Chapter 11: Even Deeper Depths

Kez took a few deep breathes, panting wildly, before approaching the sliced open beast that lay slain on the floor. He placed a firm hand on the Combat Knifes grip and slid it out with relative ease, a blood like fluid dripping from the blade.

"Remind me never to piss you off," I said to Kez.

He said nothing just flipped the knife in his hands and held it out to me grip first. I took it and placed it back in its sheaf. Kelly meanwhile walked past me over to Kez who was now placing his armour back on himself that he had thrown to the side.

"Steve, scans suggest that beast was the cause of the multiple signatures, it seems that when Lieutenant Kelly hit its collar device it de-activated all the other signals. A confusion or rather a distraction built into its device to aid in its ability to hide." Chrystal informed me.

"Hm strange, how come we have no record of this nor any of the potential technologies in use here?" I questioned back to Chrystal.

"Well, it stands to reason with anything ONI get involved in there is an element held back from us that is for sure, however, from texts that I have on record, Dr. Luther Mann apparently found similar devices in some experimental Covenant technology that was acquired in the earlier stages of this war." Chrystal again informed me.

"Dr. Luther Mann, I've not heard of him, who is he?" I curiously questioned.

"He is one of the best minds in his field, possesses a vast knowledge of Covenant intellect as well as knowledge of their technologies. ONI and various other factions keep a close eye on his findings from various experiments but also information he has gathered from other sources." Chrystal reeled off.

"Sounds like someone we could do with right now, but alas it would seem this one is on us." I replied pondering.

By this point Kez was fully suited and now back to his usual self, somewhat calmed down from the anger filled man he was just moments ago. Kelly was locked and loaded, evidently keen to get a move on to the Core-Index.

"Alright guys, let's proceed, whatever it was is now gone, the other life forms that were being picked up have gone with it." I informed them.

We picked our way across the now devastated dining hall to the double doors on the far side. The lighting initially proving problematic until my Visr adjusted somewhat to the conditions. We stacked up along the door, Kez leading the way in this time.

On the other side, a corridor stretched out, offices lining it. Evidently this was where all the privileged personnel were afforded their own quarters for any private matters they had to attend, most probably liaising with those in power at ONI who dictated the ebb and flow of most things in these facilities.

"Look at this place, I never expected this, it's as if we have walked into a normal tower block of offices back home," Kelly said out loud.

"Yeah, god knows what they were doing here, but if there are all those records on these systems, it must have been key to something." I replied.

"Rumour has it, there was some technology not of our own held here and experimented with..." Kelly trailed off thinking hard.

"Covenant?" Kez asked, chiming in.

"No and certainly not human technology either. Something else, something like Runner?" She questioned.

"You mean Forerunner." Chrystal spoke out, for the first time over comms.

"Yes, that's it!" Kelly exclaimed, as we proceeded to walk the lengthy corridor.

"And what the hell is, or, are Forerunners?" Kez questioned, slightly unnerved.

"Forerunners are a key instrument in the Covenants persistence in removing us from the face of the universe, let alone the galaxy. They are the beings that created that ring, the ring we came to call, Halo. Right now The Pillar of Autumn along with one of our finest Spartans is headed for a crash course into it's very location, lest they know it. ONI has kept this under wraps, but it has always been a kind of guess works of sorts. We only know of it due to the Covenant speaking of it so freely," Chrystal explained, "The Forerunners are the race that designed and built these facilities, though what they are for we have no idea. Certain parts of their technology have also surfaced upon Earth itself, that is how we confirmed there was an existence beyond ours and the Covenant species."

"So what you are saying is, we could well be recovering vital information that the Covenant seek with regards to these... Forerunners?" I questioned, stopping for a moment.

"Exactly that. These structures, are apparently supposed to lead to somewhere where, if you listen to the Covenant, The Great Journey truly ends and everything becomes theirs. However, from experiments and research that Luther Mann and Henry Lamb have conducted, it seems there is potential for a device that could wipe out all life as we know it." Chrystal again explaining in depth.

"I guess that would explain why ONI don't want us, or anyone else for that matter, to know jack shit about what they are up to. It seems they are only just scratching the surface and i'm guessing that most of their data is held up in these facilities we are tagging. I bet any money now, that Pelican we grabbed from that Cult has some information on it regarding this too." I retorted to the group.

"Well, to me is sounds like we have no choice but to make this mission a success then!" Kelly stated assertively.

"Damn straight, come on, stairs are just down the end there" I said nodding in the direction.

We all proceeded to the top of the stair well, the segments of steps leading further down, Sub-Level 2 awaited us. According to signage around the place, this was going to be a floor containing text rooms, with vast expanses of paperwork all carefully stored in alphabetical order. Kinda makes you think just what the Covenant could learn from all that, provided of course that they could read English.

Walking through the well lit room, shelving towered around us, the floor clear of anything, not even a single paper loose. Very well stored I thought considering the state of the Dining Hall. Perhaps, though, the scientists here appreciated their work more than their meals, who knows, and more importantly right now who cares?

A door became visible at the other end, the sign stating Sub-Level 3 above it.

"Well looks like there is only one way to go eh?" I asked out loud.

Despite the beast we initially encountered, this place was rather quiet and secure, it made me question just how abandoned, if abandoned at all, this facility was.

The door opened with a hushed whoosh and we stepped through. Typical human design, despite it being ONI, I always presumed they would have more fancy tech than anyone else because of who they were, but I was mostly left wanting.

We proceeded down the stairs in the same triangle formation as before, covering ourselves as we did so. A sign on the stairs stated this was 'The Gallery', which gave us all a sort of puzzled look as to what to expect once inside. One more flight of stairs and we were again proceeding into a gleaming, well lit room. This time Tech benches lined either side of the walkway, all pure white. Some had holographic images displayed still, all of varying creatures and also of various artefacts that none of us had ever seen before.

"Could that be Forerunner artefacts displayed?" Kelly asked whilst approaching one, analysing it carefully.

"No. That there is an image of a rare Covenant Prophets staff. A Spartan mission managed to secure one from a derelict Covenant Cruiser on one of our most outer colonies before it got glassed." Chrystal informed us.

"Fascinating," Kelly replied in awe of it.

I proceeded to walk down the room a bit more, now with more of an eye on what was displayed on each work station.

"Hey guys, over here" Kez called out to us.

We moved over to Kez who was also at a work station, but this one not only had a holographic image, it also had the actual item on the desk. Kez went to reach for it but I grabbed his hand back, holding it firmly around his wrist.

"Do not touch that, we don't know if it is safe." I told him firmly.

"Ouch, alright jeez, but let go of my arm, your grip is killing me," Kez clearly said in some discomfort.

"Sorry, guess I still don't know my own strength, Chrystal can you scan the item and give us some Intel, maybe tap into their database here please?" I asked my fellow suit sharer.

"Of course," Chrystal gladly replied.

While she gathered the information she needed, I took a moment to appreciate the tidiness and cleanliness of the room in which we stood. It was spotless, not one dust spec either.

"The device of which you see before you, is unknown in origin. It was found within a group of highly guarded Elites that were taken out by a group of Spartans. Spartans Oscar-Six no less, the very squad both you and Kez encountered at the previous ONI facility. It possesses some power qualities, that when tested, we out of our ranges, but what it is for we have no idea yet. And I stress yet. It seems there is a lot of activity and investigation surrounding this specific device, as it may well be some sort of Key that could unlock the mythical creations created by the Forerunner kind, however a location for that has also been undetermined at this time. It is safe to the touch however and has caused no harm to any of the scientists in this facility, so it is believed to not be lethal in design." Chrystal informed clearly.

"So we take it?" Kez asked.

"Yes, store it in your other leg holster, making damn sure the Covenant don't get their hands on that!" I asserted.

Kez whipped it up off the desk and slid it into his holster, surprisingly a nice fit. As we turned around the far door which gave us access to Sub-Level 4 opened and a rather surprised group of scientists froze, staring at us, just as we did the same albeit with our weapons pointed straight at them.

"This just gets more and more fucked up!" Kez muttered to himself.

"Come out from the doorway with your hands visible, we will NOT shoot!" I bellowed at them.

They seemingly complied and moved into the room, the door shutting behind them. The all ambled along until they were just a couple of meters away from us all.

"What on earth do you think you are doing within this facility!?" what I assumed the lead scientist hissed at us.

"We have been dispatched to rescue an and all information collated in these systems on behalf of ONI. Right now, a cluster of Covenant battleships in the region of 36 cruisers and 1 unknown lurk on the outskirts of this planet. This is a rescue and destroy mission. My question is, what, in fact, are you still doing within this facility?" I firmly replied, making our intentions clear.

"Covenant? They are here?" The scientist replied.

"Yes, and i'd appreciate getting this mission completed." I again stated back.

"They told us this time might come... but... I didn't expect now, not this soon, the research is not nearly complete, this is so very not good." The scientist panicked.

"You knew!?" I questioned, my voice raised.

"Yes. Of course we knew, they wouldn't have such a facility without a fail-safe plan, a way to save all that we have accomplished so far would they?" they questioned, and they were of course right.

"So, I see that we have two options available to us, one, we keep you guys here and carry on, or two, you help us and we get you off this planet, how does that sound?" I asked them.

"I'm afraid soldier, neither of those options are viable, you will need our specific DNA and security clearances to harvest the data of which you wish to collect for them, however, it will trigger a release of various security measures as it wasn't entirely designed to be extracted without consequence." The scientist informed me.

This information suddenly gave me a rather large feeling of unease.

"What does this mean? What security features are we talking about here?" I asked, knowing the answer would only serve to frustrate me further.

"You see, it will put the facility on a timer. 25 minutes to be exact. Extraction of the data will take 15 minutes total and by my calculations that leaves exactly 10 minutes to flee from Sub-Level 5 and up and out of the escape hatch, you see, it is simply impossible." The scientist sounding rather saddened by this. "But, you are no normal human, are you? You are special. So for you it may be possible to just make this work. What I can do, is give you access to all the systems, which will trigger the count down, which is enough time for me and my team to leave, as well as your companions, whilst you and your AI Chrystal collect the data."

"Steve, they are right, it is impossible for the others but for us... I believe we can achieve what is required." Chrystal chimed in.

"Alright. It seems that is the only option and one we have to chance taking." I said trying not to let my nerves sound in my voice.

"You can't be serious!" Kez exclaimed.

"Kez this is bigger than us, get these people out, me and the lead scientist will activate the systems, Chrystal will extract the data as soon as it is activated. When this happens you take all of these people out of here and I will follow exactly 10 minutes after you guys, is that clear?" I instructed.

He paused, evidently assessing his options, before reluctantly nodding.

Myself and the lead scientist headed for Sub-Level 5, descending the various flights of stairs and rooms before us.

The room soon loomed ahead and my was it vast. It stretched further than the floors above, computer towers at least 10 foot high, all lit up wiring away covering every part of the floor. In the middle a raised island with what looked to be a main control panel and holographic monitors displaying the very internal workings of it all. It was the island we made our way towards.

"Before you ask, I am Dr. Charlene Stewart, lead ONI scientist for this facility. I know what you are thinking and no, I don't have access to anymore files in regards to that artefact your friend now has nor do I know what ONI are up to. I was stationed here simply to find out more and more about everything they provided us, no questions asked. You see, some of us, unlike others like yourself, we don't need to know everything, Staff Sergeant Hill, we merely want a means to make our life purposeful. Do you see? We were happy here, of course we were informed that one day we would have to follow this very protocol, most likely for the Covenants presence but it mattered not to us." She ranted on.

"But..." I got cut off.

"No, no buts, I am ashamed to admit it, but the work of which you are saving, will serve of little purpose to ONI themselves, we uncovered very little and what we did uncover well i'm not sure of what benefit that will have, but again, I choose not to question it. I would rather die here with my work than be spared and sent to some arrogant know it all lab facilities funded for nothing but the mere control of the galaxy, but I signed an agreement that stated I must in fact report back to HQ once done here. That day is today. Now stand back and let me activate this system!" She said, every bit of it with anger behind it.

She stepped up to the panel and pressed her palms down on 2 separate pads. There was a click and then a beam scanned her retina's.

"Charlene Stewart. Lead Doctor. ONI. Cleared" an eerie voice rang out.

She then proceeded to go through various panels until she got to the data extraction section. She proceeded to type in various codes and activation grants. Before an almighty siren sounded.

"There. The activation is done. Be quick, lest you die here with my work." She said before sprinting off back the way they came.

"Alright Chrystal, get to work." I stated, observing the holographic screens stretched out before us.

Chrystal got straight work digging deep through it all and hauling it all into the internal storage I had embedded within the suits main core. Huge chunks of data all flowing from one hard drive to the next.

Up above the group were well on their way now, Dr. Stewart meeting with the squad. Kez and Kelly providing them with direction and a sense of urgency to move even faster as they all scrambled up the stairs, and onward towards the hatch which now lay not far away.

7 minutes had passed, and I was growing impatient. I knew the others would now be nearly topside and I was only half way done.

"Chrystal, anything I should know about this data?" I asked not really wanting an answer.

"Well it is all encrypted, it seems Dr. Stewart placed certain measures in place to stop us being nosy... that said, I believe I can crack it and take a look if you wish?" Chrystal replied.

"No, i'm sure we will find out soon enough, plus I don't want to risk an underlying security measure that fries the both of us, any way to speed this up though?" I again asked.

"None, it is set at a specific rate one which I don't have access to changing." She replied calm as ever.

"Alright then." I simply replied.

14 minutes had now passed and the group had just made it up the ladder they had descended just earlier, back into the jungle like terrain.

"This is Staff Sergeant Kezlowski, we have the package, requiring evac, over." he stated over comms.

"Reading you, Evac en route." the uninterested comms member at the other end said drily.

"Come on Steve, hurry it up!" Kelly said impatiently.

15 minutes.

"Download complete, lets go!" Exclaimed Chrystal.

I didn't need anymore telling, gun now stuck to the rear of my armour, I began running, and wow what a difference these upgrades made, I was moving but taking strides just as quick at double the length I had done before and I wasn't even needing to draw breath all that much.

We were flying along, Chrystal had displayed a timer on the HUD which I was using to benchmark myself, by her calculations we would exit the complex with 1 minute 30 to spare, but we also had to get clear once above. We glided up the stares 4 at a time, I swear I heard Chrystal murmur something of being impressed but it could have been me.

We burst through the dining hall doors, Chrystal's timing being spot on and out through to the hatch, across the runway to the ladder that lead out, a swift jump and I actually jumped halfway up the ladder itself, before quickly ascending it and out into the blazing day light.

There before me was a pelican the squad already loaded up, and I jumped aboard.

"ALRIGHT!" Kez yelled.

"yeah yeah keep your pants on, easy as you like." I replied.

"Wow, just what upgrades did they do again?" Kelly questioned, also gaining looks from the scientists, but they brushed it off.

"Pilot get us the hell out of here!" I demanded.

"Aye aye Sir" they replied.

With that the Pelican pulled up and into the sky above, my HUDS timer hitting zero, all of a sudden an almighty implosion occurred and flame, dirt, smoke and everything else erupted below in an impressive display, before a sheer white light emanated from the middle before the sound then hit. The whole area that was once a thriving Island was now enveloped by the sudden gush of the ocean cancelling out the initial explosion.

"Look at that... all that work... gone. Disgusting!" Dr. Stewart said, clearly angered, sat on her own just behind the cockpit of the Pelican.

I turned back around to look out the rear of the ship, the whole facility had been erased with a bomb that basically liquefied anything in its range. It was gone and now looking back, despite the debris of earth in the water, it was just an Ocean. For all intents and purposes now you would never have known an island was once there.

The door closed on the rear of the Pelican as we exited the planet towards the UNSC Gorgon.

"ETA 5 minutes you beautiful specimens of life" the pilot chimed over the comms.

It didn't so much as get a reaction out of any of the scientific group. Kez though was smirking to himself.

We touched down and the Scientists were whisked away by official ONI people and the guy I had knocked out on The Bridge earlier, whom just glared at me whilst walking off with that team. A group of ONI technicians whipped their gizmo into my suits core and extracted all the acquired data before they then left me to head off back onto the ship.

"Staff Sergeant Hill, please report to the Captains Quarters." a voice echoed out.

Great now what! I thought to myself.

I proceeded to the quarters knocking loudly.

"Come in Staff Sergeant" The captain firmly said.

I entered the room and he was sat there behind his desk looking rather carefully poised. I Saluted him and he returned it.

"At ease," He said, the door closing behind me, "Great work Staff Sergeant, however I am afraid we have had reports filter through, Reach is gone, other colonies are under attack and The Pillar of Autumn has gone down on some Alien structure..."

"A ring world, called Halo." I interrupted.

"How do you know?" The Captain questioned.

"Various information in the facility down below sir." I stated.

"Very well, well all hope is lost, there has been nothing from them and for all intents and purposes we have classified them all as MIA. It has now been made our priority to try and protect the home colonies, not least Earth. However that is not why I brought you here to my quarters." He said turning off any comms devices that were in the room.

"Oh, and what is sir?" I questioned, very much intrigued.

"Sit down and we will begin."

I was unsure for a very long time as to where i was taking this story, however now i have had a revelation it may continue! Stay tuned for Chapter 12!