Ch. 29: A New Plan
Unknown Date
Unknown Location
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Krystal's eyes opened slowly. Her head throbbed in pain. She didn't know where she was. She was still being carried, but instead of the warm scaled hands that once carried her; there were large fleshy hands, with an almost glove like texture. She could see the back of its massive brown legs stomp across the dark floor. She didn't dare move. She feared what would happen to her if any of the creatures knew she was awake.
The creature carrying her growled, "How much farther must this go? Any cell will do."
Another roaring voice stuck out, "A cell your Excellency? What about us? My stomach throbs! And look at this one! It looks especially tasty," the fur on the back of Krystal's neck stood on end as a hand grabbed her leg, but it was smacked away by a third voice.
"Keep your hands off this baggage! I have something special in mind planned for this one."
Krystal felt sick to her stomach. She slowly looked up, just enough so that none of her captures would not notice. The vixen gasped as a Jackal leaped and growled at her, it was safe behind bars in a cell they were passing though. Now her captures knew she was awake.
"Huh," one grunted, "Our baggage awakes."
Krystal's body trembled, "Let me go," she said weakly.
Ricorus laughed with a thundering roar, "I'm sorry little creature. You are very important to us at this time."
"Please, just let me go," she begged, "I didn't do anything. I've already lost too much in this war," her voice cracked.
"Hmm," Ricorus slummed, "This one will do. Put it in here."
The ape carrying her, threw Krystal. Her body tumbled through the air, hit the back of a cell and fell to the floor. Steel bars collapsed over themselves and closed the small blue fox into her prison. Krystal rolled herself over to look outside the cell. Outside was a massive grey ape with elegant buckles, gantlets, and flashes of armor.
Krystal was weak and tired, "What do you want from me?"
"You will see in time," the Chieftain Brute walked away leaving Krystal alone in silence. She listened to the nothingness for a short while before pulling her body into a ball and huddled herself into her corner.
Krystal tried to make herself as small as possible. The vixen hugged her knees to her breasts and she began to rock back and forth; trying to comfort herself, but nothing was working. A tear rolled down her muzzle as she looked down into her torso. It landed on her suit. The vixen screwed her eyes shut.
It was all over. Fox was dead. Krystal was sure that was going to die as well. This section of the galaxy was surely going to be destroyed by Halo; and if it wasn't, then the Flood would consume everything. Nothing was going right. She knew it was all hopeless; all she could do was weep silently and wait for death's cold hand.
The cold had that had already taken Fox. But, at least now, she just had to wait to be with him again.
X
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0734 November 1, 2554 (Coalition Military Calendar) / Airborne UNSC Pelican, Echo Halo, Linksis Dawn System
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"We're not doing so hot, sir. We lost nearly half of our offensive group… and this isn't including what the Cornerians lost either. And to top it off a third of our Pelicans are smoldering heaps back in that hanger. If we want to even put up a fight here, we might have to pull out of the system for a supply run. The Pelicans we do have are going to be in the machine shops for almost 36 hours, time we do NOT have. A lot of Cornerian CO's fell to the Flood, but a few are alright thanks to the Chief," Sergeant Major Johnson reported to Captain Mitchell.
Mitchell rubbed his chin as he reviewed the Covenant's attack plan when they hit the base. The Pelican shifted as the pilot banked it out of the atmosphere, making a beeline towards the Horror Frost. The older Captain removed his cap and ran his fingers through his hair before he shook his head, "We weren't ready for that. Cortana."
The Chief was aboard a different dropship, along with Cortana. The landing craft was packed full of Marines both Lylatian and Human, and the augmented soldier found it exceptionally uncomfortable. The Spartan was surprised it was even able to get off of the ground considering that it was nearly five thousand pounds over its recommended lift capacity. Twenty-nine marines, both Lylatian and Human alike had managed to pack into the troop compartment designed for a squad of twelve; but what really got John's attention was the fact that they were able to rig a Warthog onto the back despite the dire situation.
Cortana scanned across the list of losses that the Coalition took from the Covenant and the Flood, both in personnel and equipment, "The Covenant didn't broadcast any of their data on any of their channels. I can't tell if they coordinated with the Flood attack, or it was pure coincidence and bad luck on our side."
Captain Mitchell's graveled voice came through the radio, "Not good. I don't know how much longer we can fight this war without calling in the main battle groups."
The AI went on, "Sir, very little of our equipment is still in operable condition…"
The Spartan muted Cortana's conversation with the Captain when a bird spoke up to him, "Hey Spartan."
The Chief turned to the blue plumed bird, "Do you think you could get someone to give us a ride?"
"To where?" The Chief inquired, his head tilting slightly to the side.
Falco smirked up at the super soldier, "To our ship, the Great Fox. Me and frog-boy here have something that could really give the Covenant flyboys some fun."
The Pelican rocked back as the Pilot hit the thrusters. The Chief tightened his grip on the bars, "Captain Mitchell Sir."
The voice came back, "I'm listening Chief."
"The Lylatians say they have an idea."
"Hey! "Falco butted in, "We're Starfox!"
"Well…what's left of Starfox," Slippy whimpered, his head lowering in shame.
The loss of two members of Starfox was like a slap in the face and a sucker punch to the stomach. The sorrow of the entire ordeal made him want to vomit, but right now he was too angry for it to slow him down, and he was itching for a little pay back. If he could get to the Greatfox, then he could get his wings on an Arwing. That way he would be able to get a little revenge, "That fact aside… We have fighters."
The Spartan looked down at the smaller avian, "So?"
"So!?" Falco shouted in disbelief, "We could get some serious hits in on those Covenant dropships!"
Cortana almost laughed, "With all due respect Mister Lombardi, two craft, even with the most elite of pilots… wouldn't fair up against the odds of a full wing Phantoms and Seraph fighters."
"Look here! I've been running around this ring long enough! Every time it's "lock, load, aim, shoot! Me and Slippy can mix it up, and hit 'em where it hurts most!"
The Human's AI shutdown the Lylatians argument, "We can't give you a ride, Lombardi. The Horror Frost doesn't have the resources. Very few Pelicans remain and we're extremely short on reconnaissance vehicles. Warthogs, Mongooses, and especially Scorpions; we're barely able to maintain what we do have. The Horror Frost has also exhausted most of its ammunition reserves, and infantry weapons. Captain Mitchell is considering the evacuation of Halo until we can get a battle group in here to help pull the load."
Even though Cortana was in his suit and didn't physically exist, John shook his head, "We can't do that. Leaving Halo isn't an option. The Covenant took Apologetic Helix."
Cortana failed to see what the super soldier was getting at, "I don't understand Chief."
"Really, huh?" The Spartan replied, his voice laced with a weak form of amusement.
"Get on with it," the ship grade AI hissed; it wasn't very often that the Chief knew something that Cortana didn't, and it irritated her to no end.
"When we were with Skipper at the bottom of Halo, just like Guilty Spark did, Helix took the Index."
"Is this true Cortana?" Captain Mitchell's voice crackled over the radio.
Cortana then realized how serious the situation had really become, "As much as I hate to say it... yes Captain. The Chief is correct."
Mitchell lit his pipe, and waved the match around in the air to put it out. He took a drag of the pipe before going on, "That means as soon as the find someone to activate the ring; it's all over."
"Considering most of our casualties are listed as MIA Sir, this is not good."
"One question Cortana."
"Yes Sir?"
"Can Lylatians activate Halo?"
"Sir… I… I don't know."
Mitchell tapped his pipe on the edge of a bar. The draft in the troop bay of the UNSC Pelican dropship pulled the ashes out and into the open air, "That's bad news. If somehow they are related to the Forerunners, then Halo is gonna light up."
Mitchell could hear the Spartan's deep voice on the radio, "And everything on it, and around it."
"That's right, Covenant, Lylatian, Human, we'll all die," said the UNSC AI, "We need all the help we can get."
Falco shook his head. It was like they were all ignoring him, "Listen to me! We," the raptor gestured with his arm from himself to the amphibian, "Can help! The Greatfox has weapons and ammo on it!"
The Spartan cocked his head, "What kind of weapons?"
"Everything! You name it," said the bird smugly, glad that he finally caught the super soldier's attention.
Slippy sighed, "MA5B and C Assault Rifles, M90 shotguns, BR55s, Snipers, Rockets , if you can name it, the Greatfox has it. Our ship is outfitted with extra ammunition and vehicles as well; nearly our entire cargo bay is dedicated to housing the vast quantities of equipment."
"Keep your head up Slip! Were gonna finish this, for Krystal and for Fox," Falco turned from the toad to the titan, a big grin spreading across his face, "And we got tanks."
"Tanks?" the Spartan asked, his deep baritone voice sounding interested.
Slippy carried on where the falcon left off, "On the Great Fox we've got two Scorpions and two Warthogs left."
Falco narrowed his eyes, crossing his wings over his chest, "You guys interested?"
The Chief was silent for a moment, before turning away from the remaining two members of Starfox. He looked outside the rear door of the Pelican and past the jury-rigged Warthog. Halo was so majestic; the forests were green and the lakes pristine. It was hard to believe that it was a weapon. Inside his helmet he furrowed his brow in thought before speaking, "Sir, permission to leave Halo?"
Through the com line came the Captain's weary sigh, his voice laced with remorse, "Request denied Chief; we can't spare anything right now…we're scraping the bottom of the barrel as it is. How would having our strongest fighter leaving Halo benefit us?"
Cortana negotiated with the Horror Frost's Commanding Officer, "Captain, what if I told you that the Chief and I could get a hold of more ammunition and vehicles to assist the fight."
"I would say that would be a miracle Cortana. We could use all the help we can get."
"Sir."
The Captain was silent until he finally broke the silence over the channel and sighed, "Permission granted Chief. Just… don't leave us hanging."
"Understood Sir, we'll need to borrow four Pelicans, and pilot teams," replied the AI.
The Captain hesitated, "Very well Cortana, and just bring them all back in one piece."
"No need," said Falco, "When we get to the Great Fox, we'll send them here. You can do that, right Slip?"
The toad nodded, and for the first time since the loss of Krystal and Fox sounded exited to help and be in the fight, "That's right! And as long as I don't have to transport any organic matter, I can do it accurately too!"
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Unknown Date
Unknown Location
X
"Wake!" Krystal jumped as a Brute slammed its fists against the bars that held the vixen within her cell. The hairy brown alien tossed in a triangular box. The head sized canister bounced and tumbled before coming to a stop, "Eat," with the single word the primate walked down the hall.
Krystal got up from the cold floor and shivered. She stepped over to the edge of the cell. The bars slanted inwards at the top and outward at the bottom, but they also left a large step-down, making Krystal feel like her cell was more of a hole.
She poked her head through the bars and rested each arm on the bars beside it. The vixen sighed, and wondered what was to become of her. Death was the most likely punishment.
It didn't matter. She didn't care anymore. Death didn't seem so bad right now. War had taken so much from her, from the past and the present. Fox was dead. The monitor of Halo had said so. But there was one thing she hadn't tried. She hadn't tried locating him with her own mind.
The vixen secluded herself at the back of the cell again. She closed her eyes. She imagined each and every crevice in Halo. She searched through the thought waves of every living thing on Halo, trying to find one unique pattern that was the one of Fox McCloud.
She could visualize it all, searching through each and every wave, to find the one that stood out to her, and she thought that she almost found it, until her mind sparked and gave out. She flashed her eyes open. The Flood were ruining everything. It was nearly impossible to concentrate on a single pattern, especially if she didn't know where it was originating from.
The vixen sighed and leaned forward. She grabbed the triangular box with both paws and dragged it closer to herself. It was a transparent glass of some kind and inside a spherical purple ball. She tapped the top of the pyramid, and it slowly opened; the purple sphere rolling down to the floor.
Krystal wrinkled her nose in disgust as she held the food closer to her muzzle. The purple ball was about the size of her head. It was in a gelatin form, and looked very unappetizing. Never the less, she was starving. She inched it closer and tried to smell it, but it had no odor.
The vixen held it with both paws, opened her mouth, and took a bite. Her canine fangs sunk into the gelatin, and she had to pull her head back to rip off the piece. The gelatin immediately and magically turned to liquid in her mouth; the texture combined with the horrible taste made it the worst thing that she had ever eaten.
Krystal rolled onto her side spat out as much as the liquid as she could on the floor. It tasted much worse then it looked. The candid female kept spitting until the vile liquid had all but left her muzzle. Once on the floor the substance resumed its gelatin form.
Where she thought she had taken a bite out of the purple ball had also covered it's self over again, making the orb once again perfectly round, but slightly smaller. She placed the rest of the purple orb inside its container, so maybe if she did get desperate enough she would eat it.
But until then, she was still a prisoner of war. She thought back to what Fox said on their flag ship;
"I have never fought an enemy like this before."
"I want you to promise that you'll leave me, and save yourself."
Krystal crawled back into her corner, "I'm sorry Fox. You were right," her eyes began to water, "Don't worry, love. I'll be with you soon."
