Exchanges
Shress POV
"But where does the plant come from?"
"Well, uh…it's already in the seed, so…you just need to water it."
"Does it have to be underground in order for it to grow?"
"Yes, because the ground has nutrients that the plant needs."
"Where do the nutrients come from?"
Jaka rubs his head slightly before saying, "I don't really know, I'm just a grunt, not a scientist."
Shress thinks over their traded words as she inspects a strange green food type that reminds her of a large leaf. The humans seems fond of the stuff since they keep adding it to Shress's dish, but it isn't until now did she decide to try it.
She sniffs it carefully before tearing a small section off with the tips of her mandibles. The strange subsidence tastes horribly plain and lacks flavor. She replaces the green food before standing and walks back to the door where Jaka stood at the ready as he takes the plate from her.
He gives her a smile, "I guess Sangheilis don't like vegetables do they?"
Shress growls, "If all these vegetables taste the same as this one, then yes, I doubt a single Sangheili would fine this cuisine edible."
Jaka just laughs as he leans against the wall and keeps the small hatch open so that he and the Sangheili could talk.
"How is it that you came to be here?" Shress finally asks, "your leaders were sucpicous of the Spartan Noble Six when he arrived, faster than normal from what I hear."
Jaka offers a tired shrug, "it happened immediately after the battle, I was deemed critical and was placed on the very first shuttle back to Earth, the only other planet that offered state of the art healing tech other than Reach," he releases a sigh, "we were lucky, we made it out of the atmosphere before the Covenant made a blockade around the planet."
Shress mimes Jaka's position and leans against the wall as well, offering her legs a moment of rest as she next questions, "What is it that you do here exactly Jaka? I don't see other Marines with extensive injuries like yours roaming the corridor." In truth, aside from the people known as ONI, Jaka is the only other human that Shress has seen on this level of the station, she is starting to wonder if she is the only occupant in this long hallway of cells.
Jaka is quiet before saying, "I just do some random jobs here and there…you see my father is an admiral, so…I guess he can't bear the thought of me leaving the service so he has be station here just doing whatever that is needed to be done," Shress notices his sad expression and thinks of a way to change the subject when Jaka's expression altered and he asks a question.
"How was it that you and Noble Six met?" he asks, "and how did the two of you ended up being friends?"
Shress feels her skin burn lightly, if only this human knew, she and Michael are a lot more than just friends. She remembers when they first met, she promised him that she would give him a quick death, but then he used his wits and it was she who was at his mercy. However, he didn't end her as she thought he would, instead he let her go. She has always figured it was because he had a sense of honor that caused him to release her. Yet now he claims it's because he liked her that is the reason he didn't kill her.
She shivers as she remembers their final days aboard the Prowler. She felt they had grown so close during that time. They learn of each other's species, cultures and religion, or at least Michael did, she still found it strange that the human knew almost nothing about his own society. She did, however learn a lot about him; despite his tough demeanor he crumbles before her whenever she trails her hand down his chest. She smiles at the memory and would give anything to see Michael at the moment.
"Shress?" The Zealot is brought out of her thinking as Jaka looks through the hatch and stares at her, "are you alright?"
She gulps a couple of times before nodding her head in confirmation. She thinks of his previous question before stating, "We met under strain circumstances…but we acted civil at the time and we just…started to see each other more and more often."
She couldn't believe how weak she is sounding now, but what else could she say, whenever she tries to speak of Michael and how she feels towards him, the mere thought of the Spartan practically causes her form to melt in status.
Jaka nods before asking, "Did you hear the alarms go off yesterday?"
"Yesterday?" she asks, unfamiliar with the word.
"The day before today," Jaka elaborates, "I don't know how, but a bunch of Spartans arrived in a destroyed ship, it's downright unbelievable," Shress notices the human's voice seems to hitch a bit at these words.
"You sound excited," she comments.
He nods enthusiastically, "Well of course I am! I thought Noble Six was the last Spartan, but now there are a whole lot more, isn't that great?"
Shress smiles and says, "That's wonderful news," but in truth she feels even more miserable at the moment.
She thinks back to when Michael spoke of his fellow Spartan warriors. He talked of how they made a strong pact with one another and how close they are, a bond that made Shress slightly envious truth be told since she has always been alone among the Covenant. She couldn't help but wonder if Michael has forgotten about her, why else would he not visit her yet? And now with the arrival of these Spartans her suitor will surely be too occupied to give her a spare thought.
She aggressively begins to hope that the Spartans are II's considering they and the III's don't get along, but she instantly berate herself for it. Michael is no doubt feeling as lonely as she does, she should feel happy for him that he has somebody who understands him and who he can talk to. But still she feels hurt at the thought of him being with anyone else other than her, her blood starts to boil as she wonders if there are any females among the group of Spartans.
"Shress," Jaka says again, "are you sure you're ok, you're awfully quite."
Shress feels her mandibles twitch in agitation at the interruption of her thoughts, but is polite when she says, "I'm fine; I'm just thinking about Noble Six is all."
Jaka gives her an odd look before he asks a startling question, "Do you like him?"
Shress feels as if the very air has been pressed out of her system as she wonders if she heard the human correctly. Was it that obvious? Has she been acting like a heart sick fool as is expected of a female?
Jaka continues to gaze at her before saying, "Sorry I was just wondering-"
"Yes," Shress interrupts, feeling a slight surge of pride as she says, "I like him and he has agreed to be my suitor."
Jaka eyes become huge as he exclaims, "What! You love him!? And he loves you?! He can actually feel!?"
She regards him strangely, "You asked if I like him," she points out.
"As a friend," Jaka says still looking stun, "so you two are a couple?"
Shress wonders at the word before figuring that couple is a word use to associate a male and female companion together so she nods.
Jaka appears astonished as he takes all this in, his eyes begin to go up and down over Shress's body, but she allows it for she sees no harm. Besides, she understands now, human females are much more different from the males, their bodies are curved and slightly different in body structure. Among Sangheili, females and males appears to be almost exactly alike in physical appearance except for their gender difference.
She supposes human females are much more worthy of attention compared to the female Sangheilis, which is why Shress started to doubt Michael. Why did he choose her when there are so much more better choices?
She suddenly becomes alert when she heard the crash of a plate and Jaka releases a small yelp. She turns. but the hatch has closed. Feeling unnerved and slightly concern for her human friend, she stands and tries the door, but it remains lock. Suddenly it slides open, forcing Shress to step back.
Walking in is the large human that she simply knows as ONI. He has a wide smile on his face, but despite this, she feels unease. Even more so when she looks over his shoulder and sees his guard throwing Jaka away before entering the room himself.
Shress makes to move forward, but the large human takes out a metal shaft and slams it against the wall. She jumps when a small electric storm takes place, filling the room with bright blue flash as lightning plays alongside the wall.
Shress is forced to move back, snarling as she does so. She's a Zealot, she shouldn't be retreating, but the human is armed with a weapon that she has never seen before and he appears to know how to use it. Her armor covers parts of her body, but upon arriving to the station the humans had done something to rob it of its power, leaving her without its protective energy shield.
The guard closes the door and strides forward. His rifle is slung on his back, but he holds out a hand towards his human companion and he throws him the metal baton. The guard inspects the rod before bringing it down on the floor, causing sparks to fly. He grins wickedly as he begins to circle around Shress.
She raises her mandibles, willing to fight if she has to when the large human speaks.
"So you can talk, can't you?" he asks in his usual obnoxious voice.
Shress snarls in response as she glares at him, but she keeps a weary eye on the human with the weapon.
"You know, originally we couldn't harm you because it was believed you couldn't understand us," the human says as he walks to position himself opposite of his companion, making it difficult for Shress to keep an eye on both the humans. "You see to us, to humanity that is, to harm you simply because you can't understand us is like harming a child, a crime against humans…I'm not sure if it's the same with your race though."
She turns and growls at him, but that was a mistake. She hears the rushing footsteps and she turns with a raised arm to swat away an attack, but the guard goes under her arm and hits her bare skin between her chest and hip pieces.
Shress releases a whine at the pain, it feels as if she has been branded, her skin burns and cracks slightly at the feeling of the extreme heat as it also leaves a nasty bruise. Shress touches the wound but withdraws her hand with a hiss; the flesh is still too hot to touch.
"Nasty little bite isn't it?" questions the large human, "now, understand this, if you don't answer me, he'll hit you again until you start speaking," this infuriates Shress further; he is speaking like an adult to a youngling once more.
When she remains silent, she hears the whirl and tries to jump out of the way. The baton skids on her chest armor, but she still feels the uncomfortable heat as it passes by her face. The guard turns and before she could weave out of danger, is struck against one of her legs. She goes down as she tries to sooth the pain, gridding her mandibles together in pain.
"Now," the large human continues,"my question is this; what is the location of the super structure that you know as High Charity?"
In spite of the agonizing pain she is feeling, Shress is surprised that the humans know of High Charity. The giant spacecraft is defended by the entire Covenant fleet, which is understandable considering this is the heart of the Covenant, where the holy Prophets themselves reside. It is constantly moving, from planet to planet, investigating worlds for holy sites. She doesn't know where the station is now, but she isn't prepared to tell that to her human interrogators.
The large man sighs and signals the guard further. The guard smiles once more as he moves forward once more, baton raised.
Shress snarls in determination, daring the human to do his worse.
Six POV
Come on, Six tells himself, if you can talk to an alien about your feelings towads her, then surely you can speak to your fellow Spartans.
Six takes in a gulp of air before sitting. He glances up and catches the Spartans II's observing him before returning to their meals.
They are in the canteen area, eating lunch, or so say their watches. This is the first time Six is with the team of Spartans since their arrival yesterday. They were all cleaned, fed and were provided medical care, after that, the Master Chief told Six and Admiral Lynch everything. The loss of the Pillar of Autumn, the death of almost everyone on board and the discovery of Halo.
Six is still reeling from the fact that the famous Master Chief was on board the ship that he helped saved when the Chief told them of the Forerunners. An alien race that is far superior to the Covenant, the race that the Prophets refers to as their gods. According to the Chief, he and the crew of the Autumn made a blind jump into slipspace that ended up with them finding Halo; a fully artificial superstructure of magnitude size, shaped like a ring floating in space but providing air, water and possibly food on the surface as if it was a planet. The technology and equipment used to build Halo is light years beyond human comprehension, or even the Covenant's. However, it didn't stop there, while exploring, they discovered a parasitic life form only known as "The Flood." If it was a regular Marine telling the story, Six would have suggested that the man gets a psychic check, but seeing as it's the Master Chief himself is what made the tale all the more horrifying. Even the Chief shivers as he describes what happened; a single bite from the Flood can transform any man into a mindless drone whose sole purpose is to pass on the parasite to other life forms. While battling the Flood, the Master Chief's personal AI, Cortana, hacked into the Forerunners archives and discovered that the Flood feeds on their "hosts" and sucks every bit of knowledge the poor person knows. It was also then discovered that the Halo ring was actually a huge super weapon, capable of destroying an entire galaxy; the Forerunners believed that the destruction of civilization was the only way to destroy the flood, by destroy the food source, which is humanity and the species of the Covenant, they in turn will destroy the flood. Chief was able to find a Long Sword and escape from Halo, taking with him Cortana, who downloaded the firing mechanism needed to fire the Ring, without it Halo is harmless. Or it was now, in order to ensure that the Flood doesn't spread, the Chief caused a meltdown in the Autumn's engine core, resulting with it destroying the Ring.
Six couldn't believe the story, but the surprises just kept on coming. After searching through the wreckage of the ring, Master Chief regrouped with Marine Sergeant Johnson, an ODST, a pilot and a ONI agent who survived by flying inside a Pelican. They also recovered cryo-tubes that must have been ejected from the Autumn before it was destroyed; only one person in the tubes survived, the Spartan known as Linda-058. Soon after they were engaged in a fight with a roaming Covenant patrol in which the Chief and his now small crew of misfits, boarded a Covenant Flagship, eliminated the crew and jumped into splispace before the remaining Covenant vessels could retaliate. From there they journey back to Reach in hopes of finding a small refuge to restock the ship.
Next it was Spartan 104, Fred, turn to tell the story. Apparently while Six and Emile made their run to the Pillar of Autumn, a total of twenty two Spartan II's, led by Fred, were dropped to the surface of Reach. In a final desperate attempt to defend the planet, the Spartans were task with guarding the ground generators that powers the Super MAC guns circling in the planet's orbit, weapons that was critical to the human's space battle against the Covenant. They put up a valiant fight, but it ended with their demise except for four Spartans, one of who was Fred, who were forced to fall back. Six remembers his supposed last stand, fighting in a field full of fallen Spartan II's. That must have been Fred's teammates, or what was left of them that is. The remaining Spartans fell back to Castle Base where they met Doctor Halsey. At that point Six butted in and asks, or rather demanded, to know if Jun was with her. Fred gave him an odd look before shaking his head, they saw no III at Castle nor did Halsey mention him. Six feels his fist curls at the memory, did the doctor abandon Jun? No, most likely Jun ensure that the doctor made it to the base before probably going back out into the field, searching for the rest of Noble team, looks like he is still MIA. Returning to his story, Fred gives detail of how the Covenant found them again, forcing the Spartans, plus Halsey, to retreat further below into the underground caverns beneath the base.
Here, the Master Chief speaks again. Upon arriving to Reach, the crew, save for Cortana who stayed to watch the ship, traveled to the surface when they received an emergency broadcast sent by a Spartan. They followed the signal and discovered a three man Spartan team who were split from the rest of Fred's group and were in company with Admiral Whitcomb. From there Master Chief led the party to Castle Base, where he suspected the rest of the II's were considering they trained there as kids. They rescued the remaining Spartans as well as Doctor Halsey. Once rescued, they return to space and discovered that Cortana had constructed a hybrid vessel, combining the flagship and the destroyed UNSC ship Gettysburg together to empower the vessel. They then jump back into slipspace, however before they got far, the ship was fired upon and took damaged; forcing the Spartans plus the one pilot to attempt to fix the damage. This was accomplished, but resulted with the deaths of the Spartans known as Li, Anton and the pilot, leaving only six Spartans accounted for.
From there they jumped to Eridanus II, where they stumbled upon an insurgent base built in a nearby asteroid field. At first the insurgents refused to help them, but when the Covenant arrived, the UNSC forces eliminated the threat and in return, the insurgents helped the Spartans. However, something unexpected happen, Doctor Halsey went AWOL, and she kidnapped the Spartan named Kelly. How she manage to do this, Six has no idea, but he feels his blood stating to boil, he always knew Halsey would put her personal interests first and it would be fatal to those who depends on her and judging from the Spartans rigid posture as Master Chief said this, it looks like he was right. More Covenant forces arrived soon after Halsey disappeared, forcing the Spartans to jump once more, but not before the distraught ODST killed himself in an explosion, whether it was a intended suicide or accident will never be known.
Yet while en route to earth, they learned of a Covenant super battle station called Unyielding Hierophant. Believing the station was on its way to Earth as well; the Spartans boarded it and raided the ship. They were able to arm a bomb and place it into the station's core, destroying the large battle ship, but during the attack, Spartan Grace was KIA. It didn't stop there however, the remaining Covenant ships started to chase after the Spartans, but Admiral Whitcomb and the ONI agent disentangled the Covenant flagship from the Gettysburg and rode it into battle, destroying the pursuing Covenant ships, but dying in the attempt as well.
Master Chief took a deep breath after finishing the story, some of which Six couldn't really understand. It is now easy for the III to understand how it was that the Chief is so famous; he probably has the best luck out of everyone else in the service. With the story done, it becomes clear that the Spartans Fred, Linda, Will and Master Chief, are the last remaining IIs…just like Six being the last III.
After the story telling, they contacted Hood, but he was busy at the moment (much to Six's disappointment) so the Master Chief just had to write a really long report for the Admiral.
That was approximately twelve hours ago, now here Six is, sitting with the IIs, who feels more and more like an outcast by the second. He is at least five years younger but he is sure their level of experience is the same as his. They all have a wariness about them that unites them in combat, but Six can still see he is singled out. He has a relaxed pose while the others sat rigidly and they ate with manners fit for nobles at a formal dinner party. Yet, almost embarrassingly, he notices that they are taller than he is by a few inches, Master Chief easily towers over the III, standing well over seven feet tall. They might be in the standard Navy coveralls, but with their supreme height and muscle tone they are an intimidating sight.
Six hears a burst of laughter and looks to his right. There he sees the Sergeant known as Johnson getting along well with the other Marines at his table as they all laugh at whatever it was that he said.
Why can't it be that easy, Six wonders to whatever being that might be.
Finally Six clears his throat and says, "So…how's your day going?"
Almost all the Spartans looks up as if surprised that the III could speak.
It scared Six slightly when they acted as one and says in unison, "We're fine sir," their voices mingling with one another, making it sound like one united voice.
Six sighs, "Guys, please don't call me sir, it's weird enough that you salute me."
The Spartans stares at him as if he is an alien before the Master Chief reply, "Its protocol sir."
"Yes, but you don't have to keep doing that," Six says, "honestly Chief I feel like I'm the one who should be saluting you."
Six hope the Master Chief would laugh or at the very least smile, but his chisel face remains emotionless as he says, "I'm sure you are as worthy of your rank as I am of mine."
Six has to restrain himself from releasing a growl of frustration. Was Jorge the black sheep of the Spartan II family? The giant Spartan was well known for his positive demeanor and deep chuckles. As for the other II's…Six is sure that they probably only smiled twice a year.
He glances up at each and every one of them. It's obvious that Fred is second in command, he isn't as large or as lean as most Spartans, but he doesn't show any sign of bitterness towards that end, he also has streaks of silver hair on the side mixed in with the brown.
Next to him sits Linda, she is the only woman in the group, small, about six foot nine, has blood red hair, sparkling green eyes and a hard stoic look, yet what Six finds unsettling about her is that she doesn't appear to ever blink, easy to see why she's the team sniper.
Across from her is Will, another average Spartan who appears quite plain save for the twin scars caressing the side of his face as his brown eyes keep their full attention on his food.
Finally, sitting across from Six is the man simply known for his rank; Master Chief. He wonders what his real name is, but at the moment Six doesn't really have the faith that he would answer, so he'll just call him by his rank just like everyone else. He has sandy brown hair, a light dash of freckles and possesses what appear to be dark eyes. The very image of the grim reaper if Six has ever seen one.
Six looks back down at his food in deep thought. When he and Shress talk she usually would be the one to start the conversation with a question, maybe he should give it a try.
"So…you were inside the Pillar of Autumn?" Six asks Master Chief.
Chief is silent before looking back at Six, "Yes…and you were the one who defended it?"
Six nods his head.
"You're also the one who transported Cortana, correct?"
That question threw him off. Six thinks of when he did that. Did Chief have him confused with another Spartan? Because he certainly can't remember transporting Cortana, he hasn't even met her before yesterday.
"I'm sorry Chief," Six begins, "I don't recall-"
Before he could finish speaking his COM Pad beeped. Six takes it out, activates it, and almost jumps. He was looking at Cortana, her face filling the entire screen.
"A little edgy, aren't we Lieutenant?" she says with a smirk.
Six felt embarrassment and shame starting to blossom within. He has no idea what is going on, but his senses seems to have dulled some. Hs reservoir has also been open and is more acceptable towards others, like now, never before would he have ever tried to be social. Has his time with Shress altered him in some ways? He hopes not, he didn't want his war fighting skills to go slack nor does he want to stop being with Shress, in fact, he wants to be with her more than ever right about now. He finds her presence more cheerful and comforting rather than the hard Spartan demeanor.
Ok, he feels scared now. He has been surrounded by people like this most of his life. Why is it that he is suddenly no longer reassured being in this sort of presence?
"Lieutenant, are you alright?"
He looks into the AI curious expression and then it clicked. He remembers that face, it was the one he often seen Doctor Halsey wear. He then remembers back at Sword base, the package, and the strange glowing chip, how it looked like a woman before it was downloaded, a very specific woman to be precise.
"You were the package," Six says rather dumbly.
Cortana smirks at him, "Yes Lieutenant and for the record, I didn't enjoy the ride."
Six smiles in return, "Nor did I, I'm glad to hear you were a big help."
"As was my programming," Cortana says in reply, "Your skills are almost similar to the Master Chief's."
"Almost?" Six questions and looks up amusingly at the Chief, hoping a quirk from his AI companion would get some emotion from the man. The Chief's jaw tightens by a fraction before it relaxed again.
Slightly worried by this unreadable sign, Six turns back to his pad and asks, "What is it Cortana?"
The AI looks Six straight in the eye, her eye appears to be blue in nature but he notices that instead of webs of veins there are only codes streaming through.
"I've just intercepted a message that was being sent to Admiral Lynch from Lord Hood-"
"Cortana," the Master Chief interrupts rather sternly, "that's classified material for officer's eyes only."
The AI disappeared from Six's pad, leaving it in its original default setting. Before Six could question where she went, the lens of the camera in Six's pad suddenly releases a ray of blue light and there stands Cortana as her miniature holographic self.
She crosses her arms and glares at the Chief, "I was designed to hack into security systems and to dismantle them Chief, are you questioning the point of my existence."
The Chief shakes his head before looking down at his food.
"How are you doing this?" Six asks as he observes the light streaming out of his Pad, "I didn't even know there was a projector in this thing."
"There isn't," Cortana says with a sly grin, "it's a little trick I learned from the Forerunner Archives."
"Cortana," Chief interrupts again, "You shouldn't be experimenting with Forerunner technology, you should turn it over to ONI-"
"I copied and downloaded all of my files to ONI Chief," she says, irritation clear in her voice.
Feeling a little tension rising, Six instead asks, "What is it you wanted to tell me Cortana?"
She returns her gaze back to Six, "I intercepted a message from Admiral Hood to Lynch-"
"Which is for his eyes only," Master Chief states again.
Six glances up and sees the Spartan giving Cortana a hard look. However the III notices the other Spartans are now watching with what appears to be twinkles of amusement in their eyes as they watch their leader. Six guesses this isn't the first time the Chief and Cortana argued, or what came close to arguing.
Cortana gives a human like sigh of exasperation before saying, "It's about and for the Lieutenant and the Sangheili prisoner Chief."
Before the Master Chief could speak again, Six leans forward, and asks, "What? What did it say about me and the prisoner?" It pained him to refer to Shress in this manner, but what can he do?
Cortana arches a eyebrow, probably hearing the desperation in Six's voice before saying, "he has granted your request, you may see the Sangheili, he hopes that a familiar face will make it more corruptive."
"Her," Six says suddenly, "It is a she."
Cortana's brow arches even higher, "Well in that case, you are allowed to see her then." She then turn to look at the other Spartans, "One more thing, all of you," here she looks at Six before looking back, "have been ordered to the armory at seventeen hundred hours, your new MJOLNIR armor has just arrived."
It could easily be told from a distance that the mood at the table has lifted. Fred's fingers started to drum on the table, Linda's foot started to tap the floor at a rapid pace and Will actually smiled. Master Chief remains as serious as ever, but Six notices his eyes squint slightly, this must be as much emotion the Chief reveals.
Six feels himself cracking a smile as well as he stands, "Thanks Cortana, and I'm guessing I speak for all of us when I say that."
Cortana gives another of her smirks before saying, "My pleasure, Lieutenant," with that the light from the pad fades and so does Cortana's form.
Six picks up his plate before dipping his heads to the II's, "Guess I'll see you guys later."
He turns to strode off but stops when he hears the Master Chief's voice, "Lieutenant."
Six turns back to the Chief who is giving him a solemn observation, looking him up and down as if he has never seen him before.
"Yes Master Chief," Six asks cautiously.
The Chief looks up and says, "You are looking eager."
Six wonders where this was leading, but he plays along as he says, "Yes…"
The Chief is silent before saying, "I was just wondering why."
There's a challenging enigma, especially when the III looks up and sees the other Spartans have focused their attention on him now. Six wonders how the Spartans are going to react until he decides to tell them as delicately as possible.
"I'm going to see Shress," he could see their confusion and enlightens them, "that's the name of the Sangheili."
The fact that none of them are showing the slightest of emotion doesn't bode well for Six as he waits for them to say something.
Finally Will speaks up, "You're excited to see a split lip?"
Six tries to breathe regularly so they won't see his anger at the use of the derogatory word, "Yes I am, I would even go as far as say we've become good friends."
"Friends?" question Linda as if she has never heard the word before.
Six nods, "Yes, friends."
Fred crosses his arms, "And how did that happen?"
Six should have seen that coming, he thinks of what to say, knowing full well the truth will cause problems, but seeing no other way out of his blight, Six sighs inwardly before saying, "We…talked and…it just went on from there." Way beyond, Six thinks to himself.
Silence fills the table before the Chief leans towards Six, "You talked to it?"
"I talked to her, yes," Six replies.
"What did you to tell it?" the Master Chief asks.
"Just basic human things like human words, what kind of food we eat, how to read the alphabet-"
"That material could prove useful to the Covenant and fatal to humanity," Fred injects.
"She left the Covenant," Six says, feeling the grip on his tray tightening, "she wants to help humanity."
"Why?" Will question.
"Because she is one of the few to realize that this isn't a holy war, its genocide-"
"She just now realized that?" Linda questions next.
Six bites down hard on his tongue in irritation. These Spartans have been battling long and hard like machines, and as such they now see the Sangheili as enemies, now and probably forever.
Six turns to leave, but the Chief calls to him again.
Six looks over his shoulder at the Master Chief as he says, "We're just looking out for the good of humanity sir."
Six feels his body quiver slightly before replying, "And I'm looking out for the good of my friends," with that, he begins walking away from the Spartan II's table, now feeling the barrier between them strengthening.
Shress POV
Shress coughs up another blue mass of blood before resting her head on the floor again, feeling exhausted just from that small action.
She takes long and slow breaths as she tries to asse her damaged body. She commands her left leg to right itself up, but she feels nothing. She then tries to get her one and only working arm to push her body up, but she only place a small bit of weight on it when the arm gave out. She hisses as she makes contact with the floor. It feels as if her entire body has inherited the weak muscles of a youngling.
She has no idea how long she has been lying on the floor, nor how long the interrogation has lasted. As she remained silent throughout the whole ordeal, the humans just got angrier and angrier until the guard was beating her for no apparent reason at all. He has struck her multiple times with the metal club like weapon, each time it shocked and bruised her skin whenever it struck flesh. She tried to fight back at one point, but that only resulted with her receiving a kick in her chest.
She carefully directs her left hand to her chest and feels it become slick with blood. It was the only wound she has sustained that has drawn blood. She carefully touches her face, but flinches as soon as her fingers touched it. Before the humans left her lying on the floor, the guard delivered one last swing that crack against her head. She feels that one of her mandibles is bleeding while the left side of her face has been cracked with electric power. She runs her tongue over the limp mandible and feels a trickle of blood; hopefully it's just a breakage and nothing more.
Her eyes widen in panic when she hears the door sliding opening.
It can't be them, she thinks wildly, they just left, I can't endure another session like this again, it could kill me.
She shivers when she hears the sound of booted feet entering the room. She is facing the opposite wall, making it nearly impossible for her to see who has entered, especially with her weaken state ailing her from turning.
She hears quick footsteps heading in her direction. She tries to steel herself and release a growl, but she lacks the stamina to empower it.
She becomes alert when she hears something drop down next to her. Before she could wonder further what is happening, she feels hands, nice gentle hands, grabbing her and carefully rolling her over so she is looking upwards. Her breath caught in her throat when she sees who it is.
Hovering above her is Michael. His eyes and mouth are set in a grim and angry look as he looks down at Shress, but his eyes are full of tears and what looks like sorrow.
Shress couldn't tell if she is dreaming, she has longed for this moment and there is no one else she wanted more than her suitor, is her mind playing tricks on her?
That thought is eliminated as he raises a hand and removes her helmet. His hand then descends and slowly starts to caresses Shress's cheek, ensuring that this is no illusion. This is real, Michael is here with her once more.
"Shress," he says, she feels her emotions spiked when she hears him say her name in a loving yet concern manner. He looks her body up and down before looking into her face and says in a pained voice, "What happened?"
Shress couldn't form the words; she is still having a hard time believing that the Spartan is truly here with her. Instead of speaking, she moves her head forward and leans it against his chest, feeling his clothes rubbing against her skin. She gasps slightly when she feels his arm tighten around her shoulders while the other is position underneath her knees and he stands up, holding her.
She leans back to look at Michael. She knew he was strong but she didn't think he would have the strength to lift her up. He doesn't look strain at all, but he looks as if he is drowning in self misery as he looks down at Shress. This close next to him, allows her to smell his scent, it still smells of a forest along with the odor of male, but it is a aroma that she has missed. He carries her to the other side of the room and lowers her onto her bed.
He takes a half step back, but Shress's arm moves forward and grips his as she whispers hoarsely, "stay with me…close."
Michael looks her body over again before leaning down and says, "I don't want to hurt you."
She raises her hand and holds it against the side of his face as she replies, "You won't, I really need you now Michael."
His eyes releases the tears and they fall down his cheek, Shress feels her own eyes starting to water. However, Michael slowly crawls into the small bed as well, their combine weight caused it to creak, but it holds. Shress hugs the Spartan with her one good arm and nuzzles his neck, while pulling her knees up as she snuggles against Six, wanting him to hold her. He wraps his arms around her and she feels him kissing the top of her head. It pained her to move this much, especially while she is wearing her tough Zealot armor, but she just wants to feel safe in her suitor's arms.
Finally she leans back to look into his eyes. The tears are gone, but his eyes still gleam as she takes in the familiar green color that she has missed for days now. She places a hand alongside his head and rubs it, mindful of her talons. Her hand eventually went upwards and runs through his fur, but as she feels the hair she tilts her head as she peers at Michael closely.
"You've cut your fur," she says rather plainly.
Michael laughs as he looks into her eyes, "Yes, I hope you don't mind."
She shakes her head, feeling a smile starting to take shape for the first time as she says, "Just as long as it doesn't cover your entire form like a Jiralhanae."
He smiles and nods his head obediently before the miserable look returns and he looks at Shress as he asks again, "What happened?"
Shress wanted to forget what had transpired, but she sees the desperate like look in his eyes.
She sighs before saying, "Two humans kept coming to see me, ONI I believe they are called."
Michael's face hardens and Shress stiffens when she feels his arms tighten around her and burned her injuries. The Spartan became aware of what has just happened as he loosens his grip and says, "sorry."
Shress nods, accepting the apology before continuing, "I didn't say anything to them, for days, but then I met Jaka Lin."
Michael cocks his head a little as he asks, "Lin?"
She smiles at him, "I believe you two know each other?"
Her suitor huff slightly, "barely," is all he says.
Shress continues with a sigh, "A few units ago I think, I was talking to Jaka and the ONI agents overheard us," she closes her eyes as she remembers, the whole scene replaying in her mind. "They pushed Jaka away, I don't know what they did to him, but soon their attention was on me." She shivers as she thinks of the pain, "They…they were angry that I could talk and yet I wouldn't speak to them, they pulled out these…these blunt weapons that spark lighting and they-they…"
She couldn't finish, she didn't know why but she feels her throat closing. Suddenly chills breaks throughout her body when she feels Michael's soft lips as they brush over her face. She shivers as he kisses her wounded face, causing a slight calming sensation to fill her as the slight wetness cools the agitated injuries. His multiple kisses finally causes Shress to chuckle lightly as she finally opens her eye and looks back at Michael.
She could tell he is still angry, but his expression has softened as he looks at Shress. He runs a hand down her form and she quivers whenever his flesh makes contact with hers. He pauses when he feels a scorched area of skin on her ribs. He sighs lightly before looking back into her eyes.
"I can see if some of the doctors can come in and have a look at you if you want," he finally offers, "They might not know much of Sangheili biology, but they could try and help lessen the pain."
Shress is already shaking her head before saying, "It's alright Michael," he opens his mouth to argue but she says, "It's alright, Sangheilis heals faster than humans and…it has always been viewed as a dishonorable act to be treated by a healer."
Michael's eyes squints slightly before replying, "I don't care about honor, it just hurts me to see you in pain-"
She runs her talons down his chest like before, feeling them make the marks beneath his clothing. She smiles as he shivers like she predicted he would.
"You might not care but I do, please Michael, no doctors," she said.
He frowns again, "But-"
She sighs and leans against him, "Please Michael…I miss Sanghelios," she admits in a sad, almost broken, voice, "my honor is all I have left to remember my home," she feels her tears returning as she thinks of her decision of changing to the humans side, a decision that resulted with her being beaten within an unit of her life, but she is still close to Michael, the one she cares for the most.
Michael takes hold of her again as he sighs, "There must be something that I could do."
"There is," she answers as she snuggles closer, "Just hold me."
She feels him let go as one hand gently takes hold of a part of her leg that isn't covered in armor and pulls it closer against him while his other arm pulls her upper body against his chest. He shifts his body until it could accommodate her and she could fit into his full embrace.
She sighs before saying, "Thank you."
Michael responds by kissing the top of her head and saying, "Of course…my beautiful Shress."
She feels her smile return only for a moment before her suddenly heavy eyes close and she begins to fall asleep. Before slumber takes her though, she allows her throat to thrum a bit, hoping Michael will know how happy she is just by being in his presence.
When she feels him holding her closer, she knew he understands.
Shress awakes still lying next to Michael, but only one arm holds her and she hears him speaking. She blinks and sees she is pressed right up next to the Spartan's chest. She makes to move her mandibles so she could reply to him, but then she realizes he isn't talking to her.
"I know, I know," he says, "just tell them I got caught up in something, I'll be down as soon as I can."
She waits to hear the other person reply, but there is only silence. She sniffs the air carefully and smells that she and Michael are the only ones in the room.
Michael then speaks, "Look Cortana, let's just say I'm in a important meeting and…what?" his voice is suddenly filled with surprise. He carefully raise himself higher, keeping one arm on Shress's back so she wouldn't slip off. She retains from letting her suitor know she is awake, she is curious with what he is talking about and more importantly, who he is talking to.
"Are there cameras in here?" he asks and she feels his body twist in different directions. He hears him curse before saying, "Cortana, please delete the pass hours of footage in this room…yes you can, you were designed to do this…look you saw how the Chief and the others acted when they thought I was just a friend, can you imagine how they will react if they learn of this…yes you can, you're the smartest smart AI ever to be made of course you can imagine."
Shress tries her best not to quiver. She doesn't know who he is speaking to, but she knows it's about her. Apparently Michael's comrades already dislike her, and why shouldn't they? She's surprised that Michael doesn't feel hateful towards her to be honest. Yet what hurts her most is hearing that he is late for something, for a moment she forgot she was a prisoner and that Michael had obligations to meet. She knew he will have to leave, and soon.
She tightens her embrace and slowly rubs her head against Michael's chest.
"I've got to go," she hears Michael says before he sighs heavily, "Yes, yes, I'll give you a full explanation later, alright, Noble Six out."
Shress blinks a bit before looking up at Michael who smiles at her.
If only he is as large as a Sangheili male, she thinks to herself, that way I don't always have to look down at him.
"Who were you speaking to?" She asks.
Michael doesn't seem surprised, she wonders if he knew that she was awake at the time.
"Just a friend," he says in a casual like voice.
Shress sighs as she rests her head on his chest once more before saying, "You need to go don't you?"
She feels his whole form quiver before he replies, "Yes…but I can stay down here a bit longer."
She looks back at him and says, "We both know that will be unwise, especially if you don't want people to discover you are courting me."
Michael bites his lower lips before saying in turn, "It's not that I'm ashamed of our relationship or anything, it's just that…"
Shress sighs, "That your fellow humans don't approve of me."
Michael's face hardens as he says, "Maybe, but I swear, someday, when the situation allows it," he places a hand against her face, "I will confess to everyone that you are the one I care for and nothing will ever change that."
Shress gulps as she looks down, the thought of him leaving and the fact that she's pushing him away is growing heavier and heavier in her chest. She never wants him to leave, but she knows that they'll both be in trouble if they are caught together.
"You should leave," she finally whispers as she looks into his eyes.
She feels him only tightening his grip on her as he says in return, "I don't want to."
She licks his neck and says, "Neither do I, but we both know what will happen if you don't return to your people soon."
Finally Michael sighs as he sits up and swings his legs out of the bed. She is already missing his touch and has to keep her hand from reaching out for him. Her human suitor looks back at her before kneeling at the bedside and careful places his hand alongside her mandibles. She allows him to gently push it together with their counterparts as he leans closer to her and she moves forward to meet him.
They met and performed the strange action that humans call a kiss and Shress loves it. It sends a warm exhilarating feeling inside of her that fills her with a kind of wholeness and happiness. She has never felt anything like this and is certain she will fail if she tries to find a substitute to this emotion, this is a sensation that only Michael could provide, a sensation that she has missed.
Michael pulls away slightly, but he raises his head and kisses the area where she feels her skin blistering. It stung, but she still likes the contact as she lets her throat thrum. It is broken when she hears a light beeping originating from a device clipped to Michael's ear, a device she hasn't notice until just now.
The human sighs as he pulls back and stares at her once more. He takes her hand in his and she squeezes it. They remain locked together for a few moments before Shress hears the beep again.
Her suitor kisses her once more before saying, "I'll try and visit as often as I can."
Shress's throat has already tightened with emotions, but she finally pushes words out of her mandibles, "I'll be waiting then."
He smiles at her once more before kissing her cheek and standing. He walks to the door, pauses and looks back at her. She nods her head slightly at him and grins at him. He returns the gesture, but there is a sadness in his eyes that she is sure mirrors her own. Finally, Michael touches the device on his ear and the door opens. He steps out and cast one more sorrowful glance at her before the door slides over and blocks her view.
Shress rolls over in bed and tries to make herself comfortable, trying desperately to hang on to the memory of Michael holding her. But that only causes her heart to ache some more, forcing her to release a low whine as misery sets in once more.
Six POV
"I don't think this is a good idea."
"Just tell me where they are Cortana."
"Lieutenant, you are aware of the consequences that will befall you if you harm ONI personnel-"
"I am aware of the risks Cortana," Six says as he steps out of the elevator and enters the canteen area once more. Six is late for the meeting in the armory, it's already evening and Marines and Navy Sailors are already sitting down for their meal. The spacious room is designed to house about five hundred people at a time, leaving Six with staring at rows after rows of tables. Just finding the two men he is looking for would be difficult-
"Got them," Cortana says in his earpiece, "They are in the corner on your right, five tables away."
Six turns in the said location and his eagle like vision searches the vicinity. Sure enough, sitting at a table in the corner are two men; one is a well-muscled Marine wearing orange sun glasses with body armor and a man sitting in a suit that is bulging because of his large belly.
The Spartan's gaze hardens as he analyses the man in the Marine armor. Out of the two of them, he appears to be the most troublesome. The Marine isn't just dressed in battle gear, but he has a lack of respect, that much is obvious in his pose and he has what appears to be a dangerous look about him. This Marine must have gotten in trouble in the service, but now it appears he has a new life as being ONI's lapdog.
Six marches towards the table, wondering what he should say, how to start. He needs to be civil; he didn't want to bring shame to the Spartans further because of his actions. He breathes slowly and evenly as he closes in on the men. They were speaking lowly to one another; or rather the man in the suit is talking while his companion is leaning back while taking in mouthfuls of pasta. They both look up when Six comes to a halt before them and stares at them and they stare back. The ONI agent has the experience to know to be cautious, but the Marine looks as if he is amused.
They stand before each other for a while before Six asks, "Were you the ones that interrogated the Sangheili prisoner?"
The man in suit seems to think for a moment before responding, "Indeed, as ordered I assure you."
The memory of Shress's body flashes through the Spartan's mind. Her burnt like skin, the webs of injuries that appeared after the impact of the metal baton, and the slight sliver of blood that falls from her mouth. Six feels his fists curl, the agent leans back while the Insurgent remains where he sits, either unaware of the tension or too thick to realize the situation is going south.
"I was unaware that Lord Hood gave you permission to use extreme measures for the…questionings," Six says as lightly as he could.
The agent swallows before saying, "It knows what we are saying but refused to answer, my job is to gather information by whatever means necessary."
Before Six could respond, the Marine laughs and sits forward, resting a hand on the table, "It was actually quite fun, you should have heard the screams."
Six slowly cranes his head until he is looking directly at the man as he asks, "What?"
The man laughs again, "Its screams was so funny, it sounded like a cross between a gagging bird and a-"
The man didn't finish; all he could see was Six's fist before it slammed on top of his hand. The full force of the action pushed it deep into the metal table, leaving a hand shaped imprint while also jerking the man forward, causing him to lose his glasses in the process. The entire room resided with the sound of the strike and the sound of breakage. But Six knew better, he didn't break the bones in the Marine's hand; he shattered it.
The Marine stares down at his flatten limb for a second before opening his mouth to release a wail, but the Spartan moves with the speed of lightening. He catches the Marine's throat with just his thumb and forefinger, but the strength within the digits is strong enough to block the man's air tubes. The Marine gasps for air but Six doesn't let go, instead he stares with complete malice in his eyes at the pained man. Six glares at the Marine before looking back to the agent who watches with huge paralyzed eyes.
"Listen," Six growls, "both of you, I have enough evidence to convict the two of you on trial for disobeying direct orders, but if I hear you so much as plan to do something similar to what you did today, I swear I will kill you and I don't care who you work for."
The Spartan turns to the Marine he is holding and loosens his fingers as he asks, "Clear?"
The Marine has tears in his eyes and his skin is starting to turn blue, but he nods nonetheless.
Six then looks at the other man, "Same with you, even if Hood gives you permission, you will not harm that Sangheili again, clear?"
The agent frowns, "Now wait a moment, I have the full authority of the Oval-"
Six smashes his fist on the table, causing the man to jump as the hand leaves yet another crater in the table made of alloy. Six glares at the agent before asking again, "clear?"
The agent gulps before whispering, "Clear."
Six nods and is about to let go of the Marine but pauses before asking the agent, "What did you do with Lin?"
The agent licks his lip nervously before saying, "We've just confine him in the barrack-"
"For what?" the Spartan demands, unaware that he squeezed the Marine's neck tighether.
"Withholding information-"
"Well let him go," Six orders, "Because I do have more than enough reason to snap you in two, and you know it."
The agent nods tensely. Six finally release the captured Marine by shoving him back in his seat. The Marine coughs as he massages his neck while trying to examine his destroyed hand through tear filled eyes.
Six wishes he could carry out his threat, there's no doubt he can't do it, he's angry enough and strong enough to do it, but he knew this small action alone will draw unwanted attention to the Spartans. With one final glare at the two men, Six turns and walks away, hardly noticing table after table of Marines and Sailors are now gawking at him.
It isn't until he reaches the hallway and the door closes behind him did Cortana speaks again through his ear piece, "Well that went well."
"Keep talking," Six says as he walks down the hall.
"About?" Cortana asks.
"Anything," Six replies curtly.
"Why?" She asks with true confusion in her voice.
"So I don't change my mind, go back there and kill them," he replies in a cold voice.
Sorry I haven't been updating, my life has been busy and I've put extra effort in finishing my other story "Call of Duty Ghosts: Defenders of All," a CoD/A&O crossover fic, feel free to check it out if you're interested.
Also, school is starting up again, so updates will be slower, hope you all understand. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed it.