A/N: Finally got around to rewriting this. Destiny is a massive time suck. If you want to see a Destiny fic (or a crossover), just let me know.

Disclaimer: I am in no way affiliated with Microsoft, Bungie, or 343 Industries. This is for my enjoyment and, hopefully, the enjoyment of others. I do not receive a profit.

Lady Night

Day Two of Exploration

John was floating. He supposed that he'd always be floating, now. There was a darkness pressing in every which way, as though he was drifting in space. There weren't any noises, nor the feel of anything. This is what dying feels like. John wouldn't know. He was a SPARTAN. SPARTANs never die.

John wasn't needed anymore, though. It was time to go Missing In Action. In the back of his mind, John knew he was dying alone on a Forerunner space station. He hoped they'd never find his body. Then he could remain a legend, an inspiration for all of humanity.

At least Cortana had had her rebirth. John paused. Therevwas something wrong with that thought. But what? His mind was heavy, and he wanted to sleep; to dream; to die. John struggled for seven long moments before it came to him.

Cortana! If he died, she would too. John was a soldier for humanity. He'd done his fighting. Humanity was saved from the Covenant. Now it was time for peace. Peace and rest. But if he stopped now, Cortana would suffer. She mayn't have been human, but in the end, who was man, and who machine?

His voice was hollow. "Cortana!" he said. "Cortana!" There was no answer. He supposed that there never would be. He'd never hear her tease him. He'd never hear her wax eloquent about some aspect of the nature of the universe. He'd just float in this grey mess forever.

Grey? Hadn't it been black before? John fought, shaking his limbs and trying to break free. After a minute of motion, John heard a voice, far off and up high. It was low and gravelly as it said, "The Demon stirs. Alert the Arbiter." John pushed harder, forcing his way out of the murk. Colour began to resolve around him, revealing a long grey face with four jaws peering down onto him. John reacted purely on instinct, coiling his muscles and attempting to push off of the floor. There was one problem. There was no floor. The Sangheili saw the movement and spoke in guttural English. "You are on a gravity sled, Demon. The Arbiter saw fit to bring you aboard the Hierarch's Redemption."

Then a far more pleasant voice rang in John's ear. "You know, if you want to walk, I can turn off the sled." John smiled. It was good to hear that voice again.

"Yes, please." With a low whir, the sled shut down, and John felt his weight return. If anyone else had been lying back like that, the results would have been a lot less pretty. As it was, John's attempt to shift the full weight of his MJOLNIR and cybernetic-enhanced body wasn't pretty anyway. He just barely managed to land in a squat before rising up almost as tall as the six Sangheili around him.

Not once breaking stride, the Sangheili gathered up around him in a looser formation than before, and led him unerringly through the maze on the inside of Paradigm. After some time, the group came to a massive metal wall. The Sangheili from before spoke once again. "Your hand is needed, Demon. Place it upon the portal." Nodding to himself, John rested one gloved hand on the wall. As he pulled it away, the wall started to glow where his hand had been. The red handprint lasted a moment on the wall before fading away. The "wall" dissolved a moment later, and John stepped out of the building and onto the sands of Paradigm.

"Fascinating," was all Cortana would say as John followed his entourage to a Phantom drop ship hovering several metres above the desert. As one, the group walked into the Phantom's gravlift. The ride to the Hierarch's Redemption was silent.

Day One of Rescue

As John floated down off of the Phantom, he took note of the massive hangar bay. There were few ships for such a large space, and even fewer troops. A pair of Unggoy pushed a crate while nearby, two Sangheili loitered. A few Kig-Yar were inspecting consoles, as were several other Sangheili. A lone Huragok drifted aimlessly. By and large, the place was empty. So naturally, the only way out of the hangar involved walking past every alien in the room.

The two Unggoy stopped what they were doing to watch the passage of a Demon in olive green armour. The Kig-Yar screeched and shifted back and forth. The Sangheili, however, looked on with indecision. To John, it looked as though they were debating between shaking his hand and running him through with an energy stave. Apparently, Cortana saw much the same, and muttered something about, "shake and shank."

When the purple metal doors slid open to admit John, he saw a familiar set of armour. Archaic, the silver armour represented Thel' Vadam's fall and subsequent rise as Arbiter for his people. In baritone, he said, "SPARTAN, we did not know it was you we would find. The message merely gave us coordinates. I am sorry, but we do not have sleeping quarters designed to withstand your weight. Would the Rear Observation Module be acceptable?"

"Thanks for the rescue. Anywhere is fine."

With a respectful nod, the Arbiter turned. Raising a hand, he dismissed the rest of the crew, leaving just the Arbiter and the Master Chief alone in an empty hall. The Arbiter took a step forward, and John followed. The two weaved their way through the empty ship. Comparing the silence to previous times aboard Covenant spaceships, Cortana spoke up through the Master Chief's armour mic. "Why are you so far out here? And where is everyone? Normally, they try to greet us by attacking en masse."

Everything was silent except the gentle thrum of the ship's engine while the Arbiter weighed his responses. After rounding yet another corner, he said, "It is good to hear from you, Construct. I was afraid our expedition to High Charity might have been for naught." The Arbiter took a deep breath, as though preparing to reveal classified information. "This is a skeleton crew. We received an SOS message from Long Night of Solace some time ago. After gathering the absolute minimum amount needed for an expedition to deep space, we left to find the ship. Records say it disappeared over your planet Reach. After the war, the records might be wrong, but we are in sore need of supplies, both military and civilian. A super carrier could remove some of that burden."

Putting the pieces together quickly, Cortana replied, "I assume that ONI doesn't know."

"If they did, we wouldn't have made it this far."

Cortana didn't respond. John knew it was his duty to tell the UNSC. It was also Cortana's duty. But he had been stripped of rank, and she was listed as "terminated." He'd checked. They still had a duty to humanity. But not a duty to the UNSC. This was John's secret to keep. He'd talk to Cortana about it later.

At long last, a whirring of metal pulled the purple door open to reveal a transparent bubble populated with stars. John stepped inside, his boots clanging against the clear floor. The Arbiter stayed outside the pod, eyes intently focused upon John. Turning, John said, "Thank you."

The Arbiter gave no acknowledgement of the thanks other than the slightest of movements with his jaws. After a moment staring at the stars in the background, he said, "I'll alert Lord Hood to your presence aboard the ship." He stepped away from the door and hit a console, making the door slide shut.

Just before the door finished closing, John said, "No. Don't." There was no indication that the Arbiter had heard, but John knew he had. Instead of worrying, he turned and looked out at the stars in the distance. He didn't say anything to Cortana, and she didn't say anything to him. Words couldn't have described the emotions either one experienced, even though neither was supposed to have emotion.

Instead, the pair sat in quiet companionship as the helm created a whirling purple storm and piloted the vessel through. Slipstream space closed over the pair, leaving the solar system alone and quiet as planets drifted slowly through nothing, awash in starlight.

A/N: Finally. Once again, sorry. Also, I am thinking about writing Halo:6. Drop a review if you want me to write 6 or anything in particular.