Hello again, everyone, and welcome back to my Halo - Mechwarrior/Battletech crossover. Just to let you know, this chapter will be getting some serious updates and revises over the weekend. My memory was getting hazy, and I had to refresh it with information from the official Halo wiki in order to get the details right. Either way, thank you for your patience and support, and I will continue to impress. As always, leave a review and enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own the Halo or MechWarrior/BattleTech franchises. They are the respective properties and trademarks of Microsoft Game Studios, 343 Industries, Bungie, FASA Corporation, FASA Interactive, Catalyst Game Labs and Piranha Games Inc. Any material original to the franchises belongs to their respective developers and publishers. Any material not original to the franchises is of my own invention. I do not own any music listed in each chapter. Any music listed belongs to it's original composers and/or artists.
Covenant Holy City High Charity
Near Inner Sanctum
February 16th, 2553
Moving up the ramp towards the exit, Chief, 'Ravamee and Osman prepared themselves for combat against the Flood. Opening up a container on his Battle Armor, Osman tossed to Chief an M45 PPR, as the M48 Rattler wasn't effective against the Flood if it wasn't loaded with HEI munitions. At the same time, 'Ravamee activated his Advanced Energy Sword, causing a two pronged energy blade to appear from the dumbbell shaped hilt that he had in one of his armored hands.
As they moved up, Chief saw a massive blip on his sensors. "Watch out," he shouted, backing up a moment later, with Osman and 'Ravamee doing the same. As soon as they did, a Phantom came into view, but it was flying erratically, as though a raw recruit that had no training whatsoever was piloting it. Moments later, it smashed into the platform, flipping end over end before coming to rest near the door, which had narrowly avoided destruction. Soon enough, Flood Combat Forms began to pour out of the vehicle, screeching and roaring as they began to look for more lifeforms to infect. Spotting Chief and the others, they roared, charging towards the three Elementals.
If the Flood's goal was to overwhelm the Elementals through sheer force and numbers, then they would've had better luck trying to stop Halo from spinning. As soon as the Flood were close enough, Chief and Osman opened fire, raining down phased plasma bolts onto the Combat Forms, while 'Ravamee, Energy Sword in hand, charged forwards, slashing and slicing through any Combat Forms in his way. Moving up to support him, Chief and Osman began running up, using their Jump Jets to get over the Flood. It was a frighteningly efficient tactic, one that hearkened back to the days when the Inner Sphere first invented Battle Armor, and began devising terrifying new tactics with the technology. By jumping over the crowd of Flood, Chief and Osman had a clear, unobstructed line of sight on the Combat Forms.
It was extremely effective against the Flood, as they couldn't jump the height that Chief and Osman could in their Battle Armor. Combat Forms roared and screeched as phased plasma munitions tore through their bodies, penetrating what little armor they had, biological and otherwise, while flash cooking their infested flesh. One Combat Form screamed loudly, just as it exploded from the buildup of steam that resulted when it's insides were flash-cooked.
If Chief and Osman were terrifying when it came to their Jump Jet tactics, then 'Ravamee was outright shocking with his own tactics. Roaring loudly, the Elite closed up his helmet before he plunged into battle, slicing and cutting through any Flood that stood in his way. An infected Elite attempted to swipe at 'Ravamee with a claw, only to be chopped in half, with both arms severed as well. Spotting a pair of Carrier Forms, he wisely backed up, allowing Chief and Osman to kill the Carrier Forms, and the Infection Forms inside, with their plasma rifles.
Moving towards the door, they found that the majority of the Flood that had been on the Phantom had already gone inside, leaving the front area completely vacant. "Looks like they ran off to find more hosts to infect," Osman remarked. "Good thing Battle Armor is fully sealed and rated for vacuum. I do not want any of those Flood Spores to get into my lungs."
"Agreed," Chief replied. "'Ravamee, do you know where we are?"
"I do," the Sangheili Elemental replied. "We're nearing the Prophets private quarters, which they call their 'Sanctum.' We will have to be careful while we are moving through this place. The Flood are probably infesting it right now. They'll use ambush tactics to catch us off guard."
"Agreed," Osman replied. Looking at the Phantom and the door, he said, "You think we can still get inside?"
"The door isn't obstructed," 'Ravamee replied. "We can get inside with ease. We'll have to move fast in order to get through unscathed." With that, all three Elementals went inside, weapons at the ready in the event trouble came along.
Already, Chief could tell that the Flood were making themselves at home, just as Cortana said, as he spotted large fleshy growths on parts of the wall. At the same time they began to enter, his life support system activated, sealing off his suit from the outside environment while positively pressurizing his suit. Looking at his HUD, Chief could see the reason why: Flood Spores were already starting to filter in through the air ducts, not enough to be visible, but enough that the suit had locked itself up.
As they moved inside, Cortana said, "Chief, I did a scan of the area up ahead. It's going to be difficult to navigate with the Flood, but I can direct you to where you need to go. If you get lost, I can put up a helmet waypoint."
"Excellent," Chief replied. "That will make getting off of High Charity much easier."
"Agreed," Cortana replied. "We'll have to come up with a plan to get onto the Forerunner ship that Truth is heading to. I'll continue to dig through the systems and find out where we can get onboard." With that, Cortana fell silent, working silently to find a way to get to the Forerunner WarShip without having to gun their way through thousands of Combat Forms.
As they moved forwards, the trio continued to eliminate any Combat Forms that got close enough to cause a problem. One Combat Form attempted to tackle Osman, only for the Elemental to grab it with his Battle Claw and toss it to the ground, where Osman curb stomped the Infection Form inside. Pulling his boot out of it, he fired his plasma machinegun, permanently killing the creature.
As they moved forwards, Chief began to notice that the Covenant were fighting back as well, as he could see Brutes, Jackals, Grunts, Skirmishers and Drones firing back at Combat Forms. Unfortunately, they were only adding more bodies to the mix, as the Covenant Chief spotted invariably ended up becoming infected, their minds and bodies consumed by the Flood entirely. If we don't move soon, this might happen to us, Chief thought, and he did not want to find out what would happen as a result.
As they moved along, they could hear Truth over the COM. "Shall we allow this Parasite to infest our holy city? Turn High Charity into another one of their wretched hives? No enemy has ever withstood our might. The Flood too shall fail."
"Really," Osman remarked. "The Star League withstood your might, arrogant stravag. If we can fight back and win, then the Flood can too, and they are far more intelligent than you are, even with their lack of finesse in certain areas." Chief merely nodded in agreement.
Moving through another curving corridor, they watched as a group of Covenant forces attempted to fight off a number of Combat Forms that had invaded the place, plasma bolts being flung between the two groups. Staying back, Chief and the others watched as the Flood invariably began to gain ground, infecting each of the aliens before them. One Skirmisher, who had a little more resistance than others, screamed as sickly pale veins crawled over it's head, before it's neck was displaced by the mass of flesh growing underneath it's collar bone. It gave one last scream before it's mind was consumed entirely by the Flood, with it's body following suit moments later.
Opening fire, Chief and the others began taking down the Combat Forms, directing their shots at center mass in order to 'kill' the Combat forms. Once down, they walked up to each corpse and fired their weapons again, incinerating the bodies and preventing them from ever being able to be used again. "What a waste of precious life," 'Ravamee remarked. Osman merely nodded in agreement before they moved on.
Eventually, after passing through a hallway and traveling down a gravity lift, they came to a door, which opened up to a chamber on the other side. The chamber they were entering was massive, stretching long enough to house a Leopard-IV DropShip with room to spare. The chamber was deep enough that Chief could see the beginnings of fog forming at the bottom, with the purple paneled walls gently curving down to meet the bottom of the chamber, which he realized, much to his surprise, was the lower section of the Mausoleum of the Arbiter, though it was now shrouded in fog at this height. Looking up, he could see a tall spire that came up from the bottom of the chamber, before coming to at stop to form a small platform with a tall, purple hued bulge at the top. Light came in from a series of lights, as well as a shaft of light that traveled down from a hole in the ceiling.
Looking up, Chief noticed a series of colored shards of glass. As soon as he saw them, he heard Cortana say, "Chief. Those shards of glass came from all the worlds that the Covenant glassed. Those came from the colonies we lost."
"Arrogant bastards," Osman growled. "As if murdering innocents was not enough; now they have to mock us by putting your worlds up for display here. That is below honorable."
"I agree," 'Ravamee replied. "Such a dishonorable act of spite." Chief merely nodded in agreement, as that was the only response he could come up with in the face of such dishonor.
The Covenant were present here, as well as the Flood, as Chief could see Combat Forms on each of the platforms off in the distance. Walking forwards, he watched as a swarm of Drones flew overhead, completely ignoring them before flying over to attack the Flood with their plasma pistols and Needlers. The Combat Forms responded in kind, firing the weapons their hosts used to use at the Drones.
"Nice chamber," Osman remarked. "How do we cross it, though? Unless there are gravity conveyors built onto these platforms, we will have to go back and find another way through."
"There are gravity bridges built into the sides of each platform," Cortana informed them. "I'm powering one of them up. Use it to make your way over to the door on the other side. It should be open."
Moments later, one of the gravity bridges activated, with a glowing arc of energy forming in the process. Stepping into the gravity bridge, Chief traveled over to the other side, where a group of Drones were engaged with Flood forces on the platform. Firing his M45, Chief quickly terminated the Flood, before switching targets and firing on the Drones, who also fired back at him now that the Flood had been dealt with for the time being. Following along, 'Ravamee and Osman fired their weapons as well, thinning out the horde as they arrived at Chief's location.
Moments later, more Drones appeared out of nowhere, flying towards the group with single minded intensity. Moving back, the Elementals quickly got into cover, using the overhangs built into each platform to fire back, allowing them to keep the Drones out of the alcove they were in. Covering the rear, 'Ravamee kept a watchful eye on the door they were at, ready to cut down any Combat Forms that dared to invade their position.
While prudent, this caution wasn't necessary, as Chief and Osman quickly eliminated the Drones, with the chamber falling silent a few moments later. "Move out," Chief ordered, getting onto the next gravity conveyor. Following him closely, Osman and 'Ravamee got on as well, keeping their eyes open and on their sensors in order to spot any more Flood coming their way. Reaching the other side, Chief terminated a couple Combat Forms before walking forwards, turning on his armor's lights in order to see in the darkness.
Moving up, they entered another curving corridor, but that was about all that was similar to the other corridors that he'd gone though. Now that the Flood were here, it was clear that they were getting set up, as the corridor was completely pitch black, save for the areas that Chief's armor lights were shining, indicating that the power had been cut to this area of the station. Looking around, Chief could see large, pale colored masses of flesh, indicating that the Flood were already starting to grow their own biological material onto the walls and ceilings of the room. At the same time, he watched as the suit's systems registered the massive increase of Flood Spores in the room, with the meter going from yellow to fully red, indicating full blown contamination of the air in the room.
That wasn't all though, as Chief could clearly see. The plants in the planters had been fully assimilated into the Flood's biomass, with the planters being fulled with more Flood growths. The most dangerous part, though, was the fact that there were Combat Forms that were in the room, each one patrolling the area while looking for more hosts to infect.
Moving forwards, Chief was about to fire when one of the Combat Forms turned around and spotted them, roaring loudly as it was brightly lit up by the lights on Chief's helmet. Firing his weapon, Chief terminated the Combat Form, just as several more appeared inside of the room, firing their weapons while others charged forwards. Acting quickly, Chief, Osman and 'Ravamee opened fire as well, killing the Combat Forms before they got close enough to cause any damage. With that out of the way, they continued to move forwards.
. . .
In another part of High Charity, Franklin's brow was furrowed in concentration as he fired on more Covenant units, though it was clear that the Flood were starting to make their appearance as well. Spotting a group of Flood controlling a Wraith, he put an end to their plans with a well placed A-PPC shot, vaporizing a good portion of the tank, along with the Flood that were piloting the Combat Vehicle. Spotting another target, he fired his VS-MPL's, cutting some Flood in half, while causing the walkway ahead of him to come tumbling down to the ground.
They were moving back to the LZ where the Mjolnir's Twin had entered High Charity, as Admiral Chernekno had ordered a full retreat from the station as soon as he got reports of a Flood attack on the station. While heading back, however, Chernenko had ordered him and his Star to rescue as many Sangheilians as he could while heading back. To that end, he had sent a number of Badger-IV IFV's to his location, as each one had enough room to evacuate a small group of civilians.
So far, they had rescued roughly 40 Sangheilians from death at the Brute's hands, as well as infestation at the Flood's hands. A few of the Sangheilians were fully fledged families, each one with a childling, as the Sangheilians called their children. That made getting them out of High Charity all the more important, as the Flood wouldn't hesitate to kill an innocent child.
Some movement in the back of the cockpit drew Franklin's attention to the rumble seat behind him, where a female Sangheili was sitting in the back, clearly fascinated by the controls before her. After saving the hospital from destruction at the hands of the Brutes, Franklin had agreed to have Tilana 'Raomee come with him in his BattleMech so that they could convince the more conservative Sangheilians that the Star League was here to help. Once that had been agreed on, she had come over to the 'Mech and asked for a way up. Franklin, in response, deployed the chain ladder that 'MechWarriors used to get into their 'Mechs while outside of a 'Mech Bay.
That proved to be difficult, as Tilana had a prodigious amount of difficulty getting up the ladder, let alone getting inside. This was due to the fact that, thanks to their digitigrade legs, the knees on a Sangheilian didn't bend backwards; rather, they bent forwards, with the knees jutting out ahead of the torso by a considerable amount. As a result, this prevented Tilana from actually climbing up into the 'Mech. Fortunately, Franklin solved that problem quickly, by having Tilana hold onto one of the rungs of the ladder, while he retracted it into the compartment it was stored at. It was a stopgap solution, but it worked perfectly, as Tilana was able to get inside.
In terms of physical appearance, Tilana was similar to most Sangheilians, but with a few differences. For one, she had a pair of bulges on her armor, indicating the location of her mammary glands. The second was that she was smaller, had wider hips, and her voice, despite being fairly deep, was distinctly feminine. Fortunately, that small size meant that she was able to more comfortably fit into the cramped cockpit of the Nightstar-IV BattleMech
As they moved forwards, Franklin thought he heard something over the COM. Turning to the frequency, he heard a voice say, "To all Sangheilians in the area, this is Imperial Admiral Xytan 'Jar Watrinee. My Phantom has been shot down and we are surrounded by Brute forces on all sides. I am requesting assistance."
"We need to evacuate the Imperial Admiral," Tilana told Franklin, her voice thrumming inside of the cockpit. "If we don't the Brutes will kill him, and if they don't, the Flood will infest him. I do not want to imagine what will happen if the Flood gain access to the store of knowledge inside of his mind."
"Me neither," Franklin replied. Keying his COM, he said, "This is Star Leader Franklin of the SLDF/AFFC, my Lance is heading to your location. We've got IFV's that are still empty and we can evacuate you on our Union-IV DropShip. Be advised, we have civilians with us."
"I understand," 'Jar Watrinee replied. "Make haste, Human. I do not wish to be killed by the Brutes or consumed by the Flood." With that, Franklin changed course and began to move towards 'Jar Watrinee's location.
A few kilometers of travel later, he reached 'Jar Watrinee's location. The Imperial Admiral's Phantom had been shot down by Brute forces, with the vehicle itself landing in a plaza nearby, or at least the Covenant's equivalent of a plaza. The Sangheilians in the plaza were valiantly fighting back, though it was clear that the Brutes were on the verge of overwhelming their position.
Acting fast, Franklin fired off the VS-MPL lasers on his 'Mech, cutting down a group of Brutes while the Firestarter-IV in his Star moved up, firing it's Plasma Machinegun Arrays while firing off it's Advanced Flamers. Brutes screamed and roared as their bodies were torn apart by the fusillade, before being immolated by the plasma fire streaking out ahead of the 'Mech..
Moving around quickly, they spotted enemy vehicles in bound, with a Wraith launching a plasma bolus at Franklin's 'Mech. Moving quickly, Franklin changed position, narrowly dodging the ball of plasma directed at him before retaliating with his A-PPC, tearing apart the enemy vehicle. Hearing weapons fire, Franklin rotated the 'Mech's torso, allowing him to terminate the Brutes on the building.
With all contacts down, Franklin drove the 'Mech over to 'Jar Watrinee's position, just as the Badger-IV IFV's arrived. The wounded were loaded first, with the uninjured getting inside moments later, allowing the IFV's to continue towards the Mjolnir's Twin. Looking at Franklin, Tilana said, "This is where I get out, 'MechWarrior. You've impressed me greatly with your honor in battle. I sincerely hope that we meet again someday."
"Same here," Franklin replied, deploying the chain ladder as soon as Tilana was out of the cockpit. Instead of dropping down, however, Tilana decided to hang on to part of the 'Mech, while the ladder jerked around as someone tugged on it. Retracting the ladder, he was surprised when Xytan 'Jar Watrinee got into the rumble seat of the 'Mech. It was clear, though, that he was almost too big for the rumble seat, as he made a number of grunts and growls as he tried to get comfortable.
"Do you humans always build your vehicles like this," the Imperial Admiral asked, clearly uncomfortable judging from his tone of voice.
"Not always," Franklin replied. "Tilana was able to fit into here quite well. I guess that, since you're so large, you don't have a lot of room to maneuver in here. No offense intended, of course."
"None taken," 'Jar Watrinee replied. "That is an honest assessment. I am, after all, much larger than the average Sangheili." Looking around the cockpit, he asked, "What is this machine, by the way?"
"It's a BattleMech," Franklin replied. "Basically, a giant, robotic war machine that can house more weapons than a Combat Vehicle of the same tonnage. It also holds more ammunition, and it comes fully armored with 15 tons of Kallon UnityWeave Advanced Ferro-Lamellor armor. I'd love to share more with you, but right now, we need to focus on getting the fuck out of High Charity before the Flood say 'hello, we're going to fuck up your city.'" 'Jar Watrinee had to agree, even as the 'Mech began to move forwards toward the DropShip's location.
. . .
"Whoah," Chief shouted as he threw himself backwards, with the clawed arm of a Combat Form barely missing his head as he landed on his back. Firing his weapon, Chief found that it was empty, only for more plasma bolts to fly overhead, killing the Combat Form that had been about to try to kill Chief. Reloading his weapon, Chief was about to get up when Osman hoisted him onto his feet. "Watch it, freebirth," Osman told Chief. "I cannot be around all the time to protect you." Chief nodded in agreement. While Osman had used the word freebirth, it was used in a comradely manner.
Looking around, Chief could clearly tell that the Flood were overwhelming the Covenant forces in the area they were in. Currently, they were in a large chamber that held a number of flora and fauna that had yet to be infected by the Flood. A window in the room showed Chief the large chamber they had originally been in when they had entered the Sanctum, with the room showing more signs that a firefight was ongoing.
That wasn't all that was going on though. Cortana had reported that there was another AI in the system, of a sophistication greater than that of the Star League's AI's, or even herself. So far, she had been focused on delaying the launch of the Forerunner ship, but this new AI was interfering in her attempts to do so. So far, she had succeeded in delaying the launch sequence, but it wouldn't be long until the ship took off, with Truth and his sycophants.
Climbing up a large, earthen ramp, Chief quickly terminated a pair of Combat Forms before terminating another group of Covenant in the area. Spotting another Combat Form, Chief was about to fire when 'Ravamee, charging forwards, sliced it cleanly in half, with both halves of it's body falling away. With all hostiles eliminated, the team continued to move forwards.
As they proceeded through the darkened corridors of the area they were in, Chief could hear the interCOM attempting to work, only to splutter out and cast the entire area into silence once more. The area they were in was also damaged, mostly from weapons fire, as wall and roof panels had been scattered across the floor, revealing damaged components, wiring and other things behind the vermilion colored walls.
Moments later, they heard the interCOM begin working again. Truth came in over the interCOM once again. "The parasite did not defeat the Forerunners… and it shall not defeat us."
Moments later, the Gravemind, angered by the Hierarch's arrogance, growled. "Arrogant creature," it growled. "Your deaths will be instantaneous, while we will suffer the process of infinitude." Osman merely nodded, not out of agreement, but because of the fact that this Gravemind had put Truth in his place.
As they continued through the area, Cortana said, "We're approaching the Hierarchs personal quarters, what they call the Sanctum. Also, be advised, we've got a number of Flood units in the corridors up ahead."
"Noted," Chief replied. "What's the status of the ship's launch?"
"Still ticking down," Cortana replied. "The cyber defenses in this part of the station appear to be quite robust still. I've stalled the launching sequence, but I don't know for how much longer. We're going to have to move quickly if we're going to get aboard that ship." With that in mind, the team continued to move up, navigating around more Flood biomass as they continued towards their destination.
As they moved through the corridors, Chief noticed something that was different. Looking around, he noticed a series of pulsating sacs that were growing on the walls. Some were small, roughly the size of a small crate, while others were large enough to comfortably house a few people. "Be careful," he told the others. "There's another kind of Flood material in here."
"I see it," Osman replied. "I think those are ambush pods that the Flood grew on the walls. If we get too close, they might pop open and disgorge all manner of ugliness into this place." With that in mind, the team continued to move forwards, walking around the massive, fleshy sacs as they continued ahead.
That was when they spotted their first sign of trouble. Entering another corridor, Chief and the others noticed a particularly large mound of Flood biomass that was growing on one of the walls. They were about to continue moving when the mound of Flood biomass began to warp and bend, growing appendages and limbs as a pair of tentacles grew out of it's mouth. Two flat, toeless feet supported the behemoth, as it swelled up in size until it was as tall as an Elemental. Two arms terminated in sharp points, indicating this creature was meant for close quarters combat.
Chief, having fought something similar on Installation 04, immediately recognized the creature. "Flood Pure Form," he shouted. "Don't let it mutate and stay at a distance."
"Rodger that," Osman replied, firing his Plasma Machine Gun while 'Ravamee pulled out his own M45 Plasma Rifle and opened fire. The Tank Form, as people later on called them, began to walk towards them, a bellowing roar coming from it's mouth as it began to close the distance between the group. While it's hide was tough, it wasn't tough enough to withstand a barrage of plasma bolts being hurled at it, as the Tank Form collapsed to the ground a few seconds later, it's body smoking from the multiple impacts. "That is a new record in ugly," Osman remarked, kicking at the dead Pure Form. "You fight something like this back on the first Halo?"
"Yes," Chief replied. "Star Commander Wolverine and I fought against these things while heading through the Library. They're tough and they use powerful blunt force attacks to bludgeon their victims to death. They can also mutate into different forms, of which we've seen three."
"I see," Osman dryly stated. "Well, looks like the Flood are going to have to get a lot more creative if they wish to defeat us. This version is powerful, but it is slow and large, making it a vulnerable target for Elementals like us." Nodding in agreement, Chief and the others moved upwards, continuing to fight through any Flood forces in the way.
Reaching another garden chamber, it was clear that the Flood had already infested the place. Chief could see plants that were in the process of being infected, with many in a state that resembled candle wax that was melting in slow motion. Flood biomass was covering many of the walls, and Flood Spores were fully present, casting a faint fog into the room itself. Combat Forms, Pure Forms and Carrier Forms milled about, seemingly patrolling the area in the event any hosts came around.
Targeting one of the Pure Forms, Osman fired off a missile from his Missile Pods, blasting a Pure Form apart into a dozen, smoking pieces. Whirling around, the Flood Combat Forms closest to the squad were rewarded with bursts of plasma to their chests and limbs, each one going down as the team advanced inside. The Carrier Forms began to waddle towards them, but they were taken out before they could disgorge their vile cargo onto the ground. As they continued forwards, Truth once again said, "Whosoever is gripped by fear, take heed. I am the Prophet of Truth… and I am not afraid. Noble Mercy is here at my side, his wise council ever in my ears."
"Really," Osman remarked. "The stravag is probably an infected corpse by now, or still dead. That is a blatant lie if I have ever heard one."
Right on cue, the Gravemind shut down Truth again. "We exist together now. Two corpses… in one grave." With that, the PA cut off.
Moving forwards, the team quickly pushed through the area, terminating any Flood that got in their way. Reaching the door on the other side, Chief and 'Ravamee sealed it shut, preventing any Flood from following them to where they were at. Moving forwards through the hallway, Chief turned left at Cortana's waypoint, walking through a door at the top of the ramp. Spotting a lift, all three men got on board, with Chief pressing the button to head up
"Looks like the Inner Sanctum," 'Ravamee remarked. "The Hierarchs would come here to discuss matters in private and other policies that might need work. Sometimes they came here to relax as well." Nodding in agreement, Chief proceeded over to a large wall panel, which opened up to reveal an elevator. Getting onto the elevator, he waited until everyone was on the elevator before activating it, with the lift slowly ascending into a larger room.
This room was larger and more ornate, with a number of towering sculptures inside, along with a number of emergency lights. A group of Grunts, Brutes and Jackals were present, with each one guarding a large door that led to the Inner Sanctum, the Hierarchs private quarters. Shield barriers were present everywhere, indicating the Covenant were dug in for a fight. Charging forwards, Chief, 'Ravamee and Osman quickly cleared out the room, with the Brutes being no match for Star League technology and tactics.
Moving through the large door, Chief could see that they were in the Inner Sanctum. The Inner Sanctum was a fairly small room, with a single table in the center of the room, a viewscreen on the back wall, as well as chairs and couches for the Hierarchs if they tired of using their personal, antigravity units. A door led out of the room to another gravity lift.
As they entered, Cortana said, "I've got reports of SLDF and Elite ships engaging Brute controlled ships all around High Charity. We're starting to run out of time, Chief. My cyber warfare programs can't halt the launch sequence for much longer. The next lift will take you up to a conduit that leads to the Forerunner ship. Hurry!" With that, they exited the gravity lift.
The area they'd been deposited in was a large, open aired area, with ramps and platforms on either side that wove through arches. Up above, Chief could see a green conduit of energy above him, which led directly to the Forerunner ship ahead of their position. All around, Chief could see that the Flood and Covenant were locked into a battle with each other. "Chief, you need to enter the conduit," Cortana told him. "That's the only way to get onboard the ship."
"Rodger that," Chief replied. "Everyone, into the conduit. We'll use our jump jets to get inside now."
"Aff, lead," Osman replied. Powering up his Jump Jets, Osman leaped up into the air, entering the energy conduit, which swiftly began transporting him to the Forerunner ship. 'Ravamee quickly followed, with Chief getting inside last.
As they flew forwards, Chief watched as they were whisked along at high velocity into the Forerunner ship, just as the energy conduit severed itself from the station. Now in zero-G, the three man squad slipped through the doors leading into the ship just before they closed. As the ship began to exit High Charity, Chief knew one thing: they were on their way to Earth. Now, they had to finish the fight, and end the war once and for all.