw at the first opening a pelican, with a massive piece of machinery sticking out of the rear of the Pelican, yet despite this, a large chuck of it was sticking out. People, technicians Six guesses, floats around the craft doing final check ups.
Six turns to Jorge, "You ready?"
The bomb needed an escort, one by air and one by ground. Six was flying since he was the only one who knew how and Jorge will be with the ground security detail. Until they arrive at the Corvette and powers down its defenses, they're splitting the Spartans up so if one should fall, the other will ensure the success of the mission.
Jorge sighs but says, "let's do this."
Six nods, completely understanding what Jorge meant, and open the hatch. Oxygen was vented out of the ship, but their MJOLNIR armor kept them breathing.
Six watches with uncertainty as Jorge floats out of his seat, grabs the side of the ship, and pushes himself forward, causing the Saber to rock as Six watches his friend fly across the blackness known as space before throwing switches again. The cockpit closes once more and the robotic limbs releases their hold on the ship. He backs away before flying off a bit, keeping a careful eye on Jorge, if he misses the Pelican, then it was up to Six to fish him out of space and bring him back to try again.
Jorge was still soaring through space, awing Six slightly as he watches the giant fly as if he was meant to. Sudden bright lights caught Six's attention, for a moment he thought it was another Covenant space attack, but with horror, he realizes the bright flashes was coming from Reach. Giant explosions are blossoming all over the surface, fire consumes the planet and Six felt his gut wrench, thinking of the thousands of people on the ground.
"Dot," he calls the AI, "what's happening?"
"Large scale Covenant bombardments are taking place," replies the smooth robotic voice.
"No joke?" asks Jorge, now half way to his target, "how bad are we hit?"
"Billions of casualties, mostly civilians, the cities of Manassas and Quezon has been completely destroyed," Six tries not to think badly of Dot as she tells them the body count so ordinarily as if she was telling them the weather, "military casualties are peeking into the thousands…I am sorry Noble Five, but Sword Base has been destroyed, the whereabouts of Doctor Halsey is unknown."
Six didn't know how to feel about that last part. He was devastated by the number of people dying, yet out of all them he was finding it hard to find pity for Halsey. The woman has been causing him grief ever since he first arrived, toying with him, disrespecting him, spying on him and trying to throw him in the brig multiple times didn't cause his heart to stir instantly for the doctor.
"Noble Five?" Dot's question brought Six out of his thinking and he quickly looks to see where Jorge was. He safely made it to the Pelican, grabbing onto its side to catch himself, he seems alright, but Six thought he heard him say, "good bye ma'am."
Now Six felt sympathy, Halsey was the closest thing the Spartan II's had to a mother, and she was gone. Before he could say anything to comfort his big friend, the radio crackles to life once more, "Noble Six are you there?"
Identifying the voice as that of colonel Holland, Six answers, "Go ahead sir."
"I'm guessing you can see our situation from way up there" the Colonel says, "the situation just became dire, I hope that idea of yours will work."
"Sir, it will," Six says, more to reassure himself then the officer.
"Understood Spartan, the UNSC Savannah is the one that donated its drive to your cause, so it will be accompanying you to lend you all the support it can."
Six glances at the said frigate, which was now bringing up the rear as the Saber team led the way to face the Covenant threat. He watches as Jorge's Pelican made it on board the shuttle before speaking, "Don't worry Colonel, we'll get it done."
Shress POV
Shress tries not to appear too anxious so she wouldn't cause suspicion to rise, but how can she not look nervous when the leader of the Covenant, the holy government that Shress is helping to betray, is coming, wanting to speak to her, and the fact that she was on a ship marked to be obliterated wasn't very comforting at all.
She tries to make herself appear as if she was sleeping on the chair she occupies, but she didn't know if the rouse was working. All around her, the deck crew of the Ardent Prayer was going this way and that, trying to position the Corvette directly over highly populated human centers. Shress shudders with the ship as she thought of the millions of innocent people dying at that very moment.
How calm they are walking around, unknowingly killing, murdering, for no apparent reason, Shress sickly thought as she watches the crew walk to their consoles and perform their duties. The Shipmaster meanwhile stood in the middle of the activities and watches the genocide below his feet, looking slightly bored.
Shress wanted nothing more than to leave the deck, but to do so would be rude, even if she said she was tired, that would not excuse her. The Prophet will be here soon, the humans need to hurry up with their assault before he-
"Shipmaster," one of the Sangheilis at a console shouts, "a human attack force is approaching sir."
Shress almost let out a sigh of relief until the Sangheili spoke again, "it's just one ship and it's smaller than the Ardent Prayer."
Shress could just feel her heart sinking at those words.
The Shipmaster just snorts, whether in disgust or amusement she couldn't tell, "That's no trouble," he says, "The patrols can handle this ship on their own."
With that, the bridge crew returns to work, as if the arrival of the humans were nothing more than a bug crawling on their foot.
Shress sighs and huddles on her chair again and closes her eyes to hide the pain from her fellow comrades. Was Michael on that ship? Was he about to be killed; is there anything she could do to help? No, she couldn't, she was only train to fight in combat, not to pilot a space craft, she can't even activate some of the defensive weapons and use them to destroy the Covenants own ships, even if she did know she would be killed on the spot for helping the enemy.
For five agonizing units, Shress sat in the chair pretending to doze while her whole body tingles with worry and guilt, thinking that her friend was going to be killed for sure. Suddenly the same crew worker shouts, "Shipmaster! The humans! They, they destroyed all the ships in the patrol!"
Every Sangheili eyes widen at these words, never before have they heard of a human ship destroying an entire patrol of Seraphs. She wonders if the demons had something to do with it.
"All of them?" ask the shipmaster as he grips the rail guard around his podium and thought for a bit before commanding, "get the Ardent Prayer into an attack position and prepare to fire upon the ship."
"Shipmaster," calls another engineer, "small human vessels are approaching."
The shipmaster simply orders, "activate the forward defensive systems, that should destroy them."
"But sir," the same engineer shouts again, "they, they already landed on the Ardent Prayer."
"What!" thunders the shipmaster, "how, I thought the hanger doors are shielded!"
"They are, but the humans landed on a blind spot on top of the Corvette, they might already be inside the ship."
Seeing an opportunity to leave the deck, Shress rises and asks, "Shipmaster, permission to find the humans and eliminate them?"
The shipmaster just nods and says, "Yes, go and find the heretics and kill them, kill them all!"
Not likely, Shress thought as she turns and leaves the deck.
Six POV
The Ranger barley climbed on the roof of the Corvette when Six jumped him. He wasn't well suited for EVA combat, but he was able to take the alien down none of the less. A quick thrust with his knife causes the blade to sink within the shields and deactivated them. He then twisted and yanks the knife out. Six was slightly disturbed as he watch the alien twist in circles as it slowly ran out of air. Soon, the still body begins to float away, nothing more than an empty shell now.
He brings his attention back to the task that was at hand now. The Saber squad stood around him, all nervous. They've been trained for air combat, not close quarters fighting; this would be their first time shooting for some of them. The black suited pilots looked like ODSTs, but their quivering movement gave away they knew nothing of the bravery that propelled the Marines into danger willingly.
Six could only hope that the six men attack team he was leading wouldn't lose their heads, he had enough problems to worry about rather than to watch and make sure these men won't get into any trouble.
"Alright, let's do this people," he says before descending through the large hole in the roof. The interior of the ship was strange with its smooth curves and the pulsing walls of energy, almost as if it was a living organic. There were multiple levels in the room he found himself in, he had no idea what the place's purpose was, but before he could think more of that matter, he shouted, "contacts!" warning the pilots of the three suit encased Elites.
The battle wasn't a disgraceful one, but a small one which the Spartan was grateful for, they didn't have much time left now. With the bodies of the Elites floating around in zero G, the humans moved forward and enter a corridor. Once the door closes behind them, air and gravity returns, keeping the soldiers feet planted firmly on the floor.
"Captain, this is Noble Six," the Spartan spoke into his radio, "we are on board and are now on our way to the hanger, over."
"Good job Noble," despite the praise, the captain's voice was strain and in the background Six could hear shouting and alarms blaring. As if knowing what he was thinking, the Captain continues speaking, "The Covenant has launch a full scale attack on the Savannah, we are keeping her together, but we can't last much longer. I sent the bomb to your location, drop those shields and get it ready to blow, we can't last forever out here," there was a pleading note in the man's voice.
"Sir, we'll get it done," Six says before ending the transmission.
No sooner did he finish speaking, they arrive at another door and opens it. Six was relieved to find the hanger, it wasn't as large as a UNSC hanger, but it was still huge. It was vacate of any other craft, all of which must have been launch before the attack force arrived. There were two levels, one of which had a console and other controls on the second floor on the other side of the mechanical chasm, their primary objective.
Seeing the same thing the Spartan was gazing at, one of the flyers started moving forward.
"Wait," Six calls, but the man kept walking.
"Why?" the pilot calls over his shoulder, "it's just right-" suddenly a purple spike shot out of the shadows and hit the man's helmet right in the center. The pilot didn't move, frozen, but then the crystal imploded, blowing the man's head along with it.
"Ambush!" Six shouts before jumping behind cover. The other men tries to follow his lead, but a pilot, still traumatize by his comrades sudden death, stood still, until plasma fire cut him down.
Two pilots down in less than a minute, Six assesses, this isn't going well.
Six tries to get a lock on the shooters, but the attackers were invisible, literally.
"They're Stealth Elites," Six warns to the remaining improvise troops, "watch the shadows."
No sooner did he say that he heard a strangle cry and turns to see what was happening. Another pilot was down, he was floating in the air, body limp, and head rolled to the side, the smudges on his throat indicates the area as the spot where the killing hand was.
As one, the humans lower their muzzles and open fire; a barrage of assault rifles, battle rifles, and SMG bullets tackles the strangler. The alien's shape was outlined before its camouflage failed, and then the shields, and finally the masked Elite let out a gurgle scream before falling, the human pilot's corpse, also shot up as well, fell to the floor.
Six couldn't believe this, the pilots were dropping like flies and the remaining survivors were now shaking out of control, their movement twitchy and unpredictable. This is why I don't work with others, and certainly why I'm not meant to be a team leader.
"You two," he calls and points out the pilots with assault rifles, "give me cover fire, and you," he pointed sat the last man, "watch the shadows and make sure we don't get flank, got it?" The men nodded their understanding, "alright, covering fire!" he shouts before running from cover and heads to the controls.
No sooner did he start running, a hail of plasma rounds came out from three corners and began eating away at his shields. Six leaps and rolls, avoiding some of the fire, before coming up in knelt position and started shooting at one corner. The same process, took place, the cloak evaporates, then the shields, and finally the Elite.
He turns to face the remaining two tangos, but saw a blue grenade flying towards him. He drops to the ground and activates his armor lock system, but the grenade sails over him.
Six grunts, "hah, missed". Then he stops. He was close to the Elites, there was no possible way they could have missed him. Unless he wasn't the target.
Six deactivates the lock and jumps to his feet, turning just in time to see the grenade detonate. The pilots saw the threat land within their area and tries to run for it. In their craze escape, one trips a fellow pilot and together they crash onto the floor, still inside the kill zone when the grenade exploded. The last pilot who survived the bomb pauses to take a breather, but he was right in the middle of an expose landscape. Six shouts a warning but it was too late, another needle was launch and was buried in the man's chest. He looks down at the shard before it discharged, taking the pilot with it.
Six stares at the men he was responsible for, all dead, in less than three minutes. The fire started up again, and Six turns, eager to gain some vengeance. The two Elites were space together so Six hurls a grenade as well. The attackers got out of the way, while firing suppressing fire at Six. The Spartan dodges the shots before returning fire, dropping the now exposed enemy fighters.
The whole battle took only five minutes. In that time, ten beings were killed, six humans and four Elites. How was it Six was still alive, because he was better, because he was more determine, or was it just because of plain dumb luck? Six didn't know and at the moment he didn't want to know.
He turns and continues on with the mission, that's all he could do at the moment, honor these men sacrifices and save as many lives as possible. He walks up to the strange holographic controls and presses one with the glyph "open", now he was thankful for all the glyph studying he has been doing with Shress.
He keys his comms once more and reports, "Jorge, you're clear, get in here and let's finish it."
"I hear you loud and clear Six," was the reply.
A few moments later, a Pelican flew into the hanger and landed on the main landing pad close to the center, the bomb visible in the rear.
Out of the Pelican clambers out Jorge, the Spartan struggles to wriggle past the explosive device without detonating it. Once he was out, he reaches back into the vehicle and brings out a massive machine gun similar to the one he left behind on Reach.
"Is it just you?" Six asks as he walks up to Jorge.
"Why? You disappointed?" asks Jorge.
"Did you fly this on your own? I thought you didn't know how to fly."
"I know how to fly a Pelican, but not a Saber, besides, Dot did most of the work, gave me directions and I just followed them," Six could just hear the smile forming on his friend's face.
Six lets out a shaky breath, "Well, we are just about done; now we need to move the Corvette closer to the Super Carrier."
"How do we do that?" Noble Five asks, "You didn't go over that part of the plan with me."
"It's quite simple," Six elaborates, "the ship mostly pilots itself, there's a command switch on the deck that we need to get to. It'll put the ship on a course heading to the Carrier for a refueling run, hit the button, arm the bomb, and get out before it rips up the dimensions of space, that's it."
"Somehow you make the simplest things in life sound like the hardest things in life," Jorge comments before hefting his massive gun, "well let's get moving then."
Six didn't move as he voice his thoughts, "there are still enemy combatants on the ship, maybe you should hang back and protect the bomb."
"Not going to happen," Six tries to protest but Jorge continues, "look, we need to get this tub moving and we're neck deep in enemy territory, if you fail we need a back up in order to ensure the mission is a success."
Six sighs as he listens to Jorge recite protocol to him, he has no idea why but he just didn't like the idea of working with another person on missions anymore, especially after he witness the bloody deaths of the pilots he was charged with leading and keeping safe.
"Fine, you win, let's move," Six says, spins around and led the way to a door on the left side of the Pelican.
Six begins tempering with the controls while Jorge watches the rear and asks, "You know where you're going?"
"Positive," was Six's reply, "the deck is located directly at the front of the ship."
"How do you know that?"
"I…was briefed about it before the start of the mission," Six stumbles as he pulls words out of the air.
"Why are you and Carter the only ones who knows about the plan and the rest of Noble don't?"
Six was starting to feel uncomfortable so he hurries in opening the door, "well because…um, Carter and I are the only ones allowed access to certain…assets."
"What assets?" Jorge questions suddenly sounding demanding.
Before Six answers the doors begins to open. Jorge snorts, "Finally you got it."
Six turns to Jorge and reports, "That wasn't me; someone is opening the door on the other side."
The Spartans raises their weapons and waits as the strange door unlocks itself before pulling itself apart to reveal the next corridor. Standing in the hallway was an Elite in red armor, a armor system that Six instantly recognize.
What is she doing here? He wonders in panic, she was supposes to have left with the rest of her troopers.
Suddenly he heard the clanging of a round being chambered and realizes Shress was in danger.
Without thinking, Six jumps in front of the Zealot, turns to Jorge and shouts, "wait!" but it was too late. Six watches as the bullets fly from Jorge's gun and feels them hit his body.
Shress POV
Shress saw the blast escape from the giant demon's weapon and thought she was as good as dead before Michael jumped in the way.
She watches in stun horror as her friend was lifted off the ground, flew backwards, and lands in a pile right at her feet.
His shields are down, his chest armor is blacked and he wasn't moving.
Fearing the worse, Shress forgot about the demon with the gun and drops onto her haunches until her face was inches away from Michael's helmet.
"Michael!" she calls out and gently grabs his shoulder and shook him a bit. He still didn't move. Shress had no idea what to do, she was train in healing but she had no idea if she could help her human friend, she didn't even know how to get his armor off to inspect his wound.
This can't be happening, she thought, I can't lose him, I can't! He's the only one that I can call a genuine friend, someone I can rely on, someone I can trust, the one who has helped me see the truth and is offering me a new life, he can't be gone.
"What's going on here?" Shress looks up at the giant demon who had his gun train on her, but she knew he was too shock, too surprise to fire off a shot.
Before she could think of an explanation, she hears a cough and looks down at the blue clad demon.
He still didn't move and for a moment she was afraid she had imagine the sound, but then Michael raises a hand and rests it on the side of his head, "oww," he moans, "what just happen?"
Happiness and relief floods Shress's body as she lays a hand on his shoulder, "Michael," she says softly, "are you alright? Where is your injury?"
"Shress?" he asks, sounding slightly confuse. He looks up at her; his blue faceplate prevented her from seeing his face.
"What are you doing here? You were suppose to leave with the rest of your troops," he tries sitting up before groaning and clutches his stomach. Shress tries to help him up by grabbing his arms and gently lifts him off the floor.
He pauses halfway up and looks at the large demon, "did you shoot me?" Shress tries not to laugh, despite the near death experience, Michael sounded more offended and angry then fearful and shock.
The demon remains silent, it, or he she guesses from the roughness of his voice, just stared at Michael and Shress, like he never seen them before.
"Jorge?" Michael asks and tries to step forward but couldn't and says, "Uh, Shress, you can let go now."
Shress then realizes Michael was back on his feet, but her hands are still lock onto his shoulders, she lets go and mumbles, "Sorry."
Michael looks up at her as if he could hear her embarrass tone, which made her feel uncomfortably warm at the moment and tries not to look into his face plate.
Michael looks away from her and turns to his demon brother, "Jorge, you alright?"
The demon, Jorge, just continue to gaze at them, switching his gaze between the two of them before looking at Six, "Spartan, what is going on here?"
Spartan? Shress muses, is that another name for Michael, or is it what the demons call themselves? She made a note of it and reminds herself to ask Michael about it later.
"Um, right," Michael said, "well…remember those assets I was telling you about earlier," he asks and waves his hand at Shress. Did I do something wrong, she thought, wondering what "asset" meant.
Jorge continues gazing at them before demanding, "How…what…did you…" Shress couldn't tell how the demon was feeling and began to wish he put the large gun down until he regains control of his emotions.
"Look, I'm sorry Jorge," Michael says, "but long story short, I met Shress, she knows how much trouble the Prophets are causing, and is now willingly to help us, she is our new informant, and she was the one who supplied us with the Intel we are currently using for this mission."
"You're following the words of an Elite," Jorge suddenly demands and points the weapon in Shress's direction. She self-consciously steps back and kept her hand close to her belt of weapons. Noticing her movement, Michael puts himself in between Shress and Jorge once more before continuing to talk.
"Yes Jorge, I am, and so is Carter, it is because of her knowledge that we've made it this far. She emptied the ship of most of the Covenant troopers, she gave us the Intel on how to infiltrate the ship and she was the one who told us how to get the Corvette closer to the Carrier, it is because of her that we are still alive," Six finishes, still standing in front of Shress.
Shress continues to watch Jorge, wondering what he will do next. She trusts Michael and lost her fear of him, but she feels that old fear returning as she watches the huge demon before her, weighing her life in his hands.
Jorge's silence lasts for whole units, she couldn't tell if he was going to kill her or not. Now was the time for her to rely on Michael to keep her safe just like before after they first met.
Jorge sighs and lowers the weapon, "Six, I expect you to tell me the whole story when we get out of here."
Shress lets out a relieved sigh; this was the second time that week she thought she was going to be killed. All these near death experiences aren't good for my health, she thought amusingly but she still felt her nerves twitching from the event. Michael must have notice there was something wrong with her and took her hand in his.
The gesture was so familiar, but now she somehow felt different when their hands touch. In her mind's eye she remembers his body lying at her feet, looking as if he had passed. Remembering that moment made her feel slightly humiliated as she recalls the words echoing in her head at the thought of the human dying; it wasn't until then did she realize how much he meant to her.
Does that mean I'm actually developing…feelings for him? Shress remembers how at first she felt disgusted by the prospect when he accidently said something among those lines back on the mountains a long time ago. Now…now she wasn't so sure of how she felt towards the human.
She looks up and saw Jorge staring at their hand holding. Slightly embarrass Shress releases Michael's hand and they both look away from each other awkwardly.
"If you two are done, we got a job to do," Jorge reminded them and turns to Michael, "Six, which way from here?"
Shress wondered who he was talking to when Shress remembered when they first met; Michael told her his name was Six. Why does he have a numeral for a name, is it use to represent his family name?
Michael just says, "Maybe…Shress, can you lead the way to the deck?"
Shress wasn't so sure how to answer. She was fighting for humanity now, but she wasn't so sure how she'll do if she is forced to fight a fellow Sangheili.
"Just show us the way, and we'll take it from there." Shress was slightly unnerved that Michael seems to know what she was thinking, but she nods in confirmation.
Michael turns to Jorge and says, "I'll move ahead and set the ship on the refueling run, you can stay and prep the bomb."
Jorge looks between Michael and Shress and asks, "Six, if you fail how will I know this Zealot will complete the mission?"
Shress growls, earning her Jorge's attention, "My name is Shress La' Vdamee, and I took an oath to defend the innocent and fight for the weak."
"So where were you twenty seven years ago?" Jorge asks, Shress tries not to show it, but the comment caused guilt and pain to be release and spread within her.
"That's enough," Michael says, "Jorge, she's on our side, we will not fail, protect the bomb and we'll be right back, got it?" Shress could have sworn she heard an edge in Michael's voice.
Jorge stared hard at Michael before sighing and says, "well what are you waiting for then? You and your girlfriend better get going."
Shress cocks her head at the unfamiliar word, "his what?" she asks.
Michael grabs her arm and pulls her away from Jorge, "Nothing, I, I'll explain later," he says in a rushed voice. Before she could ask anymore, the door behind them close and they were alone together in the corridor.
Soon Michael releases her and she walks forward leading the way. They came to the battery station, the room before the deck, Shress signs for Michael to stay back while she enters the room. Inside she saw a Sangheili engineer at one of the counsels who was busy firing salvos of plasma at the human ship, a widow in front of him showed the ship that was now so badly damage it looks as if the entire thing was on fire. She signals to Michael of the danger, he nods and silently moves forward. The room was empty of any other presence, Shress watches the deck door to ensure no one else will walk in on them, but she also did this so she wouldn't have to see Michael kill one of her brothers, someone who was to die simply because of his belief in a fictional cause. Against all her training, she closes her eyes when she hears the strangle cry before the silence.
She felt a hand on her shoulder and she flitches badly before turning to look at Michael, who also took a step back from her, sensing her fear. She sighs and nods she was alright, suddenly there was a flash of light from outside and both turn to look for the cause.
A new miniature sun was formed outside the window of the Corvette. Shress was confused, how did a sun so small appear so quickly? Then the fire begins to dim, revealing the remains of the human ship, black smoldering wreckage that now floats among the stars. Shress stares at it in a new light, a shipful of valiant defenders, all gone.
She felt a hand on her arm and turns to face Michael.
"Is the deck beyond those doors?" she was taken aback when she heard the coldness in his voice.
She nods in response before he continues, "why don't you stay here Shress, make sure no one is following us."
And ensure you won't see the carnage, she knew that was the main reason why he wanted her to stay, she just nods in confirmation before he walks away, not looking back, unslinging the rifle off his back.
His chilling demeanor, the way he wasn't looking at her, and the hardness of the voice betrays his anger…was some of that anger aimed at her?
Shress waited outside of the room. At first she heard nothing, and then she began to hear the whine of plasma, the blast of a loud weapon, and the dying roars of a Sangheili. She tries her best to block out the sounds and focus on watching the flank, but she couldn't get the sound of the dying out of her head.
Am I doing the right thing? Isn't there another way to end this? I wish I had the ability to tell the people of my race that they are being used, but how? I only learned of it by befriending a human, by breaking the law, something no other Sangheili will do. She sighs as these thoughts race through her mind, she wished more than ever now that there can be some way of informing her people they are being deceived, but she has yet to figure out a way without getting herself killed.
Suddenly she lost her footing as the ship suddenly made a sharp turn. Remembering the view from the deck and quickly calculating the ascendance of the ship, Shress figures Michael must have done it and has sent the Corvette on a course to the Long Night of Solace.
The door opens and out steps Michael. His weapons are on his back and his rigid posture had dropped, has he worked off his anger through killing?
"Sorry if you heard anything…unpleasant," Michael says stopping in front of her and looks at her.
She shrugs and simply says, "let's get back to Jorge," for at the moment she has no idea what else to say.
The two of them begins to walk back to the hanger, silent, unsure of what to talk about. Shress would have love to talk to Micahel about anything, but at the moment she was actually afraid of him, never before has she seen him that angry and she was worried some of it was directed to her.
"Shress, what are you going to do now?" Michael asks.
"What?" she questions, taken off guard by the query.
"Are you going to come back with us, or are you going to try and regroup with your soldiers?"
Shress glances at him out of the corner of her eye, but the human kept his gaze pointed straight ahead, not looking at her.
Shress sighs, "I don't know Michael, maybe I'll go and try to find the Covenant, and I'll be a better use to you as a spy rather than anything else. And…well, your friend Jorge, and no doubt others like him, looks like he's ready to kill me, so...," she left the sentence hanging there, unsure how to finish.
Unexpectedly, Michael took her hand in his and squeezes, "Shress, if you come with us, I swear, I'll do whatever I have to, to keep you safe."
She looks at him and this time he meets her gaze, "are you serious?"
"Yeah I am," was his reply, "we're friends, I won't let any harm come to you."
She should feel happy after that statement, but she actually feels a little sadden when she heard him call her a friend. Stop that! she bereted her mind.
Before she could say anything else, they arrive back in the hanger; Jorge was pacing around the human air craft, keeping it safe from harm. They walk over to him and Michael says, "It's done."
Jorge grunts, "Alright," he turns to Shress, "no problems I assume?"
She growls again, disliking the demon more and more, "I'm an honorable warrior, I keep my promises."
Jorge gave her a strange look and asks, "Are you a New Harmony Ian?"
The question took Shress off guard and she replies in a regular tone, "Uh, no, I don't think so."
Michael steps forward and says, "It's just an accent problem we haven't worked out yet."
"Worked out yet?" Jorge asks, but shakes his head and walks to the bomb, "aliens sounding like they're French, now I heard everything."
Shress turns to Michael and asks, "What is an accent, people seems to notice but I don't know what it is."
Michael looks up at her and says, "An accent is, uh, it's just that you sound different from others, it's quite common on Earth, because of our different languages, like Jorge," he jerks his head to his demon brother, "notice how his words sound different from mine?"
Shress nods her understanding before asking, "So, how does an accent sound like?"
"I don't know, they're all unique, all sounding different," he explains.
"So, how does my accent sound?" she asks, silently praying it doesn't sound like Jorge's.
"Well kind of nice, almost adorable really," Just as Shress felt herself grow warm again, Michael quickly says, "in a friendly way of course."
Before Shress could ask if this was how he truly feels, they both heard a bang and turns to see Jorge walkng to them.
"Well, good news and bad news guys, the radiation from the bomb messed up the Pelican, so the only way off this thing is gravity," with that, he points out into the darkness of space, causing Shress tp become nervous.
"And the good news?" Michael asks hopefully.
"That was the good news," Jorge says as he removes his helmet and lets it drop to the floor. Shress couldn't help but stare at the human. It seems older compared to Michael, grey hair, wrinkled skin and what she found quite peculiar, he had fur growing above his mouth. If it wasn't for the situation at hand, she would have found the partially furry face look amusing.
"The bad news is," continues Jorge, "the timer is also fried, it has to be activated manually."
Shress had no idea what fried meant, but she understood manually.
"That's a one way trip," Michael says, Shress instantly knew what Michael meant, among her kind, the road to death was seen as the final journey.
"I know," Jorge touches his neck and yanks off a necklace, a necklace similar to Michael's. "Listen, Reach is everything to me, don't let it die," he places the necklace into Michael's hand and held on tight.
Jorge then looks to Shress, "And you…I hope what Six said about you is true," before she could protest, he grabs her arm and she was surprised when he lifts her off her feet, along with Michael. Grunting slightly, Jorge carries them to the hanger entrance. Realizing what he was going to do, Shress makes sure her shields are activated.
Jorge pauses, looks at her and Michael one last time before saying, "tell them to make it count," with that, he threw the two of them out of the ship.
Uncertain whether it was her or Michael who brought them together, Shress felt his arms close around her and she returns the embrace. She would have felt embarrass, but at the moment all she was thinking about was surviving the inevitable crash.
As they fall, they watch as the Ardent Prayer inch closer and closer to the Long Night of Solace, both knowing what was going to happen, but were still shock at what they saw.
The Ardent Prayer disappeared in a sudden flash as an intense force of energy escapes from it. Space suddenly begun to warp around what was once the Ardent Prayer, bright blue light soon intertwine itself with the Long Night, unwrapping itself until it was the size of a small star. Just as quick as it formed, the blue light collapses on itself and shrunk away into nothing, taking the midsection of the Long Night with it. The head and the rear of the ship floated for less than a minute when violent plasma explosions exposed themselves, encasing the remained of the ship in blue flames.
He really did it, Shress thought as they fell to the human world, thinking of the giant demon in a new light. The demon that she thought was a threat, was as cocky as Dinjit, just sacrificed his life willingly, without even looking scared. A feat that many Sangheili warriors would have admired.
She thought she felt Michal clung onto her tighter, she returns the embrace, mostly to comfort him as he had comforted her. Soon they begin to fall into the atmosphere, flames surrounds them in a beautiful yet deadly way. Now she was hanging onto Michael more to reassure herself rather than him, pressing close to his body for proof that they were still alive.
There was another flash of light and Shress felt her stomach drop when she heard the boom, it wasn't a weapon launching, but worse. Together, the pair of falling warriors looks and saw above them was another Covenant ship. Soon, one by one, more and more starts to appear, an entire fleet was arriving, ranging from one to two hundred ships, Shress recognizes the capital ship in the middle of the flock of metal giants.
The Great Prophet of Regret has arrived. They were too late. But before any other thoughts enter her mind, the bright orange flames intensified and her shields starts to grow weak. She clung on to the human close to her with more strength and says a silent prayer as she begins to black out from the pure pressure of gravity as they fall from space.