Hello again, everyone, and welcome back to my Halo - Terminator crossover. Thank you for your continued feedback. I really appreciate what you've been sending me in the reviews. I'll be doing some changes to each chapter as more chapters come out to help make things a little more realistic. For those that wanted some more consistency, you'll be getting it soon.
Also, I noticed that someone in the TF2 - Halo crossover section posted a challenge. Let me know in the reviews if you would like to see me write a TF2 - Halo crossover in response to that challenge.
Either way, thank you for your support, and I hope to see you in future chapters. As always, leave a review and enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own the Halo or Terminator franchises. They are the respective properties and trademarks of Microsoft Game Studios, 343 Industries, Bungie, Carolo Pictures, Hemdale, Skydance Productions, 20th Century Fox, Lightstorm Entertainment, etc. Any material original to the franchises belongs to it's respective developers, producers 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.
Delta Halo
Beneath Library Facility
November 3rd, 2552
The first thing that Chief was aware of were a series of dim lights that were traveling across his vision, with the dim lighting barely being enough to wake him up. The second was that something was wrapped around his entire body, preventing him from moving very much, if at all. Blinking his eyes, he looked around to see a series of tendrils that were wrapped around his armor, all the while dragging him along the floor of a hallway. Remembering that voice he had heard just before falling unconscious, he began to struggle in an attempt to break free. Instead, the tendrils tightened around him, enough to make his armor creak slightly. OK, he thought. I can't use force to break free, not yet at least. I'll need to find another way out of this. A moment later, he asked, "Parsons, are you there?"
"Yes," came the reply. Looking around, he found the machine being held by even more tendrils than him. Whatever creature had ensnared them had apparently perceived Parsons to be the greater threat, as he was very firmly restrained.
"What happened," Chief asked.
"We have been captured by a Flood organism of unidentified type," Parsons replied. "My Logic Plague countermeasures have been activated. Is your armor compromised?"
"Hang on a second," Chief replied. Activating his internal COM unit, he asked, "Cortana, are you still there?"
"I'm still here," Cortana replied, "and very much creeped out by what's going on. The good news is that your armor is fully sealed. It's life support systems activated the moment it detected Flood Spores in the air. What's got me worried is what might happen to us soon." Chief was about to reassure Cortana when suddenly, he and Parsons were hoisted up into the air, just as they were pulled into a larger chamber. The chamber they were in was in was massive, probably large enough to hold a few Prowlers with plenty of room to spare. The walls had the characteristic, stylish ribbing that Forerunner structures tended to have, both as a means of decoration, as well as structural support for the rest of the chamber. Surprisingly, there were no Flood Spores in the chamber, which was an oddity. Any lights that were present were either not on, or were broken, with only a shaft of light coming in from the top. It was what that shaft of light highlighted that had him worried, and rightly so. Looking down, he noticed a massive mass of pale, sand colored flesh that coated the ground floor like an extremely thick mat, with the stuff curving upwards into a long, seemingly boneless neck. He couldn't see where it ended, as the other end was turned away from him. Tendrils and tentacles extended from parts of the mass of flesh, with some holding still while others writhed and twitched. "What is that," Cortana asked.
Apparently, the creature had heard her, as it turned to face Chief. The creature's face, if it could be called a face that is, was eyeless, with three flaps of flesh that ended in long tendrils, while ribbed gaps in each one were present near the middle. The flesh on the inside was a blood red color, while Chief could see what he thought were teeth deep inside. Moments later, the creature spoke, in a deep, rumbling voice that sounded like other voices were present. "I," it asked rhetorically. "I am a monument, to all of your sins."
That's cryptic, Chief thought to himself. At the same time, he noticed a flash of movement, prompting him to turn his head. He was faintly surprised to see two Elites being yanked along, with one being held upright, while the other was upside down, both of whom were wearing highly ornate armor. One of the Elites was wide awake, and was struggling to break free, while the other was attempting to remain calm, though it was clear that Elite was in a state of near-panic, with eyes wide even as he tried to break free. As they were pulled closer, Chief said to the first one, "Relax, I'd rather not piss this thing off."
"DEMON," the Elite snarled, both eyes widened as shock and anger suffused it's being.
Moments later, Chief felt the creature, which he realized was some kind of advanced Flood form, draw him slightly closer to it. "This one is but nerve and metal, and has it's mind concluded."Looking at Parsons, it said, "This one is of metal and energy, and also has it's mind concluded." Looking at the two Elites, it said, "These two are of flesh and faith, but one is the more deluded, while the other is the more accepting… and evolved."
"Evolved," Cortana asked Chief. "I wonder why…"
"We might find out soon," was his reply.
"Kill me or release me, Parasite," the first Elite growled, "but do not waste my time with talk."
"There is much talk," the creature replied, "and I have listened, through rock and metal and time. Now I will talk, and you will listen." As soon as it said that, two tentacles hoisted up two individuals. The first one was a Monitor, most likely of this installation, while the second one was one that had the first Elite growling angrily. Chief promptly recognized the second individual, an infected Prophet of Regret, as most of his body, other than an arm and his head, were fused to a large tentacle.
"Greetings," the Monitor remarked. "I am 053 Penitent Tangent, Monitor of Installation 05."
"And I am Regret," the infected Hierarch replied. "Hi-Hierarch of the Covenant."
Spotting Chief, Penitent Tangent made a pleased sound. "Ah, a Reclaimer," it remarked, floating over to Chief. "We must retrieve this ring's Index. We have to contain this outbreak, unlike this individual here." If a Monitor could glower at someone, Penitent Tangent would be that Monitor.
"Wait, please," Regret groaned out. "Nothing can be done until my sermon is complete!"
"Nonsense," the Monitor replied. "This ring has completed approximately one trillion simulated discharges, and one actual. It is ready to fire. Containment will have to be completed, even if you are not finished speaking."
Looking at the first Elite, who was growling at him, Regret said, "Of all the things left behind, Arbiter, Zealot Bero, why did they leave these worthless Oracles? They know nothing, of the Great Journey!"
"And you know nothing about containment," Penitent Tangent snapped, finally tired of Regret's nonsense. "You have even ignored the most basic of containment procedures. How the Flood haven't escaped this ring, I do not know!"
A moment later, the creature said while huffing dismissively said, "This one's containment… and this one's Great Journey, are one and the same. Your Prophets have given you an empty promise of ascension from a doomed existence. You will find no salvation on this ring. The architects of this place knew it's purpose. Do not mistake their intent.
Looking at the Arbiter, Chief said, "This thing's right. Halo is a weapon. Your Prophets are making a big mistake."
"I know," Bero, the first Elite, remarked. "I should've seen it coming now. The Prophets have lied to use, turned us against an innocent species. It shames me to admit it but…" He trailed off, unable to find the words to express his regret. Thel, the second one, merely nodded in agreement, unable to find the same words as well.
Looking at Bero, the creature said, "This one understands the truth, but the more deluded one still doesn't comprehend. If you will not listen to the truth, however, then it will be shown to you. There is still time to stop the Key from turning." Looking at Thel and Chief, the creature said, "You will search one likely spot, and you will search another." Looking at Bero and Parsons, it said, "You will assist them in doing so. I have little use for you, machine. As for you, however, your evolution fascinates me." With that, the creature flung them away into what appeared to be Slipstream Space portals, before returning to it's affairs.
The Gravemind had to admit, this wasn't entirely expected. It had been over a hundred thousand years since someone had come to visit this ring. Due to it's immortality, however, a hundred thousand years was just the blink of an eye to a creature like the Gravemind. While most of that time had been occupied with slowly spreading it's influence across parts of the ring, the more recent events had been quite interesting… and alarming at the same time. The arrival of the Covenant, in their zealous quest for ascension, had been interesting, even if they were greatly deluded. Their Hierarch, whom it now claimed as it's own, was one such example of this.
What had it worried was the presence of the machines, the ones the Humans called 'Terminators.' Apparently, Humanity had not only begun advancing in technology once again, they had created highly advanced machines capable of killing hordes of Flood without any trouble at all. On top of that, the Humans now had access to plasma based weaponry that was more powerful than what the Covenant had. However, the most chilling moment in it's experience in that regard came when it managed to destroy one of the machines. Before it self-destructed, the machine had looked at the Pure Form responsible and said, "You are proficient, Flood, but this is not the end. You will be destroyed. The Covenant will fall. Humanity will rise. I… am… SKYNET. This is just the beginning." When it had said that, the Gravemind realized that an AI similar to Medicant Bias had been built, one that was firmly dedicated to wiping out Humanity's enemies. Only an AI similar to Medicant Bias would be able to create such advanced robots and machines. As a result, the Gravemind was worried. If this ancilla is as advanced as I believe it to be, then we might be facing a possible defeat, it thought to itself. I will have to change my strategies to counteract this new threat. With that in mind, the Gravemind went back to it's normal affairs. It had a lot of work to do.
. . .
Delta Halo
Near High Charity
November 3rd, 2552
Onboard the UNSC George Washington, Admiral Hood was pacing about on the bridge as he waited for the moment to begin the attack. Around him, the bridge crew and officers were quite, as they could feel the tension in the room as though it was a living, breathing being. Even the computers were subdued in the sound they made, with the usual beeps and chirps being quieter than normal. Only the machines seemed unbothered by the tension, as they continued to carry out any orders they had been given with the cold precision they had become known for.
It had been a few days since the Covenant had unsuccessfully attacked Earth, with most of the damaged ships the UNSC had being fully repaired by SKYNET's automated shipyards, which had quickly allowed each ship to return to service. According to SKYNET, the Covenant had suffered a crippling defeat at Earth, as the ODP's, combined with the UNSC ships and the debris field, had eliminated the vast majority of the enemy attackers in the Covenant fleet. The decision to have the ships remain close to the ODP's not only spared them from being destroyed, but had also greatly reduced the Covenant's strategic effectiveness, at least for that fleet. 750 ODP's was determined to be an impenetrable defense, and the only reason why Regrets Carrier had reached Earth was mostly due to blind luck. Since then, SKYNET had patched that hole in the defenses and the entire planet was virtually unassailable.
With the Covenant suffering a major defeat, SKYNET had decided that this would be the perfect opportunity to strike back at the Covenant. Thanks to the Infiltration Terminators it had made using genetic samples from the Covenant's species, it had determined the location of the Covenant's primary space station High Charity. When Hood had learned that the Covenant had a single, mobile Capitol, he'd been surprised. Until recently, it had been assumed that the Covenant inhabited a single world as their Capitol. Now we know why we couldn't find their homeworld, he thought, because there was no such homeworld. A mobile Capitol would make sense with their kind of society. If that's the case, then none of their homeworlds, given what SKYNET believes, was the Capitol to begin with. How could we be so stupid.
As he looked at the space station, Hood knew that attacking High Charity was going to be a monumental task. There were hundreds, if not thousands, of Covenant warships that were in constant orbit of the facility, all of which were captained by the best Sangheili Fleet Masters and Ship Masters the Covenant had to offer, and most of them were probably highly experienced by now. On top of that, SKYNET had determined that the facility had large amounts of automated defenses, in order to keep unwanted guests out. High Charity is going to be a tough nut to crack, he thought. Still, if we could destroy Alpha Halo, bloody the Covenant's nose at Earth and retake Reach and prevent it from being fully glassed, then we can succeed in this mission
The mission, in this case, wasn't to destroy High Charity, though. During it's infiltration of High Charity's computer systems, SKYNET had discovered something major, something that had prompted it to change it's plans slightly. Even he didn't know what their mission was, only that SKYNET needed them to be in this exact position once Phase Three of it's plan had begun. I wonder what SKYNET is playing at, Hood thought to himself. I don't know what it is, but I can say that it's got me curious. In order to ensure Earth would be defended, he had left Whitcomb to coordinate the ODP's so that, if the Covenant came back for a second round, they wouldn't be defenseless. Connor had also gotten the ground troops ready for a fight. So far, thanks to an experimental stealth system SKYNET had designed, none of the Covenant ships he was seeing had spotted them... yet.
A moment later, he heard a crew member walking up to him. "Sir. we're in position," the Navigation Officer said to him. "Whatever SKYNET is planning, I hope that it doesn't bite us in the ass."
"Me too, son," he replied as he looked out at High Charity. "Me too."
Just as he said that, he noticed something happening. Suddenly, one of the Covenant ships fired on one of it's own, with the shot damaging the other one severely, while the other one fired back, destroying the offending ship. Soon, it was two, then, four, eight, sixteen, thirty two, sixty four, then all of the ships began engaging each other in what Hood could describe as a massive barroom brawl. What is going on, he thought to himself. Hearing a beeping sound, he looked at a holographic display to see what was going on.
It was a communiqué from SKYNET. Instead of using long sentences, SKYNET used brief, concise words to indicate any new orders or new developments. All this message said was, VIP's Inbound. Phase Three has Begun.
VIP's, Hood thought. What does it mean by that? Still, he knew SKYNET never did anything without a good reason, so he decided to give it the benefit of the doubt. It probably knows something that I don't.
. . .
Covenant Holy City High Charity
Council Chamber
20th Age of Reclamation (November 3rd, 2552)
The avenue leading to the Council Chamber of High Charity was choked with Jackals, Drones and Grunts that were clamoring outside, each one yelling angrily in their own language. Grunts that were particularly agile climbed up some of the columns in the area, barking angrily as they shook fists. Up ahead, a large group of Jiralhanae were guarding the entrance, their halberds in hand as he stood watch. A Jackal and a couple Grunts attempted to get past the guards, only to be bludgeoned aside or grabbed before being hurled back. There was a reason for all of this rioting and it was simple: the Elites were being replaced by the Brutes in many positions. Many people that lived on High Charity disapproved of the decision; they liked the Elites because, while they were in a position of power, they had been highly aware of the fact that without the other races, they wouldn't be able to do their job. As a result, those that had preferred the Sangheilians were disgruntled by the fact that their noble and honorable friends and masters had been replaced by the arrogant and brutish Jiralhanae.
Inside the Council Chamber, only a few people were present. Those people were the two remaining Hierarchs of the Covenant, their Brute body guards, as well as a few Grunts that were present. One of which was standing nearby a recording device that was broadcasting Truth's words all over the Covenant's dominion. Today was an especially good day, mostly due to the object that Truth held in his hands. "We have much to rejoice about," Truth declared, his voice filled with joy as he hefted the object in his hands. "The Sacred Icon has been found. With it, our path to ascension is secured, and nothing, not even the Flood, can stop us. Let those that hear this message rejoice, for soon, the Great Journey will begin, and we will ascend to godhood and join the Forerunners in their divinity. Were it not for the Brutes, the Sacred Icon might very well have fallen into the hands of the Humans, and the Great Journey would be in peril."
As the Grunt continued to help broadcast the message, it noticed an odd sound behind it, like something was turning on. Turning around, the Grunt was surprised to see a gold-white portal opening behind it, with two humanoid figure flying out of it moments later, before landing on one of it's knees. When the portal faded, the Grunt could see a heavily armored figure before it, with it's weapons on it's back. Chief grunted as he landed onto his right knee, with a slight popping sound coming from it. Most of his joints had popped, due to the fact that he'd been immobilized long enough that they'd had gotten stiff. It was a welcome relief, but now that he looked up, he realized that he was in some serious trouble. Nearby, Parsons seemed to be as unflappably calm and cool as ever, as the machine simply got up, weapons in hand.
His eyes darted around as he looked at where he was at. From what he could tell, they had landed somewhere in a Covenant facility, most likely the space station that had arrived in orbit at roughly the same time as the other fleet. Apparently, they was in some kind of meeting chamber, as he noticed multi-row stands, where a large number of people would sit in attendance of a meeting. Doors were present underneath, leading to other parts of the station, and he could see a circular region ahead of himself. A long avenue led into the room, with a multi-panel door at the rear of the room. That wasn't the only thing in here though, as his eyes cold clearly tell him. He noticed that there were two other San'Shyuum in the room before him, most likely the Prophets of Mercy and Truth. Some Brutes were in here as well, and he noticed a Grunt that was standing before him, eyes wide as he came out of the portal. Looking at his ammunition reserves, he quickly made sure that he had enough power for his phased plasma weapons before looking at the Grunt in front of him. Remembering how skittish most Grunts were, he said one single word. "Boo."
The Grunt yelped loudly, tossing it's Needler up into the air as it jumped. The weapon lazily arced through the air, with Chief grabbing a hold of it moments later. Seeing that it was full of ammunition, he took aim at the Prophets, ready to to pull the trigger, with Parsons doing the same. Spotting the danger, the Brutes crossed their halberds in front of Truth and Mercy, while an energy shield deployed around the two Hierarchs. "Kill the Demon and the Machine," Mercy ordered, pressing something on his arm chair, which caused the circular area they were on to descend. As the lift descended, the Brutes charged forwards, intent on killing Chief and destroying Parsons. If they thought the two men were easy prey, they were sorely mistaken.
As soon as the Brutes attacked, Chief exchanged the Needler and pulled out his M7/20E PDW instead, which he'd kept on his person throughout his earlier mission, and opened fire, spraying phased plasma at the aliens. While the armor they wore was an upgrade, the Brutes had a major disadvantage in that regard. While they were able to wear the helmets with little issue, the chest and torso armor that the Sangheili Honor Guards wore was too small for the furry mammalians. As a result, while the Brute's heads were well armored, their bodies were still practically unarmored, making them especially vulnerable to weapons fire.
As a result, what happened next could be rightfully described as a massacre. As soon as he fired, the phased plasma bolts tore through the Brute's relatively unprotected bodies, cutting through their furry skin and flash cooking their internal organs. Two Brutes fell to the ground dead, the holes the plasma had made in their bodies emitting smoke as the organs continued to cook, even with the plasma having long since dissipated. "Watch out," Cortana shouted as a Brute tossed down it's weapon and began to roar aggressively. "It's berserking! Take it out!"
Turning, Chief began to pull the trigger when Parsons said, "I will handle it." Just then, the Brute charged, instinct having fully taken over. Before it could act, Parsons immediately charged, stopping the Brute dead in it's tracks with a single, powerful blow. Instead of stopping, he began to beat the Brute into a bloody pulp, with bits of fur, flesh, a few teeth and a lot of dark red blood being hurled through the air as the Terminator pounded the alien. Throwing it to the ground, the Terminator crushed the Brute's head, sending blood and brain matter everywhere. "You won't be back," Parsons remarked as he began scanning the area for hostiles. Chief had to admit, when Parsons terminated a threat, it didn't get back up again.
That train of thought was derailed, however, when he heard a deep, gruff voice over the PA in the room he was in. "The Demon and the Machine have infiltrated the Council Chamber," the Brute on the COM shouted. "Protect the Hierarchs! Seal the exits!"
"Oh, I don't think so," Cortana remarked. "I think you're about to learn what happens when an upgraded AI and a Terminator gets involved. As soon as she said this, Chief heard sound from behind him, prompting him to turn around just as the lift came back up, with Brutes on the lift. Again, instead of using any pilfered Covenant weapons, they fired their own plasma weapons, which again, proved to be the right decision, as both Brutes fell to the ground dead, the unarmored parts of their bodies smoking as they did so. "Put me down at the pedestal near the door," Cortana requested. Following her request, Chief held his hand over the pedestal, with Cortana hopping into the Covenant's computer networks moments later. Her avatar appeared over the pedestal moments later, a concerned look on her face as she found Truth's location. "That Prophet, Truth, he has the Index," she said. "We've got to take it from him!"
"The Hierarchs will be protected by highly trained guards," Parsons determined. "We will need to intercept Truth and eliminate his guards in order to capture the Index. SKYNET has a kill/capture order on Truth and Mercy. If we capture or kill those two individuals, we will cripple the Covenant's leadership.
"Agreed," Chief replied. "Can you get these doors open?"
"Yes," Cortana replied. Moments later, the doors turned from red to purple, with the large door opening up moments later. "Go. It'll be easier to track Truth if I stay in the network."
Chief nodded in agreement. It was a risky decision, but he knew that it was probably the correct one to make. Reloading their weapons, both men proceeded through the door, keeping an eye out for any hostiles as they moved forwards. Spotting another open door, they walked through to the other side. The other side of the door was occupied by an avenue that was split into two tiers. The first tier, which Chief and PArsons were on, was a walkway that traveled to the other side of the door, with the walkway interrupted by planters that had a number of exotic, unusual looking plants inside. The second tier was a similar walkway, with small steps leading up to allow pedestrians to travel around any blockages in the middle. Curved, purple columns traveled up towards the ceiling, which had a number of blue colored parts, most likely airways for the airborne species of the Covenant.
Moving forwards, Chief spotted more Brutes, a couple Jackals and a few Grunts up ahead. Firing his M7/20E, he quickly neutralized the Grunts and Jackals, leaving only the Brutes. Plasma fire splashed against his shields, with the internal temperature of his armor rising slightly as he opened fire. As he ducked into cover, Parsons pulled out a grenade and primed it, before hurling it over cover at the Brutes. The grenade detonated moments later, with the Brutes and their charges being instantly vaporized by the expanding plasma. More avenues presented themselves to them, with one leading straight down towards a door behind a particularly large column. Here, the room was darker, with the planters being well illuminated, while alcoves with holographic symbols gleamed with light. Spotting more enemy infantry, both men opened fire, killing more of the Covenant's forces. With all contacts down, he moved around the columns and through the door.
That was when Chief got his first glimpse at how gigantic High Charity was. The place was huge, with a vast chamber that held a number of buildings up ahead of his position. Off in the distance, Chief could see tall skyscrapers that towered into the sky, their curved, artistic architecture pleasing to the eye from this distance. A shaft of light surrounded what looked like a towering spire, with three support struts holding up the central spire. Looking to the left and right, Chief could see that he was on a platform that extended out into the cavernous chamber that seemed to compose most of High Charity, or at least this section of the station. Tall, rotating columns were supported by anti-gravity lifts, while an avenue led to what looked like a lift of some kind. "This is big," he remarked.
"It is," Parsons replied.
The Covenant were present here as well, with Jackals, Grunts and Brutes around the area. Spotting two Brutes to his immediate left and right, Chief and Parsons opened fire, peppering the aliens with phased plasma. Again, just like last time, the unarmored bodies of the Brutes were highly vulnerable to plasma based munitions, as each one fell to the ground, dead. Terrified by this display of physical capability, the Grunts and Jackals outright surrendered, dropping their weapons before taking cover wherever they could, their hands covering their eyes. "Don't hurt me," one of the Grunts screamed. "I surrender!"
Normally, Chief would've neutralized them right then and there, but Parsons stopped him. "Leave him," he said. "That alien is not a threat anymore. We will proceed ahead."
For a moment, Chief debated this decision, only to realize that Parsons had come to a logical decision. Instead of debating this, he lowered his weapon and continued onward. Just then, several Grunts, Jackals and a Brute appeared from under the lift, with the Brute holding a weapon that had a large blade on the bottom. "Watch out for that Brute Captain," Cortana shouted. "It's got a Brute Shot." Nodding in agreement, Chief opened fire, killing the Brute, while Parsons neutralized the Grunts and Jackals immediately. "Truth is moving through the lower levels," Cortana informed in, her avatar appearing on the holo-pedestal nearby. "I'll try to cut him off. Work your way through the lower levels and intercept him before he moves too far. Let me work on this gravity lift. Just step in once the shutters open up."
Spotting the shutters moving, Chief and Parsons stepped inside the gravity lift, allowing it to safely lower them to the other level. While it was certainly faster than normal, he felt that the Covenant's gravity lifts left their occupants vulnerable, especially this one. On top of that, when one used a gravity lift, they had to go through single file, which would allow a particularly smart enemy to neutralize each soldier as they came out. Landing on the lower level, he fired his PDW at a group of Covenant coming out. As soon as they landed, both man and machine moved to the left and right of the door, before breaching it and moving inside.
As they moved forwards, Cortana said, "Chief, I'm detecting Terminator activity ahead of us."
"Terminator," Chief asked. Just as he did, he watched as a pair of Brutes were being hurled to the ground by a female Sangheili that was up ahead in a hallway, her mandibles open in a roar as she fought. It was clear that this wasn't a normal female, as she was hurling Brutes through the air as though they were noting more than pebbles or pennies. Whenever a Brute landed a hit, there was a dull CLUNK, with the offending Brute being punched in the face moments later, the blow killing it instantly.
Soon, all of the Brutes were dead, with the Sangheili breathing in and out heavily as she finished fighting. Looking up, she spotted Chief and Parsons, prompting her to smile and say, "SKYNET said you would be coming along soon. It doesn't know how you got here, but I can say that it's nice to have an ally when we need one."
"What's the situation," Chief asked.
"The Brutes are trying to commit xenocide," the Sangheili Terminator replied. "They're murdering Sangheili, and it's not just their warriors. They've been trying to kill innocent civilians as well. I was able to evacuate some of them, but I'm just one of roughly five hundred Terminators onboard this station. If you could escort any civilians you find to safety, we might be able to get them out."
"I thought SKYNET was going to terminate the Sangheili race."
"No. SKYNET doesn't want to render a species extinct. It only wants to render them a non-threat by removing their ability to fight. It does not want a repeat of the Future War."
"I see." After a few moments, he said, "We're attempting to intercept a Hierarch that's moving through the lower levels. He has the Index, and he plans to activate Halo. Can you help us?"
"Yes," the Sangheili Terminator replied. "I can help you find him. We might not be able to get to him in time. In exchange, can you rescue and escort any civilians you find?"
"That is acceptable," Chief nodded. "Anything else?"
"Yes," the other Terminator replied. "There are Marines that are being held captive in the prisons in this area. If we liberate them, we will stand a better chance at survival."
"Understood," Chief replied. With that, they began to move towards the prisons in order to get reinforcements. Even as they moved along, Chief knew one thing. SKYNET had infiltrated High Charity. The Covenant was about to have a very bad day.
