Double Update Weekend! Yay! Enjoy all!

...

The awaiting Spartan was picked up soon after she let out the flare. Once onboard, Faye sat in the seat, holding Dove's shell, which hasn't stopped vibrating and closed her eyes. She figured she would get a small power nap in before having to explain that she was the only one present from Operation: Uppercut. It was not a conversation that she looked forward to. One, it might out her on how she really feels about Sebastian. Two, she doesn't want herself to fall from her perch, which she was very close to doing at the moment. How Faye has felt more alive in… her eyes opened… it's almost been a month?! Time flies when you are with someone who actually means a lot to their significant other. Not that I'm saying we're… dating… by any means.

However, she wanted Dove to wake up. The urgency of the Shell's vibrations meant that Dove had something to say but wasn't physically able to. While the Pelican was moving, Dove's shell was vibrating at almost a constant pace, and a few moments later it died down. This prompted Faye to say, "Pilot, is there anything in the area?"

"Reports have shown that an anomaly crashed into the planet's surface. The Covenant have reported having fired two plasma glassing beams. They weren't high in intensity, they were more… pinpointing a target," the pilot said. "Let me guess, you're interested."

Faye let out a dry chuckle, "Oh, it's not me who is interested. It's the little one that I've been protecting." Faye looked down at the shell, already feeling the vibrations intensify. "Yeah, pilot, make way to the anomaly. It shouldn't be a long detour." The pilot acknowledged and made the swing around, the vibration steadily increasing as they got closer. Dove's optic was starting to blink faster and Faye could see that this was the right call.

Dove was literally going to explode if something doesn't happen. An exaggeration, but she really wants to explain everything to Faye, how he was still alive, however, she couldn't because she was still trapped. While Dove was flying around in her mind, and an image of the Traveler appeared across her neural sensors. Dove stopped. It's here. If Dove could cry, then she would. Soon after, she felt a blanket of warmth covering her as her optic brightened. Even Dove knew that she was on the verge of becoming a wandering Ghost. Having been separated, Dove held onto the remnants of her Guardian, their bond was weakening, and soon, she may not even feel it at all. Her core had basically wrapped around the last bits of his soul that she could still feel and refused to let them go. She knew he was alive, and it would only get better if she saw him again.

Dove's shell stopped vibrating, which caused major concern to radiate from Faye. What eased her concern was the fact that Dove's optic was blinking much more than before. A small sigh of relief escaped her. Her fingers caressed the shell in a kind, loving gesture. Faye can see why Sebastian cares for her so much. Who would do harm to such an innocent little thing?

The pilot's voice snapped Faye out of her trance, "Good news, the excavation teams had just arrived and have started setting up. The only thing they are worried about is the Covenant firing another shot. From what I can see, it isn't that big. Maybe about a story tall, and about seven feet wide."

Faye didn't recognize anything about this anomaly, however, someone else did. "B-Bring me t-to it," the voice croaked. Faye immediately snapped her gaze down to see Dove, looking back at her.

"Dove…" Faye's voice was soft, quivering, and just filled with happiness. The shock was palpable to both of them, "You're back."

"I am," her optic emoted a smile, but it quickly went away as she continued, "T-The shard. I n-need to be n-near it," Dove quivered as the Pelican was set down. Faye winced as she stood up, but once she got moving, she could go for a bit. Most of the onsite UNSC personnel were surprised when they saw Faye.

"A Spartan? Not to be rude, but why are you here? You look like hell," they commented.

Faye didn't say anything besides, "What are your primary findings on this anomaly?" the Spartan questioned, ignoring the other comments. Faye had her own questions about this but chose not to say any of them out loud.

"No one can even approach it. It halts every attempt to get close." Faye limped right by the scientist as they shouted, "I know you are a super soldier, but even you can't get through it!" Good thing I don't plan on getting past it.

The Spartan whispered to the Ghost, "This is a piece of your Traveler, isn't it? The being that brought you to life, which allowed..."

All she heard back was a weak whimper then a faint, "Y-Yes." Both females knew who she was referring to. A small pained cry erupted from Dove, "I can't believe i-it's here. P-Please, bring me to the shard." To Dove, it was funny that only feeling this shard felt like the whole Traveler.

Faye ignored the chatter about what Dove is, it doesn't concern them. No one has ever seen something like her before, so it would be obvious that they would obsess over her. She stopped right before the massive crater that the Covenant laser created. In the middle of the carter lied this shard. It seemed that the entire crater was the barrier. Faye put her free hand not holding Dove to feel the aforementioned barrier, it edged to the first dip of the crater. However, Faye put Dove next to the barrier and it opened, only wide enough to let Dove in. Dove immediately floated away from Faye's hand, feeling lighter than before. She almost fell out of the air multiple times before she made it in front of the shard.

What does it want from me, Dove thought to herself as she took in this shard of her creator. What she didn't expect was the shard's energy to reach out and gently pick up Dove's shell, as she almost settled on the ground. It felt like warm hands cocooned her and she let out a content sigh. The warmth transferred from the metaphorical hands to her. The Light gave her a boost, and with that boost, she searched for her Guardian. It turns out, he was closer than she thought. "He's on Reach again?! He escaped, and he… oh no… I need to find him!" she shouted once she was released from the gentle hold. No one heard her, so she was thankful for that. Her shell twisted as she glanced behind her to see Faye, no doubt with a questioning gaze. Within seconds, she took scans of the immediate area, in case they ever need to come back and flew right to Faye. She exited the same way she entered and quickly disappeared back into the module, which remained undamaged. She then whispered, "We need to go, don't ask questions. I'm still trying to comprehend it. I have some things to tell you."

The Spartan turned to the Pelican pilot, who came to see all the commotion. It was a once in a lifetime chance. "Pilot, we need to go, continue your primary directive." Faye then turned to the excavation team. "Keep this place secure, if that barrier is still up, only two people can get through it. The one you all just witnessed, and one more who is currently indisposed at the moment. We will come back, once we can get him to arrive." With that, Faye turned and limped back to the Pelican and sat back down.

The excavation team just stared at the Spartan in awe. They normally are going to just ignore her and try to get by it anyway, so Faye just shook her head and waited for the rumbling engines to start up again. Once they were in the air, "So what is it that you wanted to tell me?"

"Sebastian is alive and on Reach!" Dove blurted out.

"What?!"

Sebastian woke, feeling well-rested, all things considered. His Light was burning inside him, wanting out. The Void was something he never really wanted, but now that he has it, he doesn't want to let it go, and he doesn't know what part scares him more. The Void flashed in his eyes, and while he couldn't see it, he could feel it. Sebastian felt as if there was another person inside him. He shivered violently as a chill ripped up his spine. As soon as they died down, the door opened. The Huragok was there, along with three others of its kind. They all chirped and the Void was deeming them all as non-hostile entities. Well, they better be, considering they did save me, multiple times. Can't say I'll miss the feeling of my ribs being repaired right before my eyes.

Since they never bothered to strap him down again once he fell asleep, it makes it easier to escape, and that means less resistance. While he doesn't want to kill all of the Covenant he sees, he may not have a choice. One would think that morals wouldn't be apart of it, but it comes down to it, he will take out anyone who would stand in his way. Sebastian looked to the table across the room, all of his knives laid on the table. Surprised they didn't take it to their labs and test them. Good, because that would warrant me killing them.

His cloak and helmet laid there as well, in great condition. Sebastian's blue eyes narrowed, these were pretty screwed up before. The Huragok spectating him were watching in earnest. "Thank you," he whispered, not knowing if they actually heard him. A few chirps and warbles were heard, making Sebastian smile softly. His helmet was repaired and his cloak was sort of fixed. The rose patch remained and he couldn't help but run his fingers over it, suddenly feeling sad. One of the Huragok quickly nudged his side before, in lack of a better term, cuddling with him. Sebastian let out a small hmm to thank them.

However, he wasn't planning on sticking around. He started sheathing his knives back in their respective places, he allowed the Void to use the arm to help fasten his cloak. Much harder with only one hand. Much to his surprise, the Void fire did not burn the material nor did it take over… yet. Once he got that on, he grabbed his helmet and slipped it on, the hiss resonating in his ears. He pulled his hood over his head and readied himself. Something tells him that this won't be easy.

The Void took its chance and influenced his body. Sebastian was well aware of what was going on, it didn't mean he liked it. As soon as he stepped out of the room, the alarms blared. If Sebastian had to guess, he would say as long as a Sangheili was with him, the alarms wouldn't go off. What Sebastian didn't expect was the same Huragok, wrapping a tentacle around his arm and dragging him along. In reality, it was trying to point him to a place of escape, the escape pods. Sebastian decided he had nothing else to lose, the Void surging him forward. Even with the alarms going off, it seemed that the Huragok knew the paths that would avoid most of the Covenant, but that doesn't mean he won't encounter anyone. Sebastian held a knife in his actual hand, while his void arm pulsed with power.

In Sebastian's eyes, he was being guided, it felt like every one of his natural instincts were enhanced, his vision sharper, his hearing finely attuned, and his breathing slower yet effective. His heart rate is at levels of Spartans, around sixty beats per minute.

Throughout the ship, multiple Covenant squads were being dispatched to apprehend Sebastian, and the latter was going to make sure that it wasn't going to happen. The first squad Sebastian ran into was a Grunt squad. With blinding speed, the Grunts were injured, but not dead. He was trying to get out without trying to murder the whole ship. In this war, he tries to not go unhinged. The moment he does, it won't be a pretty sight. He only justifies his kills in self-defense, so if they try to attack and kill him, then he'll retaliate. Considering the whole ship is after him, a few of the Covenant may die in the process.

While he could try to sabotage the ship, Sebastian fears that it may not be enough. With all the ships these Covenant have, one lost ship will mean nothing to them. He would have to take out the entire Covenant fleet, and that would be a daunting task for a lone Guardian. The Huragok wrapped a tentacle around his normal arm and gently pulled him along.

He encountered more squads and only killed when their intent was plainly obvious. One of the squads even got lucky with a Needle shot to his leg, but he just pulled it out and used the needle to stab the perpetrator, it was necessary, in Sebastian's mind. They most likely had orders to not kill him, and they ignored them, just wanting to eviscerate the 'Demon'. Sebastian felt eyes on him and turned to see a camera. It wasn't really obscure, but Sebastian knew that Thel 'Vadamee was watching his every move, and probably could easily prevent him from escaping, but he hasn't sent Hunters after him. A ship full of Covenant, surely Hunters would be on the ship. He could feel his eyes burn violet at the camera. The Hunter turned around and noticed the Void flames left behind in his wake and before he could feel anything, Sebastian shut his eyes tightly and moved on.

Shaking his head, he continued through the hallways, following the Huragok, engaging Covenant squads as they came. Soon enough, they were at the cargo hold, a strange place to be. Without warning, the Huragok shoved him into a pod. Sebastian turned, wanting to fight them on it, but with the Void influencing his body, it forced him to stay. Sebastian took the opportunity to look to see escape pods, and then realized that he was in one, and they weren't coming with him. His voice slightly echoed as he pleaded, "Come with me."

The Huragok slowly shook their heads and sealed the pod.

Throughout this entire ordeal, Thel remained calm. In fact, he was allowing this. He knew that they would never get the full extent of his abilities while cooped up. He ordered his Guards to not stand by his cell. No one dared to question the Commander. Some even noticed that Thel was smirking. Most of the crew on the bridge caught on to his plan and allowed it. A warrior indeed, Thel said to himself. An interesting thing to note was that he was not aiming to kill everyone who crossed his path, merely wound them so they couldn't follow. This 'Seb' character was slowly gaining his respect, something he doesn't give out easily. The five rare expectations are the females on his ship, whom he ordered to not intervene. Khaso was the most annoyed by this. All she wanted was to skewer Sebastian on her blade, repeatedly; her bloodlust knows no bounds. Thel withheld a laugh at her expense.

Back in the cargo hold, the Huragok chirped before pressing coordinates to the unexplored territory for both the UNSC and the Covenant. It also took the liberty of scrambling the pod, making its signal seem like debris, or garbage, in this case. Sebastian, now that the Void dissipated, was too far in a state of exhaustion to even formulate words. The launch sequence was already initiated and by the time Sebastian could fully comprehend it, he was floating away from the Seeker of Truth and falling fast, back to Reach. Back to her. Back to them.

The worst part of it all… he didn't get to thank the Huragok who risked their lives for him.

An unidentified object passed through the air space of a well-hidden UNSC firebase. They have these set up all over Reach in places even the Covenant wouldn't dare come near to. "Uh, sir. We have Covenant inbound!" Everyone in the station stopped and had looks of fear painted across their faces. For good reason too.

The commanding officer looked at the corpsman, "How many?"

"That's the thing, sir. It is only one pod," he replied. "I would say it was a scouting party, but normal Covenant scouting parties are much larger than this. I would advise extreme caution, sir."

"Agreed. Send our scouts out there to investigate, have the snipers cover them on the east and west sides," the Commander said pointing to spots on the corpsman's map. The south and north flanks can be covered by the party, but I leave the discretion to them."

"Sir, yes sir," he said before going for the PA system. "Charlie Delta squads one and two report to the Command Center."

Soon after, around fifteen people, male and female, all stood at attention. "We have a Covenant reading. Your orders are to investigate and only engage if you are spotted and the threat is deemed hostile, understood?"

"Sir, yes sir!" they all replied in unison before making headway to the armory and grabbing their gear. Without much conversation, they loaded up and headed out to investigate.

In all of the times Sebastian was trapped in a small space, he at least knew what buttons to push and how to get out of there. In this Covenant pod, all the buttons were foreign and oddly placed, so naturally, he pressed all of the ones he could at least make out before the sound of hissing and the front cover popped off. Sebastian had to squint in order to see, the sun of all things was blinding him. Sebastian stumbled out of the pod before going to his knees. His head was spinning and he needed to get his priorities straight. He was going to pass out soon.

Sebastian felt pressure in his head, everything was swarming through his head, he was struggling to remember what had just transpired, but one goal was brought to mind. He had to find her. He had to find them and make sure they were alright. Traveler only knows what Dove is going through, even what Faye is going through. Where are they?

Once he stood up, he willed himself to go forward and he would not stop until he could find them or at least get back to them before he actually drops dead. He must have lost focus before he stumbled again, and caught himself. His mind felt like soup. A soup that could leak out of his head if given the chance. The physical strains on his body have reached its max, because after a few days, or what seemed like a few days, of torture made him not even register his surroundings. It felt like all of his senses were nullified. His knives were the polar opposite of his senses, but that won't do him good without the former in tip-top shape.

He didn't even realize that he had fallen over until he felt his helmet hit the ground. His vision blurred and he slumped and he just knew he was not in any sort of condition to even move; much less stand. If he couldn't even walk, how could he even know where to search?

A voice was heard and it was muffled but he could make out, "Do we know anyone by that name?" Sebastian was delirious because, after his experience, he would take the sweet release of death over this.

"I've already run a search, no matches, so whoever it is, this person needs to find them, or it could be a hallucination," and it was then that Sebastian had realized he was mumbling 'Faye' constantly.

Right before his vision failed him, he felt hands under his arm, and stump, and legs and then he felt himself being lifted and taken away. He wanted to fight but his body demanded rest and his whole being slumped to the side, letting his vision and his mind finally blackout.

"What do you mean, Dove? Are you telling me he escaped?!" Faye said exasperated. That means if he escaped, he's on the planet. We have to find him.

"That's exactly what I'm saying. The connection between us was really weak, and when the Traveler saved me, it whispered to me..." she trailed off. Dove hesitated to say this, but she needed to swallow that 'lump in her throat' and just say it. "He has acquired the powers of the Void."

Faye stopped, "Does that mean he…"

"He very well could be, without a Ghost to help settle, it could have adverse effects, but I know he has a strong will, so he will make it through this. Trust me on that. I've got years and years of backlogs on examples of his will. If anyone can get past it, he can. The fact that he escaped has to mean something. I am just worried about what kind of damage they inflicted on him," Dove said timidly, revealing her worries about when they reunite.

"For the time I've known him, he has displayed that he is perfectly capable of handling himself, and this time is no different," while her words sounded uncaring, they were anything but. They were to hide the building emotion she has, and Dove knew it.

"I don't know how he escaped, but I'm just glad he did," Dove sighed before going silent.

"Don't you know where he is? Isn't that something you can do?" Faye asked boldly.

"It isn't echolocation if you are wondering. I just feel his presence, but I don't know if he feels me. I can feel it constantly, but he would have to actively search for our connection. Right now, it's humming for me, meaning he's out cold, but he isn't freaking out. So, he must have escaped and passed out, but since he hasn't had a major temper flash, he's safe for now," Dove hummed as she spoke, trying to actually locate him. The one time she wants it to actually work like that.

Faye scoffed softly before radioing Kat, "Noble Two? It's Noble Six, any updates?"

The response was immediate, "No, but we did hear you stopped at the anomaly, anything you want to say for yourself?"

"Dove's fine, she really needed to visit it. Turns out, it was something of hers," Faye said with genuine optimism. "I'll have to explain it when we meet up."

Kat almost dropped the call because she didn't want to believe that Faye had actually spoken positively. Normally, it's a neutral statement or something vaguely positive, only one's interpretation could make it positive. "Sorry, I'm just acknowledging the fact you said something positive."

"I'm not that bad, am I?" Faye teased, a small smile playing at her lips.

"You're worse."

"In other news, Seven is still alive, and on Reach," Faye dropped the bomb on them.

"Since when?!" Kat exclaimed through the radio. Faye swears she heard something crashing in the background. However, it still doesn't feel complete without Sebastian or Jorge. The latter's dog tags rest in one of her pouches and it feels like it was burning a hole in said pouch.

"I only knew about it as of five minutes ago, Kat, and trust me, you aren't the only one who is surprised," Faye whispered. I really want to know how he escaped. What happened to him on that ship? Wait, what condition is he in? Dove may have said that he's calm and passed out, but what if… Faye's thoughts were cut short by the clinking of Dove's shell against her armor. "I'll see you soon, sister," and Faye cut the link. Kat, meanwhile, was left in a frenzy.

"Hello? I was trying to get your attention since you spaced out; you were thinking about him, weren't you?" Dove asked smugly. Faye was delighted to see that her spunk hasn't gone away, even with all this. "You don't need to worry. Ever since the Traveler gave me more Light, I have an increased read on his emotions, only until I get back to him. Currently, he's resting, thinking about us, if we are safe," Mental 'aw' moment, Dove thought. "It'll wear off within hours of our reuniting. My question for you, Faye, what are you going to do about what he said in the message?"

Faye thought about his message, where he… oh right… he admitted his feelings for me. For once in her lifetime, she didn't have a solid answer, "I… I don't know?" The words came out as a question, rather than a statement.

"So, you're telling me that you don't know? You're telling me that after my Guardian poured his heart out to you, a Spartan, about how he feels, you don't know? After all this time, after all the side glances at him, after all the concern you have for him, and after all of the pent-up sexual tension that you two have, but won't act on, for good reason mind you… You. Don't. Know?! Come on!" Dove's eye was starting to turn red, angry that she won't just admit it. Swallow that Spartan pride, missy, and tell him how you feel! He's as emotionally starved as you are! Every Guardian, and Spartan, need cuddles sometimes, but it means more if it is with the right person.

Faye had to admit, the red-eye is actually quite intimidating when directed at her. The Spartan swallowed the lump in her throat and looked right at the Ghost, her voice small, "I don't know if I'm good enough for him considering my file..."

Silence.

The only sound heard was the Pelican's engines. "That's what you are worried about? I've seen the glances he throws at you. I've listened to his thoughts, only the ones he doesn't consciously think about protecting, and he's had trouble outright admitting it to you. He doesn't care about your file, he only cares about you!" Dove's voice squeaked. "You both have some confidence issues, which is kinda cute when it's obvious; you two would work well together, both on and off the battlefield."

Faye didn't have many words to say about this, so she said nothing else at all. That was until she had a thought, "What do you mean 'off the battlefield?' And he also cares about you."

Dove snickered, "Oh, nothing of importance, my dear Faye. He cares about me platonically, because that is what we are designed to be. There have been some… less than desirable relationships between Ghost and Guardian, but those are few and far between."

Silence once again ensues until the pilot informs them that they are arriving at a make-shift base, a few dozen miles outside New Alexandria. The skies were clear of Covenant and once the Pelican set down, Faye let an exasperated sigh before standing. Since the adrenaline has long since worn off, Faye was feeling the full extent of her injuries, especially her leg. She almost didn't step off the Pelican in slight fear of falling. It's one thing for a Marine to fall, but a super-soldier, who was built for war; it would mean the end of the world in the eyes of some.

On the bright side, Faye noticed Kat, Carter, Emile, and Jun at a doorway, most likely the entrance. She looked to Dove, who clinked against her visor before disappearing back into the module. Kat had noticed Faye and her physical appearance, and well, she looked terrible. Her chest piece looked like it was about to fall off, her shoulders and arms were scratched to hell, and her leg armor had massive dents in them. Once Kat was in within earshot, she let Faye know, "Do you know how horrendous you look?"

Faye looked down and seemed to finally notice her armor was in serious need of replacement and repair. Sucking a breath between her teeth, she agreed. "Could you, uhm, help me walk? I've had biofoam break on my leg, twice, during Newport."

Kat grabbed Faye by the arm and basically fireman carried her over to the rest of Noble Team. Not actually, but it was pretty close. Once she was able to stand, Carter was immediately on her, "So, tell us what happened."

Faye only needed one clarification, "Where do you want me to start? Before or after the Supercarrier's destruction?"

Sebastian's eyes rolled from the back of his head to actually in front of him. He felt drugged like someone tried to make him OD on morphine or something. His eyes opened and felt immediate nausea. The good thing about not eating, you don't vomit. The bad thing, the reflex still works so he just turned to the side and dry-heaved. His eyes watered, but thankfully nothing came out. Well, duh, that's what dry heaving is. His helmet was on, but once his vision cleared, he looked around to see he was in a medical ward of sorts. His armor remained untouched. The door swung open and Sebastian was immediately on guard. It turns out that it was a petite brunette. Must be a medic. "Oh, you're up," she said, eyes wide.

"Hmm,"Sebastian hummed. He looked to see his arm have a saline solution in a drip. "I assume this was because I was severely dehydrated?"

The nurse looked surprised that he spoke to her, "Y-Yes. They uh, wanted to know when you woke up."

"As long as I can leave as soon as possible, fine. But if I'm going to get babied, then that's a hard pass from me. I need to get back to Noble Team," Sebastian was about to say 'Faye', but he was quick enough to not stutter.

"Regulation requires-"

"Please spare me with that," Sebastian begged. "Where I am from, regulations are sorta lax… that and we mostly ignore them". Sebastian reached to take his helmet off but was given a warning. With an accusing tone, "You all tried to take my helmet off, didn't you?"

"We tried, yes, but that was because we were going to put you on oxygen," the nurse responded. Oh, so they were actually being considerate.

"Here's a question I should have asked; Where am I?" Sebastian inquired.

"That's a question for the Commander," the nurse, whose ID said her name was 'Serena'.

"Well, Serena, let's go ask the Commander shall we?" Sebastian asked as Serena gave a look of 'how did he?' and Sebastian tapped the left side of his chest before ripping out the IV and swinging his legs over the side. He can deal with the wound later because pulling an IV out with one arm is a lot more difficult than one would think.

Sebastian also realized that his bruises weren't letting up, but he powered through the pain. Until he got back to Dove, the pain was his constant friend.

Serena's protests of getting up fell on deaf ears as he opened the door. Sebastian walked outside the wing to see a bunch of Marines doting over something. Upon closer inspection, he noticed it was his knives. No wonder why I felt lighter. One of the Marines was holding it like a throwing knife, but when they pulled back, it flung out of his hands, heading directly for Sebastian. The Marines looked where the knife went and they saw a not-so impressed Guardian, holding the knife by the blade, mere inches from his face. "What gave you the right to touch my things?" his voice angry, and about two seconds away from snapping.

They said nothing as he waltzed by them, grabbed all the knives off the table, except for one. It was actually his favorite knife that was missing. He side-eyed one of them scooting off towards the exit. "If you know what's good for you, you'll hand me that knife, and trust me, you are the last people I want to hurt."

"What are you going to do about it?" one of them said, quite bravely, might he add.

Sebastian's eyes under the helmet flickered, the Void was angry, but Sebastian kept a wary eye on his emotions. His left arm formed the Void arm, and the Marines stepped back in horror. "You all could be dead in the next ten seconds. I've had a rough couple of days, and it all started with destroying that Supercarrier." Sebastian's voice bounced between the echo and the normal version.

"Wait, you were apart of Operation: Uppercut?" the same Marine said.

"Yes, now, give me the knife before I give you a knife," Sebastian's voice was a full-on echo. The Marine timidly approached him and handed him his favorite knife. Once Sebastian sheathed the knife, the Void dissipated and the Guardian exhaled a breath. "Thank you. Now, I need to talk to your CO." His breathing was heavier than he thought, if this continued, he might just end up on that bed again.

"Right here, G7," a familiar voice said. One that Sebastian thought he would never hear again.

Sebastian recoiled in shock, "Colonel Holland?"

The old man chuckled, "Yes, that's me. Let's talk in the Command Center, shall we?"

Sebastian nodded before looking at the Marines and chuckling as they subconsciously took a step back. It wasn't his intention to make them fear him, but that knife is pretty important. A last memento. He would be damned not to lose it.

Once inside the Command Center, Sebastian looked around to see no one else, "Is this all some sort of elaborate plan to kill me? I've had enough dances with death without actually meeting it today, so let's get on with it."

"What actually happened to you? From what the grapevine tells me, you were on board a Covenant flagship," Holland said. Sebastian noticed the wrinkles were much more prominent than before. The stress of war gets to everyone. Sebastian reached under his neck and pressed a release, letting the hissing cut through the air. Lowering his cloak, he pulled his helmet off wit reveal his face. He was pretty sure that Holland has seen his face, so he wasn't that worried. His hair was matted in several places and he probably looked like death, ironic.

"I was, yes. As you can see, I managed to get out," Sebastian put his helmet down and gestured to his form.

"What did they acquire from you? Anything related to the UNSC?" Holland's voice was stern and menacing.

"Thankfully, the UNSC never came up. You are familiar with my abilities, aren't you?" Holland nodded. "Well, the Covenant, specifically the Supreme Commander was very interested and allowed a squad of female Sangheili the honor to 'interrogate' me. It's a miracle that I lived, and to save you time, I'd rather not talk about it right now. However, I have multiple bruises that just won't go away. That can be remedied later."

"Female… Sangheili?" Holland's voice was skeptical, as he should be.

"Apparently, it is only males that are allowed into their army, but I guess they were exceptions," Sebastian shrugged. "It was weird though, while I was on the bridge by order of their commander, they asked me to show them one of my abilities since they have been watching me for some time," seeing Holland's face harden once more Sebastian continued, "I didn't even know they were there, plus we had other priorities. Point being, a beam of Light shot up from the surface and hit me in the chest, allowing me to 'demonstrate' my Gun."

"Speaking of that beam, Sebastian. I've heard reports of a Spartan stopping by, along with an identified object. There was a barrier preventing them from even examining it," Holland pulled up a video feed from the excavation site and Sebastian's jaw hit the floor. So it wasn't a dream.

There in the video was the real shard. Sebastian had his reservations about it existing, but now that was proof. What made his heart soar and fall at the same time was seeing Faye and Dove. It looked like they were speaking and then it showed Faye holding out her hand and Dove passed easily through the barrier. Does that mean… "I have to go there, and if not there, I have to find them." His eyes went right to Holland, a new determination in those blue irises of his.

"I was hoping you would say that, Sebastian. I have a Pelican prepped to take you to the firebase where Noble Team is currently residing at. Knowing Noble One, he is probably talking to Noble Six now about what happened at Uppercut."

The sudden reminder of Jorge's fate made Sebastian's optimistic mood plummet faster than the Collapse. "I offered to do it for him, the slipspace drive firing, I could have, but from what I learned about Spartan-IIs is that you can't change their mind. Not when they have it set on something."

"That is true. We'll all miss him," the silence stretched between the two gentlemen.

"So, about that Pelican ride?" Sebastian asked lowly.

"Before you go, one last clarification. They were only interested in you?" Holland had to make sure.

"Yep, they did get a good look at my most recent addition," and Sebastian let his Void arm form. His voice quivered as it echoed, "This is something I need my Ghost for." then it disappeared and Sebastian blinked rapidly to clear his vision.

"My last question, then you can go, how will your experience affect your mental state?" Sebastian winced at the question, but it was only fair since he was a prisoner on board a Covenant ship not too long ago. It would give anyone PTSD.

"I… don't really have an answer. I already lived through one traumatic event, so my senses are slightly numb to the trauma. That doesn't mean I won't be affected. I was sort of recovering from the first one," Sebastian gestured to his missing arm. "This one will add on it to it. I am just hoping that I never have to experience it again," Sebastian said blankly before putting his helmet back on. "Point me to the Pelican, Colonel. The fight is not over yet."

...

So it probably felt like too many transitions, but let's be real. This is a filler chapter compared to others. While I try to make all my chapters have plot points go from A to B. sometimes, that doesn't work.

On the plus side, I have their meet up in mind, but I may also hold off on Chapter 18 for now, as I wanted to so something special for this upcoming Friday. While I'm not in a relationship, at this time, that doesn't mean I can't do some sappy romance shit.

The special will NOT be apart of the story but will be added as a Chapter. Call it a bonus, and it will be very short. Like, four times fewer words. Just something small.

TL;DR: Valentine's Day Special outside of story's canon. Expect on Friday sometime, if I'm not swamped with College work.

Have a good day/evening/night!

-Horus