Author's Notes: Alright, I don't want this to take any longer than it already has, so let me just apologize (once again) for the delay and say that, in the words of Ian Malcolm, "Life finds a way."
...To keep me from getting things done that I need to get done. I've been so busy the past five days that I can't even begin to describe it and expect to get this thing up tonight. So, know that I apologize and that I hope you all don't hate me for the extended-length of the cliffhanger.
Now, Reviews!
killerman83ca: Hey! Thanks (as always) for your review, and I promise I will check out the story as soon as I have a free moment to myself. I've been absolutely swamped this week.
AosUnderSol: lol, I don't know about "all monster on it," but he'll try. ;)
Benaia Dre: Well, here's the second half of your idea for my "chapter-split," lol. Hope you like it as much as you liked the first half. lol, and you're right...it's hard to get tension when people know me and my writing so well...
Lecter42: Okay, so you can't see me letting them die...well...yeah...I don't know. haha. But I have to ask..."be a hell of a chapter if I did"? lol. You want me to kill 'em off? ;) Also, I wondered if anyone would mention the Elites...pay attention and look for our alien friends this time around. Tell me what you think. Finally...I don't think there are any bolded words in this chapter, lol. Didn't need them. ;) Thanks for your review!!
Taylor114: Hey! Glad you liked it! And I'm glad you like Zeke as much as I do! But, as for who dies or doesn't die...you'll just have to wait and see. And yes, "inevitable" is a good word for that. Oh, and Zeke...yes, very much an "arsehole." He gets worse, lol. Samuel...I guess I just wanted to show that he cares for the team and he can't bear to leave them, but he wasn't given a whole lot of choice. When the choice is "two people die" or "seven people die," it's hard to rationalize the latter.
And, in regards to Soulguard: ABSOLUTELY. The stories have been awesome! Though, I haven't had a whole lot of reading time, but...yeah, awesome up through all I've read.
FireWolfFred: Well, you're right, lol. That is typically how it happens. Though, this time, it's more because they're tired, they're stressed to the breaking point, and they have nothing but their Energy Swords. These are not the greatest weapons against Hunters...personally, I prefer a good S'plaser. ;) And thank you very, very much for your compliment...that made my day. :)
The Great Valley Guardian: Hey! Thanks for your review! Yeah...this mission does get worse and worse, lol. But, I hope you find the ending you're hoping for up ahead!
WolfyWolf: Oh...sorry you hate cliffhangers, lol. It really wasn't meant to last this long. Life just kind of got in the way. And in regards to the lack of reviews before: well, if you don't have a computer, it's hard to review, isn't it? Trust me, I understand. :) I'm just glad to hear from you again!
Fallen Angel Wings: Hello new reviewer! I'm glad you like the story thus far. I'm curious...your review was for Chapter 3. How far have you gotten now? I think the writing got better as I went along (I'd like to think it did...lol). I promise I will give your story a look and send you a message as soon as I get a chance...lately, I've been scholarship, FFA, and test-crazy. Hopefully, it'll settle soon. Thanks again, and I hope you'll stick around!
vernox: lol, I'm sorry. That must really bite to have to copy and paste it all. It means a lot that you go through that to read this! I really do appreciate that! Also, I liked the Hunter-toss too...it was a blast to write. As for the cliffhanger...well, it fit. I don't like to do them, but it was fitting and I wanted a little tension. So, thanks for your review and I hope you like this next one!
rimshooter: lol, I know...my bad. ;) I sorry. I'll do better next time (assuming I don't get two exams, an essay and a test in two days, lol).
Suliac Griffin: hahaha! Your review made me laugh almost right out of my chair. I hope you really don't think I'm THAT bad, lol. It was just one cliffhanger. And I promise not to do it again. I wouldn't have done it this time, except I thought that this chapter would get long, and it was a fitting stopping point to get some tension. So...well, I sorry, lol. But...about what you said...thanks very much for the compliments! Hope you don't hate me too bad, lol. ;)
hellhound cerberus: Hey new reviewer! lol, thanks a lot for the positive notes on my writing "talent," lol. I wish I were as talented as everyone keeps giving me credit for. Anyways, in answer to your question: Not really. Things will change a little later on, but not to any great extent. I hope you'll stick around for the future chapters!
Okay, I'm sorry if the review responses were short this time...I really want to get this out there for you all. So, here it is!
Chapter 36:
– Miracles –
1830 Hours - January 2, 2553
Inside the Research Station - Los Angeles, California
"Alien bastard," Ezekiel growled lowly, still pinned mercilessly to the titanium wall from the waist up. To make matters worse, one of his legs was completely numb and adamantly refused to move, no matter how hard he tried.
Victoria let out another muffled yell somewhere behind the Hunter. Ezekiel had gathered that she was pinned similarly to the way he was, but her face was dug somewhere into the titanium.
He had also gathered, by her cries, that the alien was toying with her and enjoying her suffering, much like the one in front of Ezekiel was, pinning him harder and harder to the wall and listening to his bio-engineered bones cracking.
The Hunter growled again and its Fuel Rod Cannon began to glow a brighter shade of green. Zeke scowled, beckoning all his pain away into the back of his mind. It was now or never.
"See you in Hell." He said, gasping for the air that the giant alien was making harder and harder for him to obtain.
With all the strength he had, he forced his good leg to bend and thrust the blade on his knee forward, letting the glowing plasma cut a clean tear in the Hunter's unarmored abdomen. The creature roared but didn't draw away, and Ezekiel repeated the process again and again until, finally, it staggered backwards, enraged and gushing blood from its open wounds.
Limping and gasping for air inside his breastplate that had been smashed inward, the Spartan primed a Plasma Grenade and charged forward, sticking his hand into the open tear in the Hunter's body and leaving the primed grenade inside. A second later, the Hunter exploded from the inside, but Ezekiel was already forcing himself to run for the creature's brother at the far side of the room.
"Here we go," he said, letting glowing plasma surround the elbow-mounted blade on his right arm and holding a Spike Grenade in the same hand.
The Hunter was still turned away from him when he reached it, and the Spartan sliced a giant, gaping hole in the worms that made up its back with his plasma-coated blade. Before the Hunter could retaliate, he took the Spike Grenade, primed it, and stuck it vertically inside the creature, with the head facing straight up.
"You should pick on someone your own size." Zeke managed in a defiant tone as he backed away. The Hunter got one step before the grenade detonated, sending superheated spikes all the way up its body and through countless worms at once.
It fell over instantly in a bloody heap.
"Alright," he said, limping over to Victoria, who had since fallen from the wall and was resting on her back on the ground. "Vic, you okay?"
She didn't answer.
"Vic?" He checked her status on his HUD and found that, while she was alive, she was unconscious. "Oh, come on! Damn it!" He looked up at the ceiling, as he always did in such situations. "Can I catch a break, please? Just one damned break!"
"Why the Hell can't we get ten minutes to ourselves anymore?" Landon asked, scowling as a dozen Phantoms landed in an enormous circle around them, each one more than fifty-yards away.
"What are they doing?" Stephanie asked. None of the Spartans could see what the Phantoms were releasing, and it was unusual for the Brutes to land so far away from their intended targets.
"I don't know." Samuel said. "But I don't like it. Everyone: get ready."
Blaine laughed coldly behind them. "So this is what stands between us and a nice hot meal, huh?" He swung the enormous Gravity Hammer around as if it were a toy. "I'll kill 'em all. Every last damn one."
Landon frowned behind his visor, holding the Shotgun close to his chest. It didn't matter anymore. The Covenant had failed. They'd secured the NOVA Bombs already. The aliens would never find them. To make things better, the Spartans were eight minutes from safety and the long, sleep-filled trip home.
And yet, somehow, Landon couldn't manage a smile for anything. Two of his teammates – his friends – were being left behind. They were going to die, and there wasn't a damned thing anyone could do to change it.
And here, in the midst of all of it, the Covenant were going to launch one last assault in a mad attempt to stop the Spartans from returning home with their lives.
Landon scowled, thinking of the aliens' charges and the two Spartans left in the structure. You freaks, he thought bitterly, you're gonna pay. Mark my words, whatever you send at us this time, it's not coming back.
At that moment, his thoughts were interrupted by the roaring of an engine. It was big. Not big enough to be a Pelican or even a tank, but bigger than most vehicles. The Spartan grimaced.
"We've got Choppers, Sam." He said. The brown-clad Spartan nodded almost unnoticeably.
"I know," he said. A second later, he went into "leader-mode," turning to the group around him. "We've got limited ammo and grenades," he said. "That means no screwing around. Aim for the kill in one shot if you can get it. If not, just focus on holding them off. We need about seven minutes, and then we're out of here."
Before any of the Spartans could respond, one of the giant Covenant vehicles came rushing toward them, boosting at the last second and missing Stephanie by less than a full foot. Instinctively, Landon turned and watched the Chopper as it circled around for another shot.
"What now?" Jason asked, raising his Beam Rifle.
"Put that away," Blaine snapped, moving between him and the Chopper. He raised the Gravity Hammer. The white-armored soldier looked directly at the vehicle as it began to rush toward them. "Come and get some, monkey-boy!"
The Brute swerved away from Blaine, perhaps to hit Samuel, but it never had a chance. The biomechanical Spartan swung the hammer like a bat and the combined force of the blow and the altered field of gravity sent the alien motorcycle rolling, all the way to the end of the parking lot-
Where it appeared to roll off a ledge, and vanished.
"Where'd it go?" Stephanie asked, raising her twin Maulers.
"I think it must ha-" Landon started to answer, but was cut off as Blaine pushed him to the side and swung the massive hammer once again, saving his life from a Brute Chopper that was coming straight for him from behind.
Landon started to say "thanks," but wasn't even able to stand up before another Chopper came from the left. He managed, just in time, to get his arm-shields between him and the Chopper's giant, spiked wheel, but it wasn't enough to save him. The impact crashed his shields and sent him rolling across the lot, groaning as he struggled to sit up.
"Landon!" Samuel yelled, running for him.
The downed soldier closed his eyes for only a second, gritting his teeth against the pain that was radiating through his chest and his back. Before he could even sit up, however, he heard another engine, and suddenly a pain unlike anything he'd ever imagined shot up both of his legs. He sat up in an instant, yelling in agony and looking down at his punctured and crushed legs as the Chopper sped away.
"Son of a-"
"Landon, move!" Someone yelled. Landon neither knew nor cared who.
"I can't, damn it!" He yelled back, a blood-red shade lighting up his HUD and over a dozen "WARNING" signs in all four corners of his vision. Horrible jolts of pain were shooting up and down his back and his chest felt like it was going to implode. His legs were shot. He was stuck on the ground in the middle of the open with a dozen Choppers all zipping around.
Landon tried as hard as he could to stand, fuming and literally yelling for his legs to move. Unfortunately, it was all for nothing; he could only watch as the scrolling numbers at the sides of his HUD got lower and lower, some of them stopping only when they hit rock-bottom at zero.
He heard another Chopper's engine roar behind him, and the Spartan turned to meet the incoming vehicle.
"A little help here!" he shouted, putting his dual arm-shields between him and the oncoming Covenant craft. Even as he put his arms up, he knew that the action would be pointless. At the angle he was being forced to hold them, the Chopper would rip right through and then proceed to tear him apart without even slowing down.
Here we go, he thought when he heard the engine get louder. The Brute pilot was boosting straight for him. Landon braced himself as best as he could with the blinding pain shooting up from his legs.
Suddenly, at the last second, another Spartan jumped in front of him. This one was clad in white and swinging a hammer whose head was as big as the Chopper's engine. There was a "BOOM" as the hammer struck down and detonated the front of the Chopper, and then Blaine turned around.
"One of these days," he said, "I'm teaching you what it means to look both ways." He paused, then added with a laugh, "maybe then, you won't get smacked quite so early in the fight."
Ezekiel groaned as he carried Victoria to the edge of the empty elevator shaft and looked up into the darkness. With his enhanced vision, he could make out a completely-empty shaft that extended all the way up to –presumably – the eighth floor.
"Alright," he said, looking down to his comrade. "We made it. Now get the Hell up."
It wasn't even a slight surprise when the Spartan continued to lay there, unconscious.
"Aren't these suits supposed to guard against things like that?" Zeke asked bitterly, limping on his good leg. "You can't just keep going unconscious every time you get smacked into a wall by an eleven-foot alien, honestly. It's just not gonna work."
He looked up into the shaft. Normally, eight stories would be nothing, but on one leg, it was a daunting height.
"You're not actually thinking of jumping up that, are you?" Demon asked from the recesses of his mind.
"Yes and no," Ezekiel answered, flexing his right leg. Without another word, he jumped up and pressed his right foot up against the wall opposite the one he'd come in from. A second later, he used it as a brace and jumped backwards and up, this time bracing his right foot on the wall behind him.
He smiled. It was painful, but, in essence, he was wall-jumping.
"And they said I'd never be able to do this shit," he snapped as he leapt off another wall. He was well over the fourth floor, and while his whole body was screaming, the Spartan forced the pain out. He had to know that he could make it up.
Then he'd go back for Victoria.
Ten seconds later, he emerged from the open door to the shaft on the eighth floor. "Dear Lord," he said, looking down at his leg, "that hurts like a banshee."
"It burns?" Demon asked, unknowing.
"Not like what you're thinking," Zeke said with a grin. He checked the time at the corner of his HUD. It read "6.44" and was counting down. "We've really gotta go." He said. A second later, he jumped back down the shaft, bracing his foot only once every couple of floors.
There was a dull thud as he finally fell lightly onto the bottom floor. He sighed, wincing as he limped toward Victoria.
"Time to go," he said calmly as he grabbed her arm in his right hand and draped it over his shoulder, positioning her behind him. He positioned his body to hold the arm there and reached around for her left arm. Taking it, he did the same and locked the two arms in place at his chest with the spiked protrusions coming from each of Victoria's wrists. When he was sure they were secure, he limped back to the shaft.
"Ezekiel," Demon said carefully, "I'm not sure this is a good idea. You only have one leg an-"
"Enough!" he snapped. "I know what you're thinking, and I don't like it either. Unfortunately, we've only got five minutes and it's the only way out of this God-forsaken Hellhole."
At that, the AI was silent. Ezekiel stepped up to the edge of the shaft.
Come on, he thought, coaxing himself. He knew it was going to hurt like Hell. You can do this.
He braced on his right leg and jumped forward, thrusting his foot forward and propping it against the opposite wall before leaping backwards again. He had to angle his body forward to keep Victoria's limp form from hitting the wall. His foot connected with the wall behind him and he pushed off again.
Come on, he thought as a seething pain began to eat away at his good leg. Just a little further-
He slipped. He went to put his foot against the wall in front of him and didn't push off quite quickly enough. The black-armored Spartan fell backwards and turned on his side in time to take the brunt of the blow when he hit the steel floor twenty feet below him.
BOOM!
He felt his already-useless shoulder dislocate and crack as he smashed into the ground. Barely, Zeke had had time to angle Victoria's body so that she wouldn't hit the ground directly.
Slowly, painfully, he forced himself to stand on his right leg. He angled the unconscious Spartan behind him and got ready to go again.
"This is ludicrous, Zeke." Demon said. "There has to be another way. This can't work."
"It will work!" He yelled back defiantly. A second later, he was at it again, jumping into the shaft and leaping clean off the walls.
This time, the Spartan made it all the way to the sixth floor before the agonizing pain caused him to make a misstep. As he reached his foot back to brace it against the wall behind him, he pushed too hard, and launched prematurely, sending his head flying forward into the wall in front of him.
"Sh-" He started, but was cut off as he tipped back over and smacked his head against another wall. He was freefalling now with Victoria still on his back. Six floors he'd climbed, and now he was going back down again. Painfully aware of the agony he was about to get to know very well, he turned his body so that he was facing the floor as it came rushing up to meet him in his vision.
CRASH!
He hit flat on the floor, knocking the wind from his lungs and cracking a dozen of his reconstructed bones. He gasped, spitting blood up into his helmet.
"Son of-" He coughed again, spilling more of his blood onto his visor. He managed a glance up the shaft. At that moment, his fate began to set in. There was nothing he could do.
He was going to die.
"Damn it," he said, feeling his conscious mind start to cave as blackness ate away at the edges of his vision. He felt the weight on his back shift slightly as Victoria's limp body began to slide off.
No, he thought, I can't. Magnus…my word…I gave him my word. He cursed again and began to sit up.
"Ezekiel, that's enough!" Demon's voice echoed in his mind again. "Just quit. It's not worth this."
"Shut up," he snapped, starting to stand. His visor was stained red, either because of the four "WARNING" signs blinking on all sides, or because of the blood he'd coughed onto it. Ezekiel didn't care which. He checked the time.
Four more minutes, he thought, I can't quit yet.
Samuel, for the first time in quite a while, not only had little idea of how to get the Spartans out of their current mess, but also found himself struggling simply to keep up with all that was going on. Somewhere in the last thirty seconds, a dozen Brute Choppers had been released from their Phantom-carriers and had charged the Spartans en masse.
Even so, apart from Landon's situation, the fight was going surprisingly well. Blaine was smacking Choppers left and right with his hammer, tossing them around as if they were nothing but oversized toys.
Jason was doing fine: he was more than content to use his cybernetic legs to jump clean over any Chopper-driving Brutes foolish enough to try and ram him. Once he was over them, the gold-armored Spartan would bring his Beam Rifle to bear and take aim.
The Covenant never knew what hit them.
Stephanie, on the other hand, had had just a little bit of trouble when things first started. Carrying only small arms, she was forced to do nothing but dodge the incoming crafts when they set their sights on her.
That is, until she discovered the two Choppers that Jason had sniped the drivers clean off of. The first thing she did was to grip one of them by its thin back and swing it around behind her like an oversized baseball bat. The Brute that had been boosting toward her was met with the front end of the other Chopper, and both vehicles detonated.
A few seconds later, Stephanie was walking out of the smoke with a pair of giant wheels.
The moment another Chopper came toward her, the cybernetic Spartan turned the wheel in her left hand into the Frisbee from Hell. One second, it was soaring, whistling and cutting through the air. The next, it had impacted with the front end of the Chopper and lodged itself deep into the craft's engine and inner-wheels.
As the Brute piloting the craft moved and started to turn the vehicle away from Stephanie, she threw the second wheel. The Covenant soldier didn't even have time to blink before its chest was crushed from the side and the wheel's edge was driven through its armor, tissue, and bone.
Samuel felt a shadow of a smile crawl across his face as he watched her get onto the remaining empty Chopper and begin riding around, boosting into any unsuspecting aliens and shredding both them and their crafts.
He couldn't believe it. Somehow, even with Landon completely immobile and missing two of their teammates, the Spartans were functioning as well as ever, and the Brutes couldn't touch them. As long as they kept charging individual Spartans and trying one-at-a-time to crush them, this battle would be over without any major problems.
"I hate these damned things!" Landon's cry tore Samuel from his thoughts. Somehow, things always found a way to go any way but the way he needed them to in order to fight effectively.
This time, the "wrong way" had been characterized by Landon being rammed by one Chopper, run clean over by another, and then being rendered completely immobile, but still able to yell and curse. Although, for once, Samuel could understand his yelling, as he was stuck out in the middle of the parking lot armed only with a Shotgun.
The brown-armored Spartan scowled, glancing at the time in the corner of his HUD as another Chopper turned to come his way. Five minutes, he thought as he pulled a Plasma Grenade from its place on his armor. The Chopper began to close in on him, but Samuel only smiled. If he had one advantage over his fellow soldiers in combat with the Choppers, it was his height. He could see right over the enormous engine of the Chopper that normally served to hide its driver from sight.
Samuel pulled back and prepared to prime the grenade, but was caught off-guard when the Brute slowed down and began firing the Chopper's twin autocannons.
They're getting smarter, he thought bitterly, holding his ground as the autocannons laid into his shields and the Chopper started to get closer. He waited, watching his enhanced shields as they began to dwindle and focusing on the Brute's ugly face until the alien was within his throwing range.
"Got you," he said, and reared back.
Blaine smiled as Samuel threw the Plasma Grenade in his hand like a baseball, arcing it right over the Chopper's massive engine and sticking its Brute driver right in its ugly mug.
"Is that the best your so-called "army" can do?" Blaine yelled as another Phantom passed low overhead. While it was still above him, the right-hand-side unlatched, and two more Choppers spilled down into the parking lot.
The first vehicle hadn't even hit the ground before Blaine pulled the hammer back and swung it forward, crushing the Chopper and hitting it so hard that it wiped the second Covenant craft clean out of the air as it soared away. Finally, it hit the ground and rolled sideways until it fell off the edge of the plateau.
The white-armored Spartan let out a cold laugh and turned to check on Landon once more. He'd smacked two Choppers already that were foolish enough to charge his teammate while he was down.
And he had no qualms with smashing a few more.
"Blaine, watch yourself!" Samuel yelled, and Blaine turned around on an impulse.
At that second, a pair of Choppers charged at him at an "X" angle. He leapt out of the road just in time for them to come through, the one on the right first, and then the one from his left.
He scowled, turning to see three more zooming away from the Spartans and just starting to turn for another shot.
"Who are they coming for?" Stephanie asked, pulling up beside him in her own commandeered Chopper.
"I don't know," Blaine said, glancing back and forth as they all turned at once. At their current distance, it was still impossible to see their intended target. "I think it-"
"Guys!" a voice yelled from behind him. He turned to see Landon with his arm-shields up in the air and a Chopper rushing straight for him.
Stephanie took off and Blaine made a dead sprint for Landon's position. With only ten feet between the downed Spartan and the Chopper, he jumped over him and swung the hammer down, smashing the giant craft's engine. The Brute Captain driving the vehicle crawled from the wreckage and stood up, roaring.
"Go to Hell." Blaine said bitterly as he stabbed the Brute in the chest with the handle of the Gravity Hammer. Next he struck the beast's stomach, and it doubled-over. A second later, Blaine was on it, crushing its exposed neck with one squeeze of his biomechanical hand.
"Blaine, they're going for Landon!" Samuel's voice echoed in his head. Blaine made a full spin to see the last four Choppers coming at his teammate, who was holding his shields in front of him in a pointless attempt to divert the damage they'd do if they hit him.
Blaine took the closest incoming vehicle and smashed the ground in front of the Chopper at the last available second, sending it flipping over backwards. Unfortunately, it landed solidly on its front wheel and boosted again.
"Damn things," he snarled, "freakin' impossible to flip."
This time, however, he forgot all about flipping the Covenant craft. With the last ounce of power in the hammer's battery, he smashed the front engine and caved it in as he had done with so many others before it. The Chopper died and its driver leapt off, furious and holding a Brute Spiker.
"Oh come on," Blaine said disbelievingly, "you're not serious."
The Brute took a swing and Blaine let it carry through. It hit his shields, cut through, and put an inch-long scrape in his armor. Without flinching, he dropped the hammer and just looked straight at the Brute.
"Demon!" it yelled, taking another swing. This one cut another identical scrape into the left side of his breastplate. When he still didn't flinch, the Brute swung again, raising its hand up and-
Blaine snatched it by the neck, holding the alien four inches off the ground. It tried to roar, to howl, but all that came out were gagged choking noises.
"I've said it once; I'll say it again: get…the…Hell…off…my…planet!" He punctuated the sentence by spinning around and throwing the Brute as hard as he could toward the edge of the parking lot that was also the edge of the plateau the structure had been built upon. The Brute soared for more over thirty feet and flew clean over the edge without ever touching the ground.
Samuel braced himself as the Chopper he'd designated as "his" charged forward. The giant Spartan was standing directly between the alien craft and his fallen teammate, but he was out of grenades, and no number of Shotgun shells was going to stop the Brute vehicle.
Blaine had dealt with one Chopper already, and Jason had used the last of his Beam Rifle's charge to deal with another. Stephanie had rammed the third with her own Chopper, but she was on Landon's opposite side now, and there was no way she could make it around in time to stop the last of the Brutes.
Samuel scowled as he stared down the oncoming alien. It was his turn. He had to stop it, but had no idea how. He glanced at the time.
Just another minute, he thought, knowing with a slight bit of comfort that the time remaining until extraction was closer to thirty-seconds.
Still, that wasn't soon enough for Landon.
He risked a look backwards. Neither Blaine nor Jason were close enough to Landon to grab him and get him out of harm's way. Stephanie was on the other Chopper and much too far.
Samuel braced himself as the Brute charged forward, boosting. The Chopper was now less than twenty yards away.
I don't know if I can do this, he prayed, but even if I can't do it, give me the strength to get it away from Landon. I've already lost two Spartans today. I can't lose another. Please.
With that, he bent his knees his hands out in front of him, focusing hard on the Chopper's sharp edges. If his plan was to work, he was going to have to get a perfect grip. Otherwise, he and Landon would both be shredded.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the Chopper boosted across the lot and Samuel's hands met its front. The impact alone sent shockwaves up and down the giant Spartan's body and caused his left leg to give for a second as he skidded backwards. His boots grinded against the ground until it finally cracked and his brace-foot dug several inches into it.
His hands were lodged just above the curved spikes on the front of the Chopper, exactly where he'd wanted them. Still, the sharp metal had scraped clean through his shields and his armor, and he could see dark, red blood dripping down from both his hands. Groaning, he pushed his arms forward and extended them fully.
The Brute driving the craft was stunned, growling, but completely shocked.
Taking a deep breath, Samuel braced his arms and held them outstretched as he slowly tilted the Chopper slightly to the right. The Brute, knowing it was about to be tipped, angled its body to the left in an effort to balance the vehicle.
Samuel smiled. Before the alien even knew what was happening, he switched which way he was tilting the vehicle and put all he had into flipping it to the left. Its one wheel came loose from the ground and the Chopper rolled four full times before coming to rest.
At that second, another dozen Phantoms made themselves visible on the horizon, and a dozen more were already at the edges of the lot, dropping off another contingent of Brute Choppers. Samuel checked the time.
It's time to go, he thought eagerly, where's our extraction?
Suddenly, something glistened only a few feet away and got his attention. Squinting, the Spartan noticed that something was bending the sunlight and tilting it and-
It was big.
"Demon," a familiar voice said. Suddenly, the cloaked Phantom's side-latch opened and Samuel saw the Field Master inside. "I told you I would call for your extraction."
Samuel smiled, shaking his head in disbelief. "Thank you." He said enthusiastically. The Spartan turned to the rest of the team. "Get Landon and let's go!" He yelled.
They didn't need to be told twice. Two seconds later, Blaine and Stephanie had Landon in their arms and were carrying him into the Phantom. Jason followed them, and Samuel quickly jumped in last.
"I was beginning to worry that we would be too late." Ahrmonro said.
"So were we." Blaine said with a laugh.
Samuel looked around. He saw the Field Master and two other Elites including the pilot, but none in silver armor. "Where is U'svere?"
Ezekiel felt his spine rattle as he crashed into the floor of the elevator shaft for a fourth time. He tried to stand, but it was a thirty-second endeavor.
And he had less than three minutes remaining.
"Damn it all!" He yelled, furious. He just couldn't get to the eighth floor. Each and every time, his foot slipped…no matter how hard he tried.
"Demon!" a voice echoed in the shaft around him. Recognizing the sound, the pitch-dark Spartan looked up.
"U'svere!" he yelled, for once truly glad to see the Sangheili. "What are you doing in this God-forsaken place?"
"Rescuing you, Demon," the alien answered. Without a pause, he pulled a small device from his armor that Zeke couldn't make out. A second later, he pressed a button and a rope of pure energy descended the length of the shaft, coming to rest at the Spartan's feet.
"What is this?"
"An Energy Tether, Demon," U'svere answered. "Now hurry! Tie it to your teammate and I shall pull her up."
Ezekiel did as he was told and tied the rope around Victoria, then watched as she was pulled up by the SpecOps soldier. After twenty seconds, she disappeared, and then the rope was thrown back down.
"Can you climb?"
"Of course I can!" Zeke snapped, taking hold of the rope and starting to ascend. He checked the time as he did and saw that they had just under two minutes remaining.
"Hurry, Demon!" The Sangheili shouted. Ezekiel scowled.
"I am!" He said. "Just go without me. I'll catch up!"
"I will not." U'svere said sternly. "I came back for the two of you, and I will not leave with anything less."
After forty seconds of painful climbing, Ezekiel reached the eighth floor and reached his right hand up to the edge of the doorway, gripping it and starting to pull himself up. Suddenly, he felt his right arm give out completely and it began to slide.
"Oh," he said, "oh shit. Hey! U'sve-"
The alien's clawed hand gripped his wrist and pulled him the rest of the way onto the floor.
"You could've waited until I actually fell," Ezekiel joked with a smirk. "It would've been more dramatic."
"I considered it." The Elite said coolly.
Zeke grinned and glanced behind the Sangheili, and then stopped cold.
"What the Hell! You have to be kidding me!"
"What?" Victoria asked as she brushed herself off.
"You wake up now? Now? Why the Hell couldn't you have woken up two minutes ago?"
"You may fight later, Demons." U'svere said. "Right now, we must go. There is an exit on this floor, but-"
"It's not an exit!" Victoria said. "It's a place for shipments to be dropped off. It's nothing but a door on the side of the plateau! We'll go right into the ocean!"
"It's better than staying here with the nukes." Ezekiel scowled. "Lead the way."
U'svere nodded and took off through the complex. Victoria followed almost effortlessly, but Zeke had to grit his teeth and push himself just to keep up. He glanced at the time, which now read around forty seconds.
"It's this way!" The Sangheili shouted as they ran through a doorway into another room. "That's it!" He pointed to a large, sliding steel door at the end of the room.
"I've got it." Victoria said, dashing in front of him and gripping one side of the door. In three seconds, she had it pulled open wide. Ezekiel could see nothing but bright blue sky on the other side.
"What now?" Zeke said, suddenly wondering how well he'd swim with one leg and one arm.
The SpecOps Commander clicked his mandibles. "You have to trust me, Demon." He said proudly, and ran for the door. Victoria shrugged and followed, and Zeke did the same.
He leapt out into the open air and was stunned by how bright the sun was shining. Below him, he could see nothing but ocean and rocks. He started to fall and glanced around. Victoria was glancing back and forth nervously, but the Elite was perfectly calm.
"How are you so damned ca-"
SMACK!
Ezekiel fell onto an invisible floor and worked to pry himself from it. Feeling around, he could tell that whatever he was on was smooth and rounded at the top.
Suddenly, the invisible floor shimmered and revealed its true colors: green and grey. A second later, the full Separatist Phantom was in plain view.
From the side, Ezekiel heard Samuel's voice. "Are you guys coming in, or what?"
"I can't believe we made it." Victoria said as she sat down in a corner of the ship. Ahrmonro made the equivalent of a human smile, clicking his mandibles, and turned to Samuel.
"I do not wish you to believe that the Sangheili are in the habit of abandoning their allies when a situation gets to its lowest point." The Field Master said. "I did have a plan of action, and I would not have left if U'svere had not volunteered to stay behind."
The Spartan nodded. "I understand, Field Master." He said. "No apology is necessary." The human turned to U'svere. "You saved their lives. Thank you."
"Yes, thank you!" Victoria said.
Ezekiel scoffed. "I owe you one, Commander." He nodded his head.
"That's the closest thing you'll ever get to a "thank you" from Ezekiel." Samuel said with a sigh.
The other one, Blaine, chipped in, "he's an ass."
"So," another of the Spartans, Jason, interrupted, "what now?"
"Now," the brown-armored leader said, "we go home." Suddenly, he did something that surprised Ahrmonro. "You wanna come with us?"
"Lunch is on me." Zeke said before the Elite could answer.
"Now that's a "thank you" if I've ever heard one!" Landon shouted. Ahrmonro turned to U'svere, who shrugged his shoulders, much like the humans did.
"I believe we have time for a stop." He said.
Author's Notes: Well, that's the end of the Los Angeles segment! I hope everyone liked it as much as I enjoyed doing (most of) it, lol. Anyways, in the reviews for this chapter, I would appreciate it if you could give me an "overall" take on the L.A. segment. What you liked, maybe what you didn't care for so much. Maybe enemies you'd like to see more of. I don't know. It'll help me with the last segments. Thanks a lot!
Also, as a final note: I will be taking the next two weeks to get chapters for the next segment written. I may or may not post before that time, but, at the latest, the next one will be up by the 25th. I know, it's a ways off, and I hope not to need that much time, but starting a brand new segment is tough, and I've got some sweet stuff to introduce to you all that I need to make sure is flawless. So, if I get stuff up before then, great. If not, expect the first by that Friday, and then expect two chapters a week for a couple weeks after that while I use what I'll have worked on. Thanks again for your patience and for your reading and reviews!
P.S. - Just as an ending "teaser," the next segment will involve three major things:
(1) Space-Travel and a Covenant Armada
(2) A Prophet
(3) The UNSC's ship that was alluded to in Chapter 32. "It's gonna be BIG!"
Anyways, adios everybody! Later!
- Raptor