TIME FRAME: This chapter took place at the beginning of the Level Halo 2: Gravemind
Chapter 11 Forewarning
Stahn opened his eyes slowly. He blinked a few times and realized something was holding him aloft. He looked at his arms and saw he was wrapped in tentacles. He struggled but the tentacles only tightened their grip, basically a warning for him not to struggle. He understood and did so. He looked to his left and saw the Master Chief glance at him too, also wrapped in tentacles. Both started as they were lifted up to a massive creatures face.
Stahn couldn't believe his luck. He was still alive after what he went through. He remembered quite clearly what happened when they arrived to the Prophet of Regret.
***FLASHBACK***
TIME FRAME: N/A
Stahn and the Master Chief looked up at the blue sky as hundreds and hundreds of slipspace ruptures dotted the airspace above them. Cortana began in awe,
"That's the largest Covenant fleet I've seen...the largest anyone's seen, except the Heretics of course." Then the massive High Charity shimmered into view. It boggled the Master Chief and Stahn's mind that a ship that size could move like that. One shaped like a mushroom no less.
"Get inside and kill Regret, before they can stop us!" urged Cortana. Then, to everyone's surprise, a Phantom appeared, only the colors were different.
"Reinforcements?" asked Stahn. The Chief looked at him.
"Well it can help us." he said.
"HQ must have sent them." said Stahn. The Phantom then deployed three Sangheili, one with a jetpack and two plasma rifles in his hands. Stahn immediately recognized the gold armor as Novi Torvar's.
"Demon, Marines. I have come to help and deliver a message." said Novi. The 2 nodded.
"Where is the 'Stahn Zeban'?" he asked. Stahn raised his hand.
"Ah… I'm happy to inform you that the Creator is now recovering from his near fatal injury." Novi said Stahn.
"He's alright!?" asked Stahn in relief.
"Let's get this done with, and then you can see him the medical bay." said Novi as he turned to the entrance of the temple. The Chief, Stahn, Novi, a medic and the other two Sangheili trotted into the temple.
"The Covenant fleet has launched multiple waves of Phantoms. Too many for me to track ...we don't have much time. There are Honor Guards all over this place. Watch your backs." informed Cortana. They rounded a corner into a beautiful room with what seemed to be headstones, and a large water work. In front of the water work was the Prophet of Regret.
"There's the target, take him out!" Cortana cried.
"Heretics and the Demon; Guards, destroy them!" Regret yelled. On cue several Sangheili Honor Guards came out with plasma rifles and energy swords, followed by Unggoy.
"ATTACK!" shouted Novi. Novi then let loose with his plasma rifles, the bolts splashing onto Regret's shields. He cackled in amusement.
"How terrorizing." he said mockingly. He gasped when Stahn leaped onto his chair and smirked at him.
"I don't like you." said Stahn smirking at him as he gave a knuckle sandwich to the Prophet's face. He screamed in pain and teleported away. He landed on his ass and was greeted by an Unggoy and gave him a furious gaze. Stahn's, using all his might, kicked the grunt, his kick hitting the mask it wore and got torn off. The grunt was lifted in the air as the escaping methane let loose. He smiled smugly and took the plasma pistol it dropped in the floor.
He took it and immediately he saw something whiz by his hands and a gush of blood emerged from his right hand. He looked at his hand and horror crossed his face. His right hand had been sliced off his arm. He howled in agony as the pain finally registered in his brain. The honor guard roared and was about to lunge at him again when it toppled on the floor. Behind him was Novi who had his Plasma Rifles nodding to him.
The medic heard him howl in pain as his right hand got sliced off his arm. He immediately ran toward and him and laid his medkit and started applying biofoam on Stahn's bleeding arm.
Novi ducked as the Prophet fired the blasters from his hover chair. They came in contact with one of the headstones, making it explode and shower rock all over the place. Then the Master Chief leaped onto Regret's chair.
"Ah! Get off!" yelled Regret in horror.
"No problem." replied the Chief as he stuck a plasma grenade to Regret's leg. He screamed in despair as the Chief dove off. Then the grenade detonated, making the chair explode; and so passed the High Prophet of Regret, Noble Hierarch of the Covenant. The Chief finally noticed Stahn, as he sat on the floor, being treated by the medic. He quickly approached him and asked,
"How bad is it?" asked the Spartan.
"I sealed his wound with biofoam, it'll settle for now but we need to get him to a medical bay ASAP." said the medic closing his medkit.
"Well, it could have been worse." said Stahn gloomily. He would have to live now without a right hand. 'Good thing I'm equivalently good with my other hand.' he thought to himself, trying to lift his morale up.
"Um, guys, I think you better hurry up and get out of here. Novi and the medic are already on an escape Phantom." Cortana said nervously.
"Master Chief, the Prophet's Carrier is using some sort of super weapon! Get out of there!" the medic called her commanding officer and brother in arms. The 2 ran quickly outside. The Carrier was already firing the weapon, the large beam emitting from the gravity left port onto the ground.
"Go without us!" called the Chief on the comlink to the Phantom.
"What!?" Novi cried.
"Are you crazy!?" Stahn shouted in fear.
"Follow me." ordered the Chief to Stahn. The marine followed the Spartan away. They both jumped down a high ledge. They heard the Carrier's weapon blast, and the ensuing explosion right at the back of their heels. Then they were cast into the waters below the temple...or what was left of the temple. Both Stahn and the Chief sunk down in the dark waters to their death. But all of a sudden several tentacles wrapped around their bodies.
"This is not your grave." said a guttural and disembodied voice. "But, you are welcome in it." then the two were taken by the creature. After that, Stahn passed out.
*** END OF FLASHBACK***
"What...is that?" asked Cortana in disgust making Stahn come out of his thoughts. To the Chief and Stahn's surprise the creature spoke in a guttural voice.
"I? I am a monument of all your sins." it told them. As the Flood creature spoke he breathed out vapors found in Flood infestations. Stahn heard people grunting and struggling, one trying very hard. He looked up and gasped when he saw tentacles bringing Zen, Nira, Zide, Z'jo and an Elite he didn't quite recognize.
"Zen!" cried Stahn. Zen instantly recognized the voice and for the moment forgot he was in the clutches of the same monstrosity that took his leg.
"Stahn! You're alive!" he cried back in glee. The Arbiter continued to struggle though.
Relax." said the Chief to Thel who paused and looked at him. "I'd rather not piss this thing off." he said jerking his helmet to the creature's direction.
"Demon." growled the Arbiter staring daggers at Spartan-117. The creature huffed and regarded the Master Chief.
"This 2 are machine and nerve, and has there mind concluded." the creature wrapped a tentacle around the Chief's helmeted head and Zen's. Then indicated Thel,
"This one is but flesh and faith, and is the more deluded." Z'jo, Nira and Zide could not help but snort laughter. Thel gave his children a dirty look. Then the creature regarded the siblings and Stahn.
"These 4 are united, together they stand." Thel then said sharply,
"Kill me or release me, parasite. But do not waste my time with talk." the creature replied,
"There is much talk. And I have listened; through rock, and metal, and time. Now I shall talk, and you shall listen."
He lifted two tentacles, one wrapped around a red Monitor, the other merged with the half-flood torso of the Prophet of Regret. The Chief remembered sticking the grenade to his leg. Somehow the torso came out unscathed. The Monitor immediately laid out pleasantries, like all the machines did,
"Greetings, I am 2401 Penitent Tangent. I am the Monitor of Installation 05." Then Regret spoke in a raspy hoarse voice, as if struggling.
"And I am the Prophet of Regret, Councilor most high, Hierarchy of the Covenant!" the Monitor spotted the Master Chief and said in delight,
"A Reclaimer? Here? At last! We have much to do. This facility must be activated if we are to control this outbreak."
"Stay where you are! Nothing can be done until my sermon is complete!" the Prophet yelled angrily.
"Not true. This installation has a successful utilization record of 1.2 trillion simulated and one actual. It is ready to fire on demand." the Monitor explained.
"Of all the objects our Lords left behind, there are none so worthless as these Oracles! They know nothing of the Great Journey!" Regret shouted angrily.
"And you know nothing about containment! You have demonstrated a complete disregard to even the most basic protocols!" the Monitor shouted back. The Flood creature interrupted the bickering Prophet and Monitor,
"This one's containment..." it gave a disgusted huff while lifting the Monitor up slightly. Then he lifted Regret up slightly "And this one's Great Journey is the same." He then lowered both tentacles out of sight, the torso of Regret shrieking in fear and agony. The monster regarded Thel who continued pulling at the tentacles.
"Your Prophets have promised you freedom from a doomed existence, but you will find no salvation on this ring. Those who built this place knew what they wrought. Do not mistake their intent, or all will perish as they did before..."
"Father, this thing is right." Z'jo said to his father who looked at him. "Halo is a weapon. The Prophets are making a big mistake."
"Your ignorance already destroyed one of the sacred rings, Z'jo. It shall not harm another." Thel growled. Zide screamed his rage, angry at his father's ignorance. "You stupid, worthless, pathetic waste of Sangheilian life!" Zide turned to the creature,
"Bring back the damn Monitor!" the creature chuckled in amusement.
"As you wish, enlightened one." he brought up the Monitor.
"What is the purpose of Halo?" asked Zide.
"Halo's purpose is to rid the Flood of the galaxy, by terminating all life in the galaxy capable of sustaining the parasite. This Installation has a maximum effective radius of twenty-five thousand light years, but once the others follow suit, this galaxy will be quite devoid of life." Thel was shocked into silence.
"Do you see now, or do we have to have spell it for you?" said Nira casting a glare to his father.
"By the Gods and Rings." whispered Thel. "I am such a fool."
"There is still time to stop the key from turning, but first it must be found." the creature said, everyone paying attention to it again. He lifted up the Master Chief. But before the creature could talk, Zen suddenly shouted, "Wait!" The creature stopped and all eyes fell to Zen.
"Seeing as I feel that we won't be seeing each other again for a long time, Master Chief I need you to take this." said Zen. The Creature noticed what he was doing and loosened his grip a little. Zen dug his hands in his pocket and found what he was looking for, the remote for the bomb. He tossed it and the Master Chief caught in his hands, (the Creature loosened its grip on him as well) and looked at it curiously.
"Master Chief I want you to give me that the next time we see each other." he emphasized the word 'next' as heavily as possible like it was important.
"Cortana, what I am going to say is weird but still, Remote Detonation is possible so quit trying to insist on it, I already got it covered."
"What are you talking about?" asked Cortana, her voice sounded through Zen's speakers in his armor.
"You'll understand this soon enough, now one more thing, Master Chief," he said and the Spartan looked at him again.
"I want you to promise me that, you. Won't. Leave. Her. Behind." He tried his very best to emphasize each word with the utmost importance. The Master Chief looked at him for a moment then said, "I promise."
Zen looked at him, doubt in his eyes then reverted back to the creature. "Ok, you can do your thing now." The creature lifted up Master Chief and said:
"You will search one likely spot," he then lifted Zen, Nira, Z'jo, Zide, Stahn and Thel, "and you will search another. Fate had us meet as foes, but this ring will make us brothers!" the creature exclaimed. The Master Chief, Zide, Z'jo, Stahn, Zen, Nira and Thel disappeared in teleportation rings.
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