Oh look, another chapter! And so soon! I had this all planned out from the start, so part of it was already written, lucky right? In any event, I'll be posting an epilogue tomorrow but other than that, the journeys over. I'll save my final thank you's for the end so, until then, enjoy and let me know how much you've enjoyed the ride. Peace.

Chapter 10

"Will you not come with us brother?" The Shipmaster asked the Arbiter somberly, a lingering sadness in his tone. The trio now all stood in the Pelicans cockpit, while below them the Shadow of Intent remained motionless. It wouldn't stay that way for long, for as soon as they had gathered everyone they could, Humans and Elites, would return through the portal and head back to Earth. This was, their last chance to go with them.

The Arbiter declined, his voice resolute. "No. This is our fight. And I will see it finished."

Samus watched the Halo loom ever closer, and began feeling anxious. This was it. Once the Halo went off, it would all be over, at least theoretically. But Samus and well thought out plans dad never worked well with each other, so she couldn't help but feel doubtful that this would go smoothly. They entered what little atmosphere the Halo had, a snowy white background beginning to take shape.

"Johnson, do you have the frigate?" Cortana asked, her little Avatar standing on the dashboard. The Plan was to land, get to the control room and activate the ring. After that, they would all run for the Forward unto Dawn and escape through the portal before the ring went off. At least, if it went that smoothly.

Johnson's gruff voice crackled through the radio. "Yes Ma'am, I'll land her as close to the control room as I can."

Samus had noted that Johnson referred to Cortana as a 'Ma'am', while he called her pretty lady. She wasn't sure whether this bothered her or not. She certainly didn't see herself as a Ma'am, and yet she wasn't overly fond of lady either. But this was something she could talk to him about when they got back to earth. Who knows, maybe she might even do something social, make friends.

"Safe is better than close, Sargent major." Cortana scolded him, using his rank instead of his name.

"Roger that." Johnson said, a moments silence passing before he added truthfully. "And Ma'am? It's good to have you back."

John began to bring the Pelican in for a descent, but the damaged engines had finally had enough. As they neared the ground, inside of a snowy canyon, they gave out, causing the ship to drop the last few feet and grind against the ground. They came to a stop when the Pelican collided with one of the canyon walls, snow already settling on the now still vehicle. John opened the back hatch, and they all climbed out.

Samus gazed around their surroundings, admiring the scenery. It was only recently she had been on a Halo, and yet she could still admire the majesty of it. Assholes the Forerunners might have been, but at least they could make their weapons look pretty.

Cortana interrupted her thoughts. "Halo. It's so new, unfinished…" She said, pretty much summing up how Samus felt. "I'm not exactly sure what will happen when we fire it."

John grunted, grabbing a rifle out of the snow. He moved to stand beside Samus, the snow reflecting off his golden visor. "We'll head for the portal. And we'll all go home."

"Home…" Samus muttered quietly as they began walking. She hadn't thought too much about what she would do after all this, but now that they were close to the end, the thoughts came flooding in. What would she do? Retire? Find a home on Earth and try to fit into society?

"You alright?" John's deep voice interrupted her mental anguish. She jumped, not realizing she'd spoken that loudly.

She sighed. "Yeah, just unsure about my future. How do you settle into a society a hundred thousand years younger than you?" She said sadly, to no one in particular. John didn't reply immediately, the only sounds the wind and the crunch of snow under armored boots.

"You could always join the UNSC." He said, staring straight ahead. "You're one hell of a soldier Samus, and humanity could always use someone like you to protect them."

This got her thinking. Could she do it? Join another army? It surprised her when she realized it didn't sound as bad as she thought it would. She was used to a military style life on her own, she could fit into the UNSC Hierarchy. She snapped out of her demeanor to take in their surroundings. They had entered a cave, or a tunnel. Icicles hung from the ceiling, and the walls shone with frozen ice. She saw light ahead, and decided to quell the future thoughts, at least for the moment.

They emerged into a large, open snowy field. Devoid of any specific landmarks, the field was surrounded by rocky walls all the way around. On the left side was a snowy ledge, Samus figured it could be walked on, if they could get up there.

The one true thing of note was the large, monolithic Forerunner building in the center of the field. It was built near similar to a pyramid, with what appeared to be several stories. The pyramid was covered in a spiraling walkway, which led to the top of the building. Samus suspected that this was the building they needed, but gave it a curious scan none the less.

[Building designation: Halo Control Room. This building houses the main controls for the Halo super weapon. Usually guarded by Forerunner automations. Caution advised.]

"This is the place." Samus confirmed, her scan telling her everything she needed to know. John nodded.

"Once were in we only have a short window to activate the ring and leave. We only get one shot." He told them. Nobody questioned or argued. The trio began to make their way toward the large structure, John leading the way. He led them towards one of the walkways, one of which started on the ground level, partly covered in snow.

Samus kept waiting for an ambush. Forerunner machines or Covenant fanatics. But nothing attacked them, nothing sprung out of the ground. They made it to the walkway and began making their way up. Again, Samus waited to be ambushed, her eyes darting in all directions and her cannon ready. But none came. John continued to lead them up, his posture relaxed but ready. Arbiter seemed just as anxious as she was, his mandibles flexing and low growls escaping him.

They continued up until they'd made it to the top, uncontested. The top was nothing more than a flat floor, with a door built into the cliff face it pressed against. John moved toward the door, looking for some kind of control.

"Samus, can you scan the door? Get it to open?" John asked her, still looking along the walls next to the door.

She did as he asked, but the door wouldn't respond to her. It was as if it was being intentionally shut from somewhere else. Samus suddenly got a sinking feeling in her gut. What if they're good luck was actually far from it?

"John? I think we might want to keep our guard up." She said. And then she heard a scraping noise from behind her.

She whirled, just in time to be bowled over by a massive Flood form. The colossal thing virtually collapsed on her, pinning her to the ground. How had she not seen it on her HUD? The damn thing must have been moving slowly, she thought to herself. The vile thing coughed, bile landing on her helmet and chest. She noted her shields began draining. This wasn't good.

The thing coughed again. "Did you think me beaten?!" It spoke, the voice of the Gravemind emitting from its excuse for a mouth. Samus was on the verge of panic now. She struggled and kicked, but the monster was too heavy. She couldn't move it. "I will consume you, star child. I will crawl under your skin and make you my plaything." It said, quietly, intimately. Samus felt like screaming.

A green blur collided with the monster, pushing it a few feet. The space was enough for Samus to shove away, managing to pull herself further apart from her tormentor. She looked up, needing to know what was happening. John now stood toe to toe with the massive Flood, but even he was dwarfed by the monstrosity. Samus shuddered at the thought of how many corpses it was composed of.

John unloaded his rifle into the creature, but it brought up a fleshy arm to shield itself. It lashed out, knocking him off his feet and onto his back. John sprung up in a heartbeat, moving into melee range. He began swiftly jabbing and kicking the creature, the force of his blows capable of shattering bone, Samus knew this first hand. But the Flood shrugged of the blows like they were mere flicks. It swiped at John again, its speed fast for its size. John's shields flared gold and he collapsed, pushing himself up again in an instant.

Samus watched him fight, and urged herself to get up and help him. But she couldn't. It was as if she was frozen, unable to push herself up from her feeble position on the ground. Her breathing was rapid, and all she felt like doing was running. She realized surprisingly that she was having a panic attack.

The Arbiter lunged at the Flood from behind, his energy sword sizzling its flesh and burying itself in the creatures back. It roared, flailing its limbs in a spinning arc. Arbiter couldn't dodge in time, and was sent skidding across the floor into a wall. He struggled to get back up, but it was clear that he was injured. John continued his relentless assault, but again the Flood shrugged him off. It swept at his legs, knocking them out from under him, but this time it lurched forward, pinning him the same way it had done Samus. Acid oozed from its mouth, sizzling as it hit Johns shield. And John's shields were not as effective as hers were.

"Cortana…" it hissed. "I will make you watch as I destroy your hero, you're Spartan. You will scream as I turn his insides outside, and make his mouth say my words." It taunted. John's shields flared one last time, and died. Something in Samus snapped. In the moment, she knew she had to get up and save John. She knew what she needed to do, no matter how dangerous. She got up and stared at the creature that inspired such fear in her.

In that moment, she wasn't afraid anymore.

She ran at it, using her shoulder as a battering ram. She couldn't knock it as far as John did, but she did push it far enough. It roared at being interrupted and wrapped its arms around her, pinning it to its body. Her shields flared in protest to the acid, and the force of the things grip. It chuckled.

"Foolish girl. You do not learn. You have never learnt." It said softly, as if saying something kind. Samus stared up into its ugly horrifying face, and laughed.

"Yeah, except this time my cannons pointed at your head."

She roared and fired, a huge burst of Plasma streaking from her cannon, illuminating them both. Her suit flared heat warnings but she ignored them. She kept firing, the blast larger than the opening on her cannon. The Gravemind roared in pain as the Flood it controlled burnt and melted simultaneously. It struggled to move away, but now Samus kept herself pinned to it. Her shields were close to failing, warnings flashing all over her visor. With one final yell, she stopped the Plasma, stepping back from a now very malformed monster. She panted, her pent up fear and anger taking their toll on her.

She turned away from the Flood, bending a knee to grab John's hand. He took it, hoisting himself up with her assistance. She went to help Arbiter next, who seemed to have an injured arm, but shrugged her off when she tried to check it.

John coughed. "Thanks."

Samus chuckled. "I can't have you saving me, I don't buy that damsel in distress nonsense." She joked.

"All the same, you defeated the creature. You are a true warrior." Arbiter commented, flexing his arm, which seemed to be improving. The Alien bent down to retrieve his sword from where it had fallen.

A thud alerted them all, causing them to turn with weapons ready. The Flood monster had gotten back up, its body ruined and yet still able to stand. The Gravemind chuckled, though the sound was hideously distorted since Samus essentially blew the creatures head off.

"You cannot defeat me, I am I timeless curse." It said, a hint of pride in its voice. "Join with me, and assume victory, ever-"

A large blast of red light flew in from their left, piercing the creature. It fell down in a heap, unmoving. A large hole was now through its midsection, which blistered and boiled. A familiar voice chuckled through the radio.

"Kill steal" Johnson said humorously. Samus looked over to the cliff face she saw earlier to find him there, Spartan Laser in hand. He waved, which Samus returned, albeit halfheartedly. He made his way to the edge of the cliff, just short of making it to the roof where they stood. He fired the laser again, this time at the ground in front of him. The snow and ice collapsed, created a makeshift bridge to the roof. He walked over, smiling the whole time.

"I just saved your asses." He said, puffing out his chest.

Samus rolled her eyes. "No, you were right the first time, kill stealer." She muttered, though she couldn't help but smile. The Sargent always made her feel better.

His expression grew more serious. "We'd better get moving. Flood are coming up behind us as we speak." He said, a scream in the distance asserting his point. "Better open the door."

John shook his head. "We can't. Something else is keeping the door closed."

They were all surprised when a second later, the door hissed, and slid open. They all looked at each other, before another wail sounded out, much closer than before. They four moved in, entering a large hallway, winding into the mountain. They moved quickly, taking the turns and bends slowly in case of an unwanted surprise. But nothing waited for them in the silent corridors. Samus kept her guard up however, not wanting to be caught unawares by the Flood again.

They came to another door, which slid open when they reached it. Inside was a massive room, the ceiling hidden by shadow, and the floor in a similar fashion. A long bridge lay between the doorway and the center of the room, were a lone platform hung in the air. The platform was circular, with a massive hologram of the Halo ring in its center. A series of holographic controls and buttons sat under the hologram.

The Control room.

A Floods cry reached them, echoing from inside the recently silent hallway. Johnson tapped John, holding his hand out.

"I'll do the deed, you three should be ready for Flood." He volunteered. John hesitated, reluctantly removing Cortana's chip from the back of his helmet. Johnson frowned, his eyes unusually sad.

"I'm not gonna lose her too…" he said softly. Samus realized he meant Keyes, and she sighed. John handed the chip over, which Johnson took gently. He then began walking toward the controls. Samus looked back down the hallway, ready to protect Johnson and the key at all costs.

A sudden metallic humming caught her attention, and she looked up. A small blue light came out of the darkness, coming closer. She soon realized that it was Guilty Spark, and quickly relaxed. And then became puzzled. What was Spark doing here?

The little A.I flew right at Johnson, stopping just short of him and circling him while the Sargent walked. "Oh hello! Wonderful news! The installation is almost complete!" it beamed, as cheerful as ever.

Johnson cut it off almost immediately. "Terrific." He muttered, continuing to walk and ignore Spark.

Spark chuckled. "Yes, isn't it?" it said unusually. This caused Samus to turn her head. Something wasn't right here, she could feel it. But a very loud Flood scream caused her to return her attention to the hallway. Whatever Spark was doing, it could wait. She let the conversation fade out, and waited for the Ring to fire. A couple moments passed, and it didn't happen. She kept her eyes glued to the corridor but something was bothering her. What was Johnson waiting for?

A Scream shook her, except this time it came from inside the control room. And was undoubtedly human. She quickly spun, expecting the Flood to have snuck into the room. But what she found was much worse.

Johnson fell, his mouth still open as he screamed. Half his body was now covered in burns, and blood rushed out of him. Spark hovered above him, glowing red instead of blue. It gave him a much angrier vibe.

"Unacceptable…" it said quietly, before beginning to yell. "Absolutely unacceptable!" it then spun to face them. The door slammed shut behind them. Now Samus knew who was controlling the doors. But that was something she thought of in the back of her mind. Something else had her focus.

"Johnson!" She screamed, immediately rushing forward. She wasn't thinking, she just knew she needed to save her friend. Spark moved in between them.

"Protocol dictates action! I see now that helping you was wrong!" It yelled, before firing a blast of energy at her. She dodged, moving in close. But the A.I was clever, and instead flew into her. It impacted her in the gut, winding her. It didn't stop there, as it then pushed her toward the edge of the bridge. Samus struggled, but she couldn't get away. And with one last gasp, she felt the floor vanish and gravity begin to take her.

"Samus no!" John yelled, running forward. Spark had betrayed them, and had not only just injured Johnson, but potentially killed Samus as well. He'd watched as the A.I shoved her over the edge, watched her drop. His mind was still trying to process it, it had happened so fast.

Spark whirled toward him and fired, the energy red and angry. John was hit square in the chest and sent flying, his shields failing in a flash. He hit the flood hard, every bone in his body ached. Spark flew in for the kill, but was hot by several Plasma Rifle blasts. It looked up, spotting the Arbiter near the doorway. It fired, catching the Elite in the chest, and knocking him against the door. Arbiter's shields popped, and he hissed in pain.

John attempted to stand up, but Spark turned on him in an instant. Another quick burst send John to the floor again, his armor now sparking. He heard Cortana in his radio but her words were faded. All he could focus on was Spark, who now hovered in front of him.

The little A.I spoke, its tone once again calm. "You are the child of my makers, inheritor of all they left behind. You are Reclaimer." It said softly, before its tone changed once again to angry. "But this ring? It's mine!" It yelled, its eye charging up for another attack. John didn't have the strength to move, but he tried none the less. Spark began to fire, and John closed his eyes.

"Screw you, that hurt!" An angry Samus shouted. John opened his eyes and looked to his right. A battered Samus Aran came flying back over the top of the bridge, her grapple beam receding into her armored hand. She aimed her cannon and fired, missiles streaking for Spark. But they never reached him, instead spiraling away for exploding early. Spark whirled, moving right for her.

"You!" It screamed. "You are my maker's old enemy. I will take great enjoyment in dismantling you!"

It flew into her, knocking her into the floor of the bridge. She struggled back up, but Spark fired at her, a continuous stream of red energy. She raised an arm, trying to shield herself against the onslaught. Spark didn't let up.

"They told me about you! That you were the reason the Forerunners failed. How dare you step foot on this ring! My ring!" Spark screamed, moving slowly closer to Samus as it fired. Samus was now on her knees, her shields flashing red in protest to the attack. Then, John saw them begin to flicker. He remembered that her shields didn't charge as quickly as his, and that she'd taken a lot of damage from the Flood outside.

He saw her shields die.

She collapsed, unable to protect herself any longer. Spark never let up, his beam now landing directly on her armor. It began to glow from the heat, and he swore he heard Samus cry out. He struggled to his feet and took a step before falling again. His armor was flashing warnings but he didn't care. He couldn't let her die alone. He struggled on his hands and knees, slowly crawling toward them, each step agony.

A cough caught his attention. He locked down and realized he'd reached Johnson. The Sargent was definitely worse for wear, and John feared that he couldn't be saved. Johnson grunted, clearly in pain, and managed to roll himself slightly. His Spartan Laser fell to the ground from his shoulder. John looked from it to Johnson, and back again.

Johnson grunted, struggling to say something. "Kick…his…ass…" he uttered, before his eyes began to lull into his head. John grabbed the laser and hoisted it unto his shoulder. Every muscle he had screamed in protest but he ignored the pain, using it to focus himself. He aimed the laser right at Spark and began to charge.

Spark was now mere inches away from Samus's chest, the metal on her armor now molten orange. He could see even now, she still struggled. But it was no use, Spark had her pinned by his beam. John immediately tried to think of something Samus would say if their roles were reversed.

"Let's see how you like it…" he muttered. It would have to do.

He fired, the laser as red and angry as Sparks. The little A.I had no idea, and was taken completely by surprise when it connected with its spherical body. Spark was sent flying, colliding with the control console. It fell onto the floor, its body now had a large hole in it. It sparked and sizzled. To John's disbelief, it began to float up again.

"Oh no you don't…" he grunted, firing again.

This time Sparks' outer chassis was almost blown in half. It fell once again, its eye flashing and sparking. It began to rise once again, but fell a moment later. John watched the eye's flickers begin to slow, and then it spoke, one last time.

"Free…" It uttered, before its eye dulled, and did not light up again.

John let the laser fall of his shoulder. He tied to rise but failed, his body still protesting. An injured Arbiter came to stand beside him, resting a hand on his shoulder.

"I will help her." He said. "You tend to the Sargent." He then continued forward, moving to assist Samus. Incredibly, she'd started getting back up, wobbly and looking sore, but otherwise fine. John turned his attention back to Johnson, whose breaths were now irregular. John knew, deep down, that nothing could be done, but he refused to accept it.

"I'm getting you out of here." He grunted, fighting back his own pain. He bent down to try and lift Johnson, but a hand came to rest on his.

Johnson shook his head faintly, his eyes struggling to stay open. "No…No you're…not." He breathed. He then grunted, looking John right in the eye. "Chief. Don't let…her go. Don't you…ever let her go."

At first John thought he meant Cortana, but he realized Johnson was moving his head slightly up, in Samus's direction. John wasn't sure what to make of this, but he hardly had the time to.

Johnson coughed violently, before taking one last breath. "Send me…out. With a bang…"

And then he was gone.

John could feel himself shaking, he didn't know what he was feeling. He felt sad, angry, and emotions he'd never felt before. He stared down into the Sergeants now vacant eyes, and suddenly felt the urge to yell. To roar, to let whatever higher power there might be know his pain. He heard Samus and the Arbiter move up beside him, and he heard Samus gasp. But he didn't care. He looked down into Johnson's hand, and realized he still clutched Cortana, protecting her until his dying breath. Like a true soldier.

John gently retrieved the chip, and rose. His body was still in pain, but that didn't matter to him anymore. He glanced and saw Samus kneel down, de-activating her helmet. A single tear rolled down her porcelain cheek, a gesture that only made John feel worse. She moved a hand over Johnsons face, gently closing his eyes.

"I'm sorry…" she whispered, no jokes.

John had had enough. He began moving toward to controls, each step less painful. When he reached the console, he inserted the chip and stood there, waiting. Cortana appeared, her face riddled with sadness.

"I'm so sorry, John…" She offered. John wasn't in the mood.

"Just activate it." He said, tone dead.

Cortana looked a little shocked, but nodded. She closed her eyes for a second, before looking back up at him. "It's done."

He retrieved the chip, and slowly turned to face the others. That was it, it was over now. All they had to do was leave the Halo before it fired. It wasn't a large window, but he was confident they could do it. He stared at the Arbiter, whose body was battered but his eyes were just as determined as when he first saw them back on earth. He looked down at Johnson's body, his friend for years. He had honestly thought Johnson would survive this war. He almost had.

He looked at Samus, her face somber but her blue eyes staring right back at him. She gave a slight nod, her helmet flashing as it activated again. John didn't return the nod.

He wished he could forget this moment.

Suddenly, the entire room shook violently. A loud rumble could be heard, and the floor beneath them began to tilt. John ran for the others, dodging pieces of the roof that fell down on top of him. The others began running as well, the trio bursting out of the room at the same time. John glances back and noticed Johnson's body slide off the edge of the bridge. He did say he wanted a bang, John noted grimly.

The continued running through the hallways. All around them, Flood and Forerunner sentinels were fighting, both sides ignoring the three intruders.

"Cortana, what's happening?" John asked, running around an exploding sentinel.

"I don't know! It's like the Halo is shaking itself to pieces!" She said, just as alarmed as he was.

"It is." Adam said, speaking up. "The Halo wasn't finished, and cannot contain the energy from the blast. I believe we only have roughly ten minutes before it's fully charged."

Samus grunted, jumping over a bulbous Flood. "Why didn't you say so sooner?!"

"I only just realized." Adam said, his tone calm. "But we need to move. Johnson landed the frigate on the other side of the canyon, we can make it if we hurry."

"Yes!" Cortana added. "The frigate, we still have a chance! But we need to hurry. Like, really hurry!"

"What do you think we're doing?" John asked, weaving past another exploding sentinel.

The trio made it back outside, immediately running across the snow bridge Johnson made earlier. All around them, the Flood and sentinels fought. As well as that, huge explosions could now be heard, and seen in the distance. It seemed the Halo was already beginning to fall apart. They ran across the narrow cliff face, the sounds of chaos all around them. John spotted the opening Johnson must have used to reach here, and pointed it out to the others. They ran right through, never slowing down.

Inside, Flood waited for them, but this time no sentinels were around to distract them. The screeched and rushed them. Samus can running up into the front of the group, cannon raised. She opened fire, literally. Fire spewed from the mouth of her cannon as she ran, scorching all that stood in front of her. They continued running, cutting a line through the Flood. Those that survived chased them, running to catch them from behind. They soon reached a ramp, with an opening at the end. Outside, John spotted a Warthog, probably Johnsons.

Even in death, he was helping them.

"In!" he ordered, diving into the driver's seat. Samus slid into the passenger side, while the Arbiter jumped onto the turret.

"Gun it Chief!" Cortana yelled. "Go go go!"

He keyed the ignition and slammed his foot on the pedal. The hog roared to life, just as the swarm of Flood surged out of the entryway. John peered at them from the rearview mirror. They attempted to chase after the faster vehicle, but never made it very far. The entire section that they'd been standing on exploded, and fel into a chasm below. John felt himself shiver, watching as the ground continued to be swallowed up slowly behind them. He pushed the jeep to its limits.

They rounded a bend, and John couldn't believe his eyes. All around them structures and mountains exploded, collapsing and sinking beneath the ground. John saw a road like path that winded throughout all of this chaos. And on the other side…

He spotted the frigate, the Forward unto Dawn. It hovered on the other side, the ground under it still stable. They didn't have long.

"Hold on, this is going to get rough." John told the others, and floored it. He tried to stick to the main path as closely as possible, but parts of it had already blown up, forcing him to take detours. Chunks of rock and metal rained from the sky, causing him to swerve, and nearly losing control of the Hog several times.

They raced through an artificial tunnel, the pillars holding the tunnel up bending and shaking as they fell apart. John drove, doing his best to dodge debris. A shard of metal flew through the windscreen, impacting into the seat near his head. He ignored it, focusing on dodging the bigger, more dangerous pieces. He peeked into the rearview mirror and was alarmed to notice the floor falling had caught up with them.

"Faster Spartan!" The Arbiter roared, looking back as the ground swallowed everything, and crept ever closer to them.

"It's at max speed!" He shouted back, trying to keep calm. It was now right behind the jeep, and John could feel the vehicle begin to shake as its back tires bumped into its edge. He looked up and realized they were almost out of the tunnel, and back into the open.

"Come on…come on…"

He felt his stomach rise as the Hog began to sink, just at the mouth of the exit. He clutched the wheel tight, refusing to look down. Samus suddenly jumped up in her seat.

"Hold on!" She shouted, aiming her cannon at the ground under the Jeep. John saw them begin to fall, watching as the ground in front of them began to rise. And then an almighty explosion sent the Hog flying up, and over the ledge, clearing the tunnel. John chanced a look at Samus, her cannon smoking. He silently thanked her for whatever she'd just done.

They continued to race across the open destruction. All around them, Halo destroyed itself. The sky was now red, and the metals had begun to heat up, causing Johns visor to fog up slightly. He swerved to avoid a Flood that had tried to run in front of the car, and watched as it instead fell into a hole in the floor. He looked ahead to find both Flood and sentinels all over the place, fighting and adding to the chaos.

He swerved and ducked to try and avoid them, but some of them took immediate noticed and opened fire. Both Samus and Arbiter opened fire, the chain gun ripping Flood to shreds in front of them, while Samus's beam weapons tore through sentinels all around them. He looked ahead, taking note of the many holes in the road and spotted the Dawn, much closer than before. For the first time, John didn't feel like they were fighting the inevitable.

He quickly swerved to dodge a huge chunk of Halo's ceiling that collided with the ground, causing it to sink. He kept his foot pressed to the pedal, not daring to slow down you anything. The Dawn loomed ahead of them, a straight run.

Cortana interrupted his concentration. "90% Chief, firing sequence initiated!" she informed him.

"Cutting it close John!" Samus yelled, firing at stray sentinels. He didn't reply, to busy focusing on driving.

He reached the final hundred meters between them and the Dawns hanger, when the floor in front of them collapsed. The floor under the Dawn vanished, leaving the Frigate floating in midair. The only part of road left was a naturally occurring ramp. He realized that it was their only option, and gunned it for the ramp. He felt the rear tires begin to bounce again.

"Spartan! The floor!" Arbiter roared.

He looked into the rear view mirror, and saw nothing. The entire section they had driven through was gone, and the floor they drove on was the last of it. He drove right up the ramp and over the edge, sending the Hog flying into the air. The ground gave out as they left the ground, and nothing now stood save the Dawn. The jeep flew through the air, and then began to fall. They all began to scream, and for a moment, John thought they wouldn't make it.

The Hog came crashing into the hanger, tumbling end over end. John lost his grip on the steering wheel and sent flying out of the Hog, crashing unto the metal floor. He groaned, struggling to stand up. He spotted Samus a few feet away, and the Arbiter slowly getting up a few feet from her. An explosion rocked the Dawn, making it tilt slightly. John stabilized himself, but heard the Arbiter gasp. He looked up.

A tank had dislodged itself from its holdings, and was now flying right for him. Elites were tough, but nobody could survive that. John rose to help his friend, but Samus beat him to it. She shot up from her position on the floor, and dived at him, barging him out of the way, and saving both of them. She helped him back up, then whirled to John.

"Come on! Start the ship!" She screamed urgently. John quickly ran to a nearby console and inserted Cortana. He felt the ship start a moment later.

"Everyone hold on!" She said, as the ship began a sharp ascent. John saw the Arbiter turn and move further into the ship. Samus stood by the doorway and waited for him. John took one last look back.

They had left the Halo's atmosphere quickly, and the scene below them was someone like an abstract painting. The Halo, and the Ark, flared bright oranges and reds, in the contrast of the blues, purples and blacks of space. John turned to move up the hanger, but lost his footing. He slipped momentarily.

That's when the tank hit him.

He lost his footing completely, tumbling toward the hanger door. Cortana called his name and watched helplessly as he flew toward the entrance. He tried to grab something, anything to hang onto, but nothing would hold. He felt himself leave the ship, and move into open space.

An unarmored hand grabbed his, and halted his momentum. He came to a stop, dangling in open space, and looked up. Samus, in her zero suit, had jumped out after him, and was holding onto him with one hand. She held onto the edge of the hanger with another, and was the only thing stopping John from falling back onto Halo. Her teeth her bared, as she struggled to hold onto his heavy body. She grunted, slowly but surely pulling him closer to her. With effort, she managed to place his hand on the edge she was hanging onto.

"Grab it you oversized tinman!" She shouted, her arms starting to wobble. John secured his grip on the edge, pulling himself up. Samus pulled herself up easily, sighing in relief. She sat on the floor, looking up at John. "You need to lose weight."

John chuckled, he couldn't help it. Samus must have been starting to rub off on him. "Perhaps." He replied simply.

Samus rolled her eyes and smiled up at him, accepting the hand he offered. She continued smiling at him, and under his helmet, he smiled back. "We made it huh?" She said, not really a question.

He nodded. "Seems so. Guess we'll have to take some RnR when we get back."

She chuckled. "Or we could continue our spar. I was about to win after all." She joked, her blue eyes seeming to twinkle. She chuckled again before turning and making her way toward the door the Arbiter went through earlier. "I'm gonna go check Thel isn't about to blow us all up."

John watched her leave, not even questioning who Thel was. His body suddenly ached, and he felt just how tired he'd really been. He went to go sit by the console Cortana was in, and collapsed. It felt like years since he'd been able to just sit, and not worry. He tilted his head to watch the Halo explode in the distance. If John didn't know any better, he'd say it was beautiful.

Cortana chimed in. "If we don't make it…" She began, but John interrupted her, not wanting to hear it.

"We'll make it."

She was silent for a moment. John felt his eyelids begin to flutter, as he fought in vain to stay awake. Just as he began to slip into sleep, he heard Cortana's voice. Or was it Samus's? He couldn't tell.

"It's been an honor serving with you John…"

And then everything went white.