A jolt of panic ran through the pit of Lin's stomach. She bolted forwards and flung herself down on her belly, arms and shoulders over the edge of the cliff, grabbing for Nate. Any part of him would do, so long as he didn't fall. Not Nate. Not him. Anyone but him. Come on Lin, come on. "Reach for my hand!"

She watched, helpless, as Nate swung himself upwards to reach, and his handhold gave way. Lin felt Eli's hands on her ankles, and flung herself after her leader, just grabbing hold of his wrists in time. "I got you, I got you," she muttered in time with her own panicked breathing. She thought she saw concern in the way Nate looked up at her, head cocked ever so slightly to one side.

"You all right?" he asked. Lin blinked. Definitely concerned.

"Yeah," she lied, a little breathless. "You're the one who almost fell to his death."

Nate let out a short laugh as Eli and Zeke hauled them both back to safety, fending off Platinum Team's attempts to help. "How fast your heart's going, anyone would think it was you who slipped off the cliff. Where'd that Monitor go?"

Lin looked around wildly. No floating metal ball. No 'Sentinel' things either. "It sure likes to disappear in a crisis."

"You think that was bad…" Jeod said ominously, "…check that out."

Eyes flicking to where Jeod was pointing, Lin swore softly under her breath. That thing was huge. Easily fourteen feet tall, maybe even fifteen. She wasn't great at guessing heights by eye. As wide, and as long, as it was tall. All fourteen or fifteen feet of it was covered in scales a sickening shade of green-white, which shone like a frog's skin and looked hard enough to deflect any projectile or explosive.

"Leo," Nate said softly. It had taken him less time than it had taken Lin to realize that Leo's laser was their only hope.

"What is it with our luck lately?" Lin muttered to herself, forgetting again that her comm mike was on.

"I know what you mean," Eli agreed.

"Whatever can go wrong, will," Nate added. "And just to rub salt into the wound, a few things that can't, as well."

"Ever since HighCom made that mistake, and we met Jeod," Zeke commented. "Anyone else notice how things were pretty good before then, and now we're lucky to make it through any given hour without someone dying?"

"He's jinxed," Lin said, only half joking. She glanced uneasily at the Solo who stood a yard apart from the group. Alpha was the one who had really brought all the bad luck. Her with her suspicions and the way she could imply anyone was responsible for anything without barely speaking a word. Her upon whose record it was noted that she had briefly experienced what, in a Solo, basically amounted to a psychotic break.

The Solo watched Lin back, and the medic wondered what exactly it was she kept seeing in Alpha's body language that bothered her so much. Lin could not put her finger on any one thing, though there was something unfamiliar and concerning in the set of the enforcer's shoulders and the way she held her head.

Distracted thus, Lin barely noticed as Leo charged up his laser and let rip right into the scaled creature's face. Or rather, what amounted to one, because it appeared to have eyes and nostril-slits and a mouth. The laser did a lot of damage, but the thing was not dead.

Leo swore under his breath and charged the laser again, swiftly backing away from the scaled creature that had turned its attention to him and was now quite visibly mad. Rule number one of smart combat, Leo, he reminded himself ruefully. Live to die another day.

His weapon seemed to take an age to charge, but finally the little marker in his targeter reached full charge and he released the trigger. The weapon kicked violently, as it always did, but this time the laser beam punched a large hole through the creature's torso and severed both its 'arms'. It fell heavily, but still was not dead. It was effectively helpless, so Leo gestured to Corey to help him, and together they tossed it off the cliff.

"That wasn't organic, or at least not native," Corey said. "Weighed too damn much for the gravity here. Things that heavy usually only live in low-G environments. This is a little higher than Earth gravity."

Leo nodded in vague agreement, but had already shifted his concentration to the sound of the Monitor's humming in the distance. He was coming to expect disaster whenever that thing's humming left off. Sure, it was irritating, but it seemed to know when something was coming, and how, invariably, to avoid that something.

As the Monitor drew closer, Leo sensed more than heard the others react to something close by. He turned his attention to them, then to the place they were concentrating on, and blinked a few times in surprise.

Something had made a bridge out of light. Leo had little enough experience with Forerunner technology that this concept was still incredible to him, but just enough that he knew he could trust the bridge… provided of course it did not suddenly fail.

"What the…?" Nate was, true to form, the closest to the light bridge, and edging closer. Leo allowed himself a small smile at that observation, and watched as Eli battled with himself over whether to be wary and mistrustful of the unfamiliar thing, or to place his faith in Nate.

"It's safe," Jeod announced. "We've seen these a couple of times before."

Nate nodded, then turned his attention to the returned Monitor. "I take it you want us to cross this?"

"But of course, Reclaimer! Why else would I reactivate it?"

"All right," the sniper agreed gruffly, visibly uneasy. Leo moved closer, obeying a gestured order from Jeod to stay with the group, and then followed when Nate finally started across the light bridge.

"Hard light," Nate marveled, pausing briefly then picking up the pace a little in an unconscious expression of his continued unease.

"Compressed photons can be put to many different uses," the Monitor informed the Spartans haughtily. Leo ignored it and trotted obediently at Jeod's heels. There was more at stake here than a learning opportunity and a bit of cool tech. Nobody was quite sure what, but Leo was certain, based on each individual's body language, that they all understood the stakes were high. Higher, even, than what they were used to dealing with.

-HOURS PASS-

If, hours ago, Nate's patience with the Monitor had been wearing thin, now it was utterly threadbare and threatening to completely fall apart. It was taking more self-control than he had thought he possessed simply to keep himself from sighing in irritation every two seconds.

The thing's incessant humming was driving him insane, and every single time it disappeared on him, something dangerous turned up and started trying to kill his comrades. He had asked Andromeda to keep an eye on any AI activity and thus far did not like her findings. The Monitor's activity invariably greatly increased in the minutes before each attack and seemed to be directed in whatever direction the attack would come from.

The data were not in the construct's favor. Nate was just about to give up on controlling himself and just destroy the thing when it reminded him, by activating another light bridge, that without it, he and his Spartans were helpless and would be stuck here for goodness knew how long waiting for backup that would never come.

Patience had never been his greatest virtue, and now, Nate felt like he was being tested… though for what purpose, he had no idea. He allowed himself the brief satisfaction of a murderous scowl, before controlling his expression again.

His suspicion grew that Failing Duty had been lying when it had said it was unable to teleport them any closer. Even interrupted as their progress had been thus far, Nate and his Spartans could cross ground quite quickly, and in the past hours he estimated they had traveled easily thirty or forty kilometers. That was all well and good, and 'slow' progress for them, but on foot was a frustrating way to travel, especially now that they all knew the Monitor could teleport them almost instantaneously.

"To any of these points closer to our objective," Andromeda added to Nate's thought. "Each set of coordinates is a major hub in the data highways which crisscross Haven's interior. Smaller data hubs would easily handle one of us, but based on the knowledge I have been able to glean, only the major hubs will take all of us at once."

Nate wasn't quite sure he was comfortable with Andromeda counting herself as one of them, but her chip was present in his head, so he decided that the 'us' meant 'this group'.

Failing Duty floated a few yards ahead, its constant humming slightly lower in volume and thus slightly less distracting. Nate felt the chemicals in his bloodstream beginning to wear off, and fatigue once again beginning to weigh him down. He ordered his suit to inject him with another wake-up stim, tempted to also activate a caffeine injection. After a brief internal argument, he decided to refrain from the caffeine for now. He used too many stims and chemicals, especially at times like this. His sleeping patterns were bad enough as it was.

"You look exhausted," Lin said gently.

"Mmh," Nate said in agreement. "Trying to take it easy on the stims and the caffeine."

"We need you at your best, Nate. I've already saved your ass a few times today. Leave the taking it easy for another time."

Nate eyed the Monitor curiously. Perhaps it would be worth a shot just to ask… "Failing Duty, was it?"

"Yes, Reclaimer?" the Monitor responded immediately, ceasing its humming.

"My companions and I need some sleep sooner or later. Is there anywhere safe we might rest?"

"Oh, well I do wish you had asked earlier. I must say I cannot guarantee safety this close to the control room. However there is a facility inside which you may take shelter not far ahead, and I shall station a group of Sentinels to protect you while you rest."

"How far is 'not far'?" Nate asked irritably, refusing to falter in his pace.

"At your current pace, barring any more unfortunate interruptions, I imagine we will reach the facility by nightfall, Reclaimer. Night falls on Haven's interior in approximately two and one half hours."

Frustrated and exhausted, Nate caved in to his caffeine craving, frowning at himself when the fatigue seemed to lift moments after the substance was injected into his bloodstream. He really needed to cut back on the caffeine; fatigue could be a withdrawal symptom, and to have withdrawals he had to be addicted first. He knew this injection would wear off in about two hours, and would leave him drained but still buzzing. Sleep would not come easily on his first night back on Haven.

-LATER-

Lin sat with her back against a wall, tucked as tightly into a corner as she could manage. The artificial night-time here bothered her, but not only that… she kept flicking her gaze to Nate's restless form as the other Spartan moved about the room.

Her in-depth knowledge of his every mannerism told her that the fact that he could not sit still indicated that he was unlikely to sleep much, and if he did manage an hour or two's shut-eye, it would be restless and broken. The nightmares had always been a regular occurrence, worse when he was stressing over something or still jittery from too much caffeine. The way he held his shoulders and the slightly exaggerated care with which he moved indicated Nate was dog tired, exhausted enough that if not for the caffeine he would be entirely unable to keep his eyes open.

Lin herself was not far off that point. The adrenaline of combat or medical work would return her to a fully awake and alert state, but she had a feeling Nate was just that drained that he had managed to compromise himself. The medic sincerely hoped they would not see combat until her team leader managed to get some sleep.

She watched him sit back down – also back to a wall, tucked into a corner – and flashed him a quick 'Spartan smile', the universally recognizable fingers-across-the-faceplate hand signal she shunned almost entirely. She might have been quiet, sensitive and softly spoken, but a conformist, Lin was most certainly not.

Nate returned the 'smile' but knew instantly Lin had not seen the gesture. She had dozed off at last. Nate was possessive and protective enough of his brothers and sister that he often refused to go to sleep until the rest of them were out, and the last of the caffeine in his system made that all too easy.

He had to order himself to go to sleep but when he did, he welcomed it with open arms and a slightly delirious grin.

Lin was in his dream. He never dreamt about – or with – anyone he could remember knowing, so that in and of itself sent a jolt of confused surprise through him.

She was standing and waiting for him, but hadn't seen him yet. Nate took the opportunity to commit to memory everything he ever noticed about her. Right then, she wore dress uniform, and Nate could tell by the uncomfortable feel of the collar of his shirt, and the choking feeling of the tie, that he did as well.

Lin's dress uniform was, according to standard, smart navy blue, with brass buttons. Her Medical Officer's insignia was pinned neatly in its place above her medals and campaign ribbons, and beside it, in a deliberate and tidy parallel of the tattoos they all bore, the Spartan insignia.

All of that was regulation and Nate's uniform mirrored it, except, of course, for the fact that instead of Medical Officer's insignia he proudly bore his new Lieutenant Commander's insignia. He had been promoted not all that long ago and still cared enough about rank that the mere thought had him standing a little straighter and puffing out his chest.

What set Lin apart was her shocking, heartbreaking beauty. The face that both contradicted and confirmed the hard muscles of her body with the way the underlying bone structure was so delicate and perfect, yet the expression upon it was utterly impervious. Most strangers thought Lin was smirking at them because the scar on her cheek pulled one side of her mouth up into a permanent half-smile. She stood with poise and grace more befitting of an Admiral's wife than a soldier.

Nate tore his eyes away from his team-mate, away from the young woman he often considered to be many things besides what he was supposed to think of her as. She was not his sister. She was closer than that. She was his best friend, his confidante.

Had to make sure he was presentable too. He found a mirror and ran two fingers along his jawline, examining his face closely for any hint of stubble. He had shaved that morning, but he often had a shadow upon his jaw by noon. Not that day. His copper skin was as smooth as if he had just put the razor down. His short black hair tried to be wavy, but cut as short as it was to adhere to regulations, lacked the length. Left to himself Nate liked it a little longer because it felt bristly and uncomfortable beneath his helmet this short, but formal occasions required strict adherence to regulation.

He realized with a jolt that this was a memory, not a dream, and surrendered himself entirely to it, allowing it to take him where he knew it would.

Satisfied that he was ready, Nate nodded once to himself, then went to greet Lin.

The cheerful scene vanished, fading instead into the now-familiar, now-dreaded nightmare where he started off in the kitchen and the benches were well above his head. He knew what was coming and tried to watch from a distance, but this was a dream, and he was trapped by his own mind.

"Nate, wake up," Lin said softly. "Everyone else is ready to go. And you were having another nightmare… lucky for you, you're subtle about it. Nobody else noticed."

Nate realized gratefully that he was in the facility that Failing Duty had told them would shelter them, and that the other Spartans – Lin excepted – were all standing or sitting near the door, waiting to be able to leave. Nate himself had not moved from the seated position he had been in during his last wakeful, too-exhausted-to-sleep, memory.

He got to his feet, feeling rather tongue-tied, and instead of speaking, just nodded at the Monitor which hovered a few yards away, near the door.

"You are ready to move on? Oh, this is wonderful news indeed! Come, Reclaimer, we've no time to waste."

Nate shared an exasperated glance with Lin, but followed Failing Duty out through the door and back into chaos.

AN: at last, twenty chapters! Took me long enough to write in some description of Nate and Lin. Still have to figure out how to 'show' people what the others look like.

I want to time warp once they're through on Haven, but if I do that, this new team dynamic that's developing will have to jump forward... asking now to give you guys time to let me know your thoughts on the matter! Would you rather follow the development of the team dynamic, or jump forward to a time when more "interesting" things are developing with the storyline? This closeness between Nate and Lin is nothing new but it is developing a new meaning.

Also, is there anyone whose point of view you want me to explore more? It can be someone I haven't focused on yet, or it can be someone whose mind you want more insight into. I love input. I'm not just writing for me here, guys - your continued enjoyment is of utmost importance. Without readers I have no audience!

As always please review. Again I'm not happy with the way this chapter flows, but I'm notorious for being my own worst critic, so I'm going to leave it be before I stuff it up completely. I want to know what's wrong specifically, not just in general terms - so please let me know what you do and don't like!

Halo is not mine, characters and storyline are [barring a few canon references and a possible appearance later on].