Foggy. That was all he could use to describe his state of mind. But that was always the case when it came to cryo sleep, it was to be expected… it had a funny way of messing with one's imagination and memories.

However, what the Chief had not expected was to wake up anymore at all. He was doubtlessly in the middle of nowhere, no one would ever go this far to search for one single person…

… so how…?

The first step was wobbly at best, and before he knew it, he lost his balance and tumbled forward-

-but a pair of arms caught him in his fall. A pair of alien arms.

His breathing fastened slightly, and yet, the being that was holding him did so tightly but tenderly, not allowing him to fall. His golden visor was almost buried in plated armor, and slowly but surely, the Chief tried to lift his head to see this alien being more clearly…

"You are alive…"

That voice… it couldn't be, could it…?

The grip upon him tightened ever so slightly.

And when he finally got to lay eyes upon the being that had released him from his near eternal slumber, it all fell into place.

"... Arbiter…?" a gasp and a huff followed as the Elite looked to the side for a fracture of a second before she focused back entirely upon him. But despite all of the things that were pressing on her mind, all the things that she wanted to say, they ultimately remained unspoken for the moment.

"I came to bring you back with me." the Chief could only stare for a moment in wonder. In the heat of the moment, and his recent awakening, his thoughts were merely swirling around in his head. How long the Arbiter must have searched to find a single, half remaining ship in the middle of space, how pointless it must have seemed, and most importantly…

… why?

"Why would you go so far to find me?"

"The UNSC believed you to be dead…" for a slim moment, the Chief could have sworn that her mandibles flexed and her eyes narrowed, but it was gone as quickly as it appeared.

"... they abandoned any hope of trying to find you. But I didn't." suddenly, her eyes gazed intently through his visor, right where his eyes would be.

"I could never abandon you."

Silence briefly reigned between them as they looked at each other, at least until suddenly, the Chief grunted in exhaustion, clasping the side of his visor with a hand. An aftershock of his sudden awakening, a stinging pain that was lingering in his head like a sharp edge.

Witnessing this, the Arbiter suddenly placed a hand against the side of his helmet as well.

"I will…" she stopped momentarily, a deep thought worming itself into her mind.

"... I will bring you somewhere safe, where you can rest properly." he was almost limp in her arms, the pain only increasing with each movement of his own, and thus, she carefully lifted him from his own feet without further contemplation, gently holding him in her arms as she carried him back to her own ship. A barely audible word of protest was the only thing she witnessed from him as he weakly looked back at her, but in this case, she didn't care how it looked.

No human had come to search for him, no human had believed that there was any hope left to find him. Only she did.

She spared a small glance downward to look at his golden visor, and even though she could not see it directly, judging by the way he had grown entirely limp in her arms indicated that he had fallen back asleep for now, his head loosely leaning against her chest. She couldn't help herself as she brushed a hand along his body armor, his visor still not allowing her to look at him directly.

She had suppressed it for so long during her search. The mere thought of not finding him again kept her awake on so many occasions, filling her with dread and guilt. It was this which had shown her just how far their bond had grown. How much she was willing to sacrifice when everyone claimed that the Chief had to be dead.

How had the human sergeant put it when she came to ask him for any help he could possibly provide in her search?

Y'know… sometimes you only realize how much you treasure something until it is gone.

That was the only thing she had received. She had seen the look Johnson had given her, one that spoke of wretched sympathy because they believed that a search would be pointless.

But now he was right here, right in her arms…

The grip of her fingers tightened ever so slightly. The things she would do to him right in this very moment if it weren't for the circumstances… she shook her head, her mandibles flexing slightly in an attempt to rid herself of these thoughts.

She would bring him somewhere safe… but she would not bring him back to the UNSC.

No, she would be watching over him now.