A Father's Plight

Time: 0735 hours

Date: June 1, 2583 (Military Calendar)

Location Base Camp, Zerusesaro Mountain range, Uxxasr Omicron, Diluvia System

"Nea-Nea!"

"Mmm…"

"Wake up, Neala!"

"A few more minutes…"

"NEA!!!"

"Zzz…"

"The Admiral is here!!!"

"WHAT?!"

I jumped out of bed and quickly pulled on my jacket, snapping a salute as soon as I got it to stay.

"Admiral Sheppard, sir!"

However, there was only silence, followed by a furious fit of giggles. I looked around, only to see Kitty rolling on the ground.

"You should've seen the look on your face!" she squealed, pointing at me. "It was priceless!!!"

"Oh, I'll get you for this, petty officer!"

"MEEP!!!"

I chased Kitty out of my tent while getting dressed into my fatigues. Tommy, Charlie, and Brass were already up, their breakfast untouched and watching in amusement as I ushered Kitty into the women's washroom to refresh ourselves. Settling down with our teammates after getting wet countless times, we had a quiet talk about the events that happened the day before.

"You all right, Kitty?" I asked, my mind unsettled by the look of her arms, which were now wrapped in bandages.

"I'm fine!" she chirped, munching on a piece of toast. "The doc said that there were no broken bones, but he wanted me to take it easy since they had to replace my right lung…"

"How bad was it?" Tommy inquired, finishing his juice.

"Doc said that the rib sent a pretty powerful jolt into the lung and punctured it. From there, you know where the blood is coming from…" Charlie explained. "She won't be able to go running with us in the morning for a week, but she'll still manage the daily toning routines."

"That's good," I replied. "Don't want you going rusty…"

"But I want to run with you guys!" she whimpered.

"Yeah, only because she always beats us back to base…" Tommy muttered from behind his empty cup.

"What's this…?" Charlie laughed. "Still bitter about losing to Kitty?"

"I did not lose! It was a tie!"

"In your dreams…" Kitty laughed.

"It was!"

"Settle down, you guys…" I chuckled. "We'll skip our routine for today and make sure that everything is set. I have a feeling that we might be expecting some guests really soon…"

"Oh?" Brass asked. "You mean the Covenant?"

I nodded.

"We better be prepared for anything, so watch out, especially with the ODSTs… Charlie, can you be Kitty's escort until she is able to move freely without being hurt?"

"Sure thing!"

"But Neala! I'm a big girl!"

"Maybe to her, but you're still small to me…" Charlie grinned, patting her gently on the head with his large hand.

"Not funny!" she squealed, batting and nipping at his hand like a cat. "I may be small, but I do still pack a wallop!!!"

"And I don't doubt that, but Neala's right since the ODSTs will do anything to get back at us after that ordeal…" Tommy replied. "Better to be safe than sorry, remember?"

"Yeah, you're right, but when can I get back into my suit?"

"Not for another three days," I replied, knowing that I also had three days before I could return to my working condition. "But once I get my armor on, you can also put yours on."

"YAY!"

I stood up and looked at my other teammates, who had just come back from their daily run and were now in their suits. I smiled at them as they acknowledged my presence with a nod or a short salute. We were quite casual when we were together. However, once the admiral showed up, there was no time for lenience or mistakes. I watched as both Admiral Whitten and Admiral Sheppard stepped into our camp, along with Master Chief Satoshi and two others.

"ADMIRALS ON DECK!" I shouted, snapping a salute while the others also followed suit.

"At ease, Petty Officer…" Admiral Whitten greeted. "We came to see if 417 is doing well."

"I'm right here, sir!" she announced from behind Charlie, raising a quick salute. "And I am doing well, sir!"

Admiral Sheppard stepped over and, despite his massive hands, gently lifted one of Kitty's limbs to get a better look. He had to have been satisfied as that look in his dark eyes seemed to have lightened up a bit.

"Get plenty of rest, soldier," he commanded very lightly. "Now for the rest of you. We're moving out to the other side of the city to set up another base. The SPARTAN-III units, led by Admiral Whitten and Master Chief Satoshi, will be staying here while we'll be setting up base on the other side. Our objective is to secure this city as much as possible and to prevent the Covenant from moving in. Four teams will be going in to hunt for the crystal the Heretics are talking about. As soon as we find it, we're taking off and taking it back to ONI on Itego VIII in the Pegasi System. Chief Satoshi will be coming with us to help set up the place, as well as give you further commands."

I nodded as I looked at the chief. He did not have his helmet on, which was a little odd. Then again, I thought it was out of respect for the senior officers.

"Admiral Whitten has also agreed to let us use his Pelicans and Warthogs to transport our equipment, so pack up and move out. Petty Officer 468, you will ride ahead with Chief Satoshi and I, along with a Pelican loaded with Marines to secure the site. I suggest that you just wear the armor the Marines have, as you are not well enough to have your suit on yet."

"Yes, sir, I understand."

I turned to my teammates.

"You heard the admiral! 475 and 482, grab the weapons cache we brought in and load up the birds. 443 and 444, make sure that everyone is accounted for and that the Marines also have their equipment. 491, you're in charge while I secure the LZ with the admiral and the chief."

"Roger that, 468!" he replied soundly.

I smiled a bit, knowing that he was starting to feel confident. I had not seen this part of him surface until now. I wished it had come sooner, but I was glad that he was now finding himself. Perhaps now, he could be the leader that he wanted to be, not just some tactician sitting behind the lines…

After several Marines had helped me put on a set of their armor, which was really light compared to the armor being housed inside the crate near the Gauss cannon, I climbed into the turret, placing my feet into the footholds and swinging my weight a bit to get a feel for the weapon. The chief looked up at me.

"So, liking the Gauss?"

"I'm fine with it, sir," I replied, looking at the controls. "I heard these are highly accurate compared to the rocket- or chain gun-mounted 'Hogs, but I do prefer my sniper rifle when possible."

"True as that may be, but these guns are just as accurate as any sniper rifle. Sure they are a little loud, but they do get the job done, especially when drilling through the Grunts."

"Sir, if I may ask?"

"Feel free to speak casually…"

"Uh… Thank you, sir… Uh… Sir, I was wondering… When you were training, did you lose some of your 'family' also?"

I saw that I had stuck a hard nerve and tried to take back what I said, but he held up his hand.

"It is all right, 468…, he murmured, his eyes glazed as he seemed to think back on the days when his career had just begun. "Yes, I had lost some of my family, but I also lose more as this war continues… Elsewhere, there are also Spartans like us, those of the SPARTAN-IIs and other SPARTAN-III units, scattered throughout the galaxies, trying to protect what is left of humanity… Every year, one is killed… Every half a year, one is MIA… Ever month, one is too wounded to continue fighting… Every week, one is in recovery… Every day, one is wounded… Every hour, one is fighting… Every minute, one is awake… Every second… one is alive… There are things like these that set the world into balance, but for every balance, there is a counterbalance, sometimes too great of one, and that is when one must do what is needed to regain that balance… I am sure Mendez has taught you that?"

I thought about this for a moment.

"Yes, he did," I replied. "It was when he came into class one day, barging in and mock attacking us with paintballs that his men were shooting. That was when he told us about the balance after a few of us managed to break through his ranks and actually tackled him."

"And thus restoring the balance, no?"

"Yes, we did, sir."

"Alas, it is not just the Spartans whom I have lost who are like family to me…"

"How so, if I may ask, sir?"

"This war was the cause of my daughter's death and my wife's pain… It is because of this war I have no daughter and a wife who is on the edge of despair…"

"I am sorry to hear of your daughter's death…" I consoled while getting off the turret with ease. "But as Chief Mendez has told me once, as long as we keep them in our memories, they aren't dead."

"Yes, I know that, but somehow, I feel that she is not dead…"

"But, sir, how can that be? A person is considered dead if they cannot be physically with us. All we can carry are the memories we have made with them, which keeps them alive to others."

"468, it is something very hard to explain… It's just a feeling I have that even though I saw her buried, it's like that she's still alive…"

"Chief, forgive me for saying this, but I think your grievances are getting to you…"

"Perhaps so, but I just can't shake off that feeling… Especially when I look at you, 468…"

I was taken aback and edged away a little.

"Sir, what do you mean…?"

"There is something about you that reminds me of my child… When she was still alive…"

"Sir, I am sorry to say this, but I am not your daughter…"

"I know… But perhaps when this war is over, I would like to have you as a goddaughter… At least, to quell my spirit until my time is over."

"Sir, we are all a family here, despite our ages. As a senior officer, we will regard you as master chief, but if you prefer that I regard you as a father when not on-duty, then I shall do so."

"I don't want to force you to do it, 468."

I smiled a little.

"You are not forcing me, sir… Just that I wish to regard someone as a father as Chief Mendez, who all of us in SPARTAN-IV have regarded as our father, is not here…"

"What of Admiral Josiah Sheppard?"

"The admiral is considered our commander, sir. That is all how we regard him as. He does take care of us, as well as show his concern for our safety, but we just cannot relate to him as easily to someone we have grown up with all our lives, or with someone who has gone through the same process."

"I cannot disagree with you there."

"Chief!" We turned, only to see the admiral also in Marine armor, sitting shotgun of the Warthog I was just in. "Let's move out! 491, we will see you in an hour!"

"Sir! Yes, sir!" I heard Charlie shout as I mounted the turret and the chief jumped into the driver's seat. "All right, men! Let's pack it up!"

I nodded as we pulled ahead, followed by a caravan of three fully loaded Warthogs and one filled Pelicans. I swung the turret around to look at those behind me, only to swivel back to facing forward and aiming at places that could be potential sniping points.

This reminded me greatly when were against the Badger Brigade in Delouse Canyon, where the brigade were hiding deep in the crevices of the canyon walls, shooting us with their training sniper shots. During the first few hours, we had been pelted and were actually hit. Eventually, we learned to watch for the very thin trails that followed each round, but we also trained ourselves to listen for the gunshot.

Once we knew where they were hiding, we pretended to not know, only to make very subtle motions to my teammates about the location of where the sniper was hiding. From there, we sent our so-called assassins, Tommy and Kitty, to jump and disarm them. It was a quick job, for by the time we had reached the other end of the gulch to plant the anti-tank bomb, no one else was shooting and I got several acknowledging signals from the crevices. I smiled inside as the party trudged forward, pressing on towards our goal. However, I still had Chief Satoshi's words lingering in my mind. I did not understand what he meant about adopting me as his daughter when this war ended, if it ever did, but it did not seem so bad to be living with a someone whom I could fully relate to.

Author's Notes: I am sorry for not putt up the latest chapters, but I've been really busy with college and stuff... This chapter seems to rushed in my opinion, but hopefully, it'll help a little bit with the development of the relationship between Neala and Satoshi...

Might post another some time tonight.

Best wishes,

Lt. Jessie Jay Falcon