Well, it took a while but I finished this chapter at around 4:30 this morning. I'm rather pleased with this one and I hope you guys like it too. (Looks at the clock) It's nearly 5AM and the suns starting to come up so enjoy the new chap and Bed time for me!
(CHAPTER 11) RAIN
SPARTAN-73's boots impacted on the hard pavement as he jumped down from the elevated highway. Kalder stood back up and looked ahead of him. There was only one way past the wreckage of the MAC Cannon. He walked up to the fallen piece of the orbital gun and began rooting around in the twisted alloy. "What are you looking for?" Mitsuki asked. "The maintenance corridor, it's the only way where gonna get past this thing without backtracking." Kalder heard his A.I. sigh. She said slightly annoyed, "There." As she updated a NAV point on her Spartans HUD. Kalder paused for a second then continued. "That works too I guess." Mitsuki's annoyance grew. "You know, all you had to say was, Hey Mitsuki! Can you show my where the corridor is to maybe save us some time?" Kalder pushed some metal plating out of the way and forced open the maintenance access way. He hopped inside and replied, "Yeah but you know me, I'm thick headed." Mitsuki smirked to herself. "That's the understatement of the century."
The corridor was illuminated by red emergency lights. Only some illuminated his path, the rest had been shattered on impact. The flashlights on his helmet peered through the dust and smoke as Kalder made his way through the corridor. The walls were charred black, either from fire from the explosion or from the atmosphere. The occasional spark of electricity would light up the area as he made his way towards the far end of the tower. Something caught his eye and he stopped. "What is it?" Mitsuki asked. Kalder forced out a piece of purple alloy and looked at it. "This is a piece from a Covenant anti ship bomb." Kalder tossed the piece of shrapnel on the floor and kept going. He said, "Well now we know what happened to this station."
Eric groaned. He inhaled and re focused his vision. He heard Yuna. "Are you alright soldier boy?" "That hurt." He muttered as he gathered himself. He hit the control to open the canopy of the Hornet. It didn't move. "That's not surprising." He said. "If you want I can over ride it for you." Yuna told him. "No thanks, I got it." Eric said as he punched out the canopy window and hopped out. "Even after a crash like that you're still as barbaric as ever." Yuna said with sass. Eric looked at the Hornet. It was totaled to say the least. The frame was badly twisted and its remaining wing had a small fire pluming from its motor. "Any idea where we are?" He asked his A.I.. "You managed to land right next to Highway 22. If we stay on it we should head right towards the new base." The Highway led right through the downtown area nearly twenty miles from where The Arch fell." The odds of finding many blocked roads were unlikely but with the amount of damage done to the city, he wasn't asking for miracles. A flash of light ripped through the sky. Eric immediately pulled out his Assault Rifle and readied himself for anything. "Relax." Yuna told him. A few seconds later a rumble of thunder tore through the city. He lowered his weapon. "Sorry, I'm just a little jumpy." The Spartan started walking, "I guess that storm is going to hit quicker then I thought."
Drops of rain began to fall. "I just had to say it." He thought to himself. He continued walking down the dusty road under the steadily increasing rainfall. The heavy thump of his boots was occasionally muted by a crack of thunder. He found a small square in front of a building. The fountain in the middle was choked with dust and debris and the flower beds had been blown away by the force of The Arch's collapse. Eric sat on a small stone wall. He took his helmet off and let the cool kiss of rain touch his face. He pulled off his gloves and let his ghost pale skin feel the cool water. He cupped his hands and let them fill with water. He brought them up and splashed his face. He washed away the dirt and blood and let himself relax for a minute. His body was weak and torn and he needed a break. With exhaustion beginning to set in the cool rain did well to wake him back up. He let his long electric blue hair dangle in front of his face and let the cool rain drip from his hair. After a few moments of his quick break he slicked his chin length hair back and put his gloves and helmet back on. His suit hissed and recompressed itself. "Feel better?" Yuna asked softly. "Much." Eric said as he started walking.
Kalder continued his trek through the maintenance access way. He heard something pelting the alloy outside. "What is that?" He asked. Mitsuki calmly told him, "Nothing to worry about, it's just rain." Kalder nodded and kept going. He reached a rather large vent hole. He squeezed through it and nearly lost his footing on the smooth metal surface. He was now in the MAC Cannon's barrel. He saw light and followed it. The Cannon had landed at an angle making Kalder's attempt too climb upwards on the smooth surface rather tricky. Water began to stream down. The rain water was making his already tricky climb harder.
After a few minutes of carefully making his way to the top, Kalder pulled himself out of the top of the MAC Cannon. He looked around. The rain was beginning to settle the dust and making it much easier for him to see. Below him, he saw a road. "That's high way 56." Mitsuki told him. "If we stay on it, it should lead right to the city center." Kalder shook his head. He was up high enough to get a decent view of the skyline. In the distance he saw jagged twisted pieces of steel and rubble. "No, we have to find another way." Mitsuki argued back. "What do you mean another way?" Kalder replied, "Look Mitsuki, the city center is completely destroyed. Even if we are supposed to head there, what's left for us when we get there? Where heading towards the outskirts. Maybe there's an emergency base set up by now."
Kalder climbed down the rubble and stepped onto the pavement. He started walking in the rain and said, "Get me a NAV marker leading to the outskirts."
The rain fell in a constant barrage on SPARTAN-45. He was walking down the now abandoned highway trying to make his way to the newly established base. He asked, "Have you been able to link back up with Mitsuki at all?" Yuna answered, "No, I can try another scan now that the dust is settling. But I doubt I'm going to pick up anything." Eric shrugged, "Well, all you can do is try." Yuna went quiet while she scanned and Eric kept walking. A few seconds later Yuna replied. "I'm picking up something…" Eric asked. "Is it Kalder and Mitsuki?" "No." She answered. "This is a life form and it's near our location." Eric froze. "What kind of life form?" Yuna said, "Hang on a sec." Eric aimed back and forth ready to kill. Yuna continued, "I don't know what it is but I'm picking up a heart beat." "Is it from a Covenant?" Eric asked. "I don't know." Yuna replied, "But it's coming from the forth floor of that high rise to your left." Eric looked at the building. It was a large residential high rise building. He wanted to just forget it and keep moving but he also realized the possibility of a Covenant sniper waiting for him. He walked towards the building. "Forth floor huh?" He asked. Yuna told him. "You're about to take me on another crazy side mission aren't you?" "Look's that way." He answered back.
Eric walked up to the door. He slowly pushed it open and put in the barrel of his Assault Rifle through first. Nothing happened. He slowly made his way into the buildings dark lobby. The emergency power lights were on so the building for the most part was dark. He cautiously made his way over to a flight of stairs. He walked as quietly as he could. His heavy armor did little for keeping his footsteps quiet. He reached the forth floor and slowly opened the door. He immerged in a dark hallway lined with plasma burns, dead bodies, and blood covered apartment doors. Clearly the Covenant had been through here. "Which way." He quietly asked Yuna. The A.I. told him. "Head towards the right, I'm picking up motion towards that direction." Eric held his rifle in SWAT position readying himself for any possible attack. The small lights on his MJOLNIR reflected off of the blood soaked walls and the ammo counter of his Assault Rifle gave off an eerie blue glow. A loud crash of thunder made him jump. He quickly spun on his heel only to see the long eerie dark blood covered hallway before him. He shook his head and kept moving.
Kalder meanwhile was stuck out in the storm. Kalder asked, "So how far away are the outskirts exactly?" Mitsuki answered, "Exactly 54.8 miles away." Kalder groaned loudly. "It figures I get stranded in the largest city in the universe. When we get out of this, I'm requesting time off." Kalder saw something ahead of him in the distance. He picked up his pace and ran. He got close enough to realize what he had found. He sighed with relief. He had found a civilian W2, or the civilian version of the Warthog. It's bright red paint would make him stand out like a sore thumb to any Covenant but he didn't care, he now had a way to get to the outskirts. He pulled out Mitsuki's chip and held it at the driver's side door. He said, "Mitsuki, override the lock please." Her chip flashed green and the lock popped open. He put her chip back in and hopped inside. The non military grade vehicle creaked under the weight of his suit and the driver's seat nearly gave out from the sheer weight of his MJOLNIR. Kalder quickly hotwired the vehicle and he put it in drive.
His heavy foot steps echoed through the darkness of the hallway. It was these types of situations he hated most. The feeling of not know what waited for him in a close quarters area. He had even considered forgetting this whole side mission and continuing on his way. Maybe it was his curiosity getting the better of him, hell for all he knew it could be a Marine or worst case, it's a Covenant ambush. Either way, he was determined to find out. He felt his suit warm slightly. Yuna always did it when she felt his fear level rising. It was her way of letting him know that she was with him, a feeling he welcomed in these situations.
Yuna calmly told him, "Two doors down on your left." He approached the door and a rumble of thunder echoed through the hallway. He decided the quiet approach was best. He quietly tried the door. It was locked. He pulled out Yuna's chip and held it near the doors small code key pad. He quietly said, "Override." Her chip flashed blue and the door slid open. He quickly put her chip back in and she come back online with him. With his rifle at the ready he slowly entered the apartment.
He aimed back and forth and saw nothing. However, he did notice several plasma burns on the walls. He looked in the living room and kitchen but both were empty. To his right he saw a short hallway. Yuna told him quietly, "The last door." Eric nodded and slowly made his way down. He paused in front of the door. He pulled his rifle in close to his chest and put the side of his helmet against the door trying to see if he could hear any movement. He heard nothing. He held up his rifle and slammed his boot against the door instantly kicking it down. He quickly went inside and aimed at an object. He heard a scream of terror. He instantly froze and whipped his finger away from the trigger.
Kalder cautiously made his way down the debris filled road in the pouring down rain. He tried the radio to see if he could pick up anything. He tried all of the stations and got nothing but static. After several failed attempts he managed to pick up an emergency broadcast.
"This is a warning to all citizens of Aurora. Chancellor Izumi is calling for a planet wide evacuation. I repeat, a planet wide Evacuation is now in effect for the entire planet of Aurora. Emergency UNSC Evac crafts are awaiting all citizens in all major cities of Aurora. All citizens are urged to take only there essentials and leave behind all personal belongings and get to an Evac craft as soon as possible…"
Kalder yelled out. "Those idiots!" How do that plan to get past the fleet of Covenant ships!?" Mitsuki told him calmly, "Reinforcements are coming Kalder. There going to hold off the Covenant as long as they can while the Evac ships escape. We've seen it done before, you know it will be ok." Kalder frowned and kept driving. It was the little things like that that made him edgy.
Eric attached his Assault Rifle to the back of his battle suit. Before him he saw a little girl no older then six with long white hair and bright purple eyes wearing a blue and white sailor school uniform. She was alone, scared and crying. Eric cautiously approached her. She whimpered in fear and backed herself against the wall as the huge armored figure approached her. "The poor girl." Yuna said quietly. He calmly said. "It's ok, I'm not going to hurt you." She ignored him and tried to hide herself. "It's alright; I'm here to help you." The Spartan said as he slowly kneeled down and took off his helmet. His long electric blue hair fell in place around his face. He said, "You see, I'm an Auroran like you." The little girl saw he was the same as her under his battle suit and that he wasn't here to hurt her. She instantly ran to his arms and cried. He wrapped her in his armored arms and calmly told her, "Its ok, I'm going to get you out of here."
In between her cries she uttered out, "Are the monsters gone?" He knew she meant the Covenant. Now he knew they had been through here. He answered back calmly, "Yeah, I got rid of them all." She cried harder and said, "They, killed mommy and daddy." The Spartan froze. In between her scattered breaths she continued, "I heard loud noises coming from the other room and I heard… them screaming." Eric loosened his grip. He said calmly. "Wait here a second sweetie." She obeyed. He pulled his rifle off of his back and walked out of the girl's room and went to the door next to hers. He slid the door open and nearly dropped his rifle at the sight. Blood covered the walls and the bodies of two civilians lay in the middle of it all. Yuna gasped and said, "They killed them while she listened. How savage can those bastards be?" Eric shook his head. The Spartan slowly walked in and searched the man's body for some form of identification. He found a wallet in the man's pocket and he pulled it out. Inside he found his I.D. Good, it would help locate the girl's family when he got her to an Evac. He also found a picture of the family. The mother and father with the smiling face of the girl he had just found in the middle. He placed the picture and the I.D. in one of his armors side pouches to keep it safe until he reached Evac. He closed the door and went back to the girl's room. He found her sitting hugging his helmet to her chest. He kneeled down in front of her. She looked up at him as she whipped away tears from her bright purple eyes. He said, "I'm getting you out of here and I'm going to take you somewhere safe." She quietly nodded. Eric found her small rain coat hanging in her closet. He handed it to her and said, "Put this on, it's raining pretty hard out." She stood and he helped her put on her rain coat. He was amazed at how tiny she was compared to him. He picked his helmet up and put it on and his sit compressed around him.
After she put her coat on he knelt down and picked her up. He quickly carried her out past the room where her parents were. He opened the front door and they came back into the blood stained hall. He didn't want her to see any of it, especially the bodies. He said calmly to her. "Don't look honey." Having been through enough she obeyed. Eric held up his assault rifle with one hand while holding the girl in the other. A loud crack of thunder echoed through the hall and she yelped in fear. He kept moving and said to her, "It's alright, I'm not going to let anything bad get you." She buried her face in the chest plate of his armor while he made his way down the hallway.
As he was heading down the stairs he opened up his COM. He knew no one was probably going to answer but he tried anyway. "This is SPARTAN-45. I have a civilian child in need of Evac. I repeat, I have a civilian child in need of immediate Evac. I'm on Highway 22 heading towards the outskirts requesting assistance from any UNSC forces, over." As he made his way through the lobby he thought to himself, "God I hope someone gets that."
He pulled the girls hood up over hear head and they both went back out into the storm. The rain had now become a downpour pelting them both with an endless wave of water. He remembered these powerful storms from when he was a child. They could last for days at a time. He used his armor to shelter her from the rain the best he could. He said, "Yuna, lower my shields." "What? Why?" She argued. "If she's exposed I am too." He heard his suits alarms beep as his shields vanished. He tried to help her clear her mind. He asked. "What's your name honey?" She replied quietly, "I'm Yuki." "That's a pretty name." he told her. She was quiet for a few seconds then asked, "How about you? What's your name?" The Spartan answered, "I'm Eric." She asked, "Where are you taking me?" "I'm taking you to a place where there going to get you away from this war. You're going to get to ride on a space ship and there going to take you somewhere safe away from all of this." He told her reassuringly.
The wind picked up and the rain pelted down. Yuki began to shiver. "Yuna, monitor her." Eric attached his rifle to his back and wrapped his other arm around her trying to keep her warm.
An hour had passed since he had found Yuki. He did the best he could to take her mind off the situation by telling her stories of what he had seen and the places he had been over his military career. He told her that he was a SPARTAN, and that how he and the other Spartans were looked to as heroes. It helped to pass the time and keep her calm. However the exposure to the drop in temperature and constant barrage of cold rain took its toll. Yuna came on over his helmets speakers. "Eric, her body temperature is dropping. We need to get her out of this storm." The Spartan nodded and found a large sky scraper. He went to the door and had Yuna hack the lock system. The door popped open. He got inside and shut the door. "Yuna, lock it back down." He heard the door latch shut. He set Yuki down and held onto her tiny hand as he looked around. The buildings lobby was rather large and had a balcony running along the top. That was his best bet to stay out of sight if ground troops should wander by.
He picked Yuki back up and went up a flight of stairs to the balcony. There was a small food court and a lounge. He walked over to one of the small food stands. "Are you hungry?" He asked her. She nodded. He hopped one of the counters and pulled out some ready made box lunches the stands offered and grabbed a few drinks. He led Yuki over to the lounge and sat her down on the large sofa. The weight of his battle suit would break it in two so he sat on the floor. He didn't mind, he needed a break. He said quietly to her, "There's no power so where going to have to eat them cold." "I don't mind." She said quietly. The two sat quietly and ate. He saw Yuki shiver. Her school uniform of a dress shirt, vest, and mini skirt wasn't doing well for keeping her warm. "Wait here." He told her. A look of panic came across her. "Where are you going!?" She asked frantically. "It's alright," he told her. "I'm just going to find some blankets."
He walked down the balcony and found a supply room. He opened the door and found some sheets. He grabbed a few of them. They weren't anything special but at least it would keep her warm. He walked back and found Yuki clutching her knees to her chest on the couch. She sat in a blank stare thinking about everything that had happened to her. The shock of loosing her parents had left her stunned. Eric sympathized. He hadn't seen his parents since he was her age, back before the military took everything away. He wrapped a few sheets around her and said, "There, that should warm you up." He sat on the floor next to the sofa she was lying on. She lay down and asked, "What about you? Won't you be cold too?" Eric smiled and said, "I'm ok, my armor keeps me warm." "Oh." She uttered out. Yuki rested her head down and within seconds was asleep. The whole ordeal had worn her out. Eric genteelly stroked her cheek with his glove. "The poor girl." He said to Yuna. She told him, "She'll be ok, where going to get her to an Evac and they'll get her to safety." Eric said, "If we ever get to one." "We will," Yuna told him reassuringly. "But for right now, you should rest up. Where not going anywhere until this storm passes. Her little body wont be able to take it. It would be different if it was just the two of us but for right now its best if we lay low for a bit." Eric nodded and slowly closed his emerald eyes. "You're right. I'm exhausted anyway. Just keep a look out for any motion aside from our own." "I will." She replied quietly as she constricted the MJOLNIR's black layer giving her Spartan a hug. Eric soon fell asleep with his rifle at his said should anything happen. He needed the rest and he needed to get Yuki to safety.
The Warthog's engine roared as Kalder flew down the road. He wanted out of this city and he wanted to meet back up with some Marines. This war was starting to get to him. The constant combat and his ever worsening situation was lowering his morale. He felt Mitsuki leave his mind. His eyes widened from his A.I.'s sudden jump. His gloves sparked gold and Mitsuki interfaced herself with the Warthog. The engine and headlights died and the vehicle ground to a halt. "What the hell was that for!?" Kalder yelled. "Shut up a minute!" Mitsuki shot back, "And don't move." Kalder argued back, "Mitsuki what's going on!?" Kalder heard an all to familiar rumble. He looked up and saw five Covenant Phantoms flying in a V formation heading towards the downtown area. "That's why." She told him. Kalder frowned. "So, there back already."
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Chapter 12 should be done around this time next week. Drop me some reviews in the mean time. Later all.
