Ready Room
October 2nd, 0931 Local Time, 2552
The ready room of a warship was traditionally used by strike craft pilots for a multitude of purposes, it seemed that this time however, Richard had elected to use it to brief Fireteam Onyx on the situation. In the first row of seats Fireteam Onyx sat, having a rather loud but somewhat civil debate about what they had been summoned for. Although the seats clearly weren't built with Mjolnir in mind, they didn't protest under Ben's immense weight.
"So, did the Commander say what kind of-" Meadows began to ask, but Fairfire cut him off.
"No, he didn't." She said, not even bothering to raise her voice at him.
"Oh come on, I didn't even get to finish my question!" Meadows protested.
"The answer is still no, he didn't give us specifics." Fairfire said. "All I know is that we're going planetside, and that we're probably going to be making contact with these people… whoever they are."
Hopefully Curie can find out the answer to that particular question. Ben thought, although he honestly couldn't fathom what kind of organization would choose to distance themselves so far from human-controlled space, let alone at the height of the war with the Covenant. The matter of their bizarre communications technology also threw a wrench in any of his efforts to guess who they could be.
"I hope that he knows that we're uh, not exactly cut out for diplomatic work." Nathan said, flexing the Helljumper patch on his shoulder to illustrate the point of his statement.
"Commander Richard knows what he's doing." Ben said, knowing fully well that Richard was well-versed in the nuances of command.
"Well he's a warship Commander, not a diplomat…" Yu commented, her arms crossed across her chest in a manner that Ben found surprisingly irritating.
"Shut up Corporal." Fairfire chastised. "Your lip is gonna get you into some trouble one of these days, and I am not going to bail you out when it does."
Before the hot-headed helljumper could respond, the bulkhead to the ready room opened, and Richard entered. The squad stood to attention, but he relieved them with a brief wave. He took a place at the holographic projector at the front of the room, and gave a quick glance throughout the room.
"Sergeant Fairfire, is this your entire unit?" He asked. Although he concealed it well, the slight sag in his shoulders pointed to a hint of concern.
"Yes Sir." Fairfire confirmed.
Richard gave a faint nod. "Very good, let's get down to it. Curie, get me a wide shot of the planet on the main projector."
Curie silently and invisibly complied, placing a picture of the planet onto the wall before them.
"Thank you." Richard said, before turning back to the squad. "Given that we have only recently made a series of critical revelations regarding this world, I would ask that you all put aside what you've been told and let me brief you from the start."
He started by recapping some basic information regarding the planet's actual composition and traits. It had only a subfraction under one G of gravity, an earthlike magnetosphere, and a breathable nitrogen-oxygen atmosphere. By every stretch of the imagination, it was like any other colony world.
"With the basics out of the way, let's cover our most recent discovery. Curie, bring up the image from surface grid forty by thirty-two." Richard continued.
The image shifted again, this time to the snowy village Ben had seen earlier. He was able to make out more details this time, like billowing chimneys and a few parked vehicles. All of the ODSTs did not react, as Fairfire and Ben had already spread the word.
"I'm sure that Sergeant Fairfire has already shared what she knows about the human population on this planet, so we'll cover some of the more notable specifics." Richard said. "For starters, we believe that it is almost a certainty that these people have no means of interstellar communication, including starships. As such, we believe that they are disconnected from the UEG, and as a result, the UNSC."
"Uh, permission to speak Sir?" Nathan asked as he scratched the back of his head. Richard gave him a silent nod, so he continued. "Does that mean we're working with Innies here?"
"It does make some sense." Fairfire subtly interjected. "If you're gonna hide from the UNSC and the Covenant, there's no better place than the middle of nowhere."
Disturbingly, her words made a lot of sense, although that didn't explain what the Insurrectionists would be doing this far out into unknown space in the first place. Richard appeared to tolerate her interjection, as her words had merit.
"There is a very real possibility that this planet is inhabited by secessionists." Richard answered, the scowl on his face saying more than his words did. "Although I suspect we won't have our answer until you complete your mission. Speaking of which, Curie, please bring up Landing Site Theta."
The holographic image shifted again, this time reforming into a different snowy village than the previous one. This one was smaller, and seemingly had a more industrial focus, judging by the large digging machines that were visible. Richard gestured toward a large clearing to the North of the village as he spoke. "You will be touching down here, and making your way toward what we suspect is a small mining town. Your objectives are as follows, gather as much intelligence on these people as you can, and should you deem it to be a good course of action, establish first contact."
First contact? Ben raised an eyebrow behind his visor. Some quiet murmurs from the ODSTs confirmed their doubts as well, the last time the UNSC had performed a first contact scenario, the war with the Covenant had begun.
"Now, any questions?" Richard asked. Immediately, most of the squad raised their hand. "Corporal Sato, go ahead."
"What if we find out they are Innies, what are the rules of engagement?" Yu asked.
Richard frowned, his eyebrows scrunched up as if in deep thought. "Well, in the worst case scenario that these people are hostile, you are authorized to return fire, but do everything in your power to avoid raising hostilities. Nevertheless, your safety remains our top priority for this mission, so if fighting does break out, proceed to extraction immediately. Next question, Sergeant Meadows."
"Sir, do we have any way to perform wireless communications with these people?" Meadows asked, prompting a few confused looks from the other ODSTs.
If we did, we wouldn't risk a recon mission in the first place. Ben thought, but did not voice his retort. Regardless of how simple the question was, clearing the air of misunderstandings was the purpose of briefings. Misunderstandings got soldiers killed, and especially in a scenario where diplomatic contact was a very real possibility, minimizing them was paramount to any sort of success.
"We suspect so, but we can't do that right now, if that's what you're asking." Richard answered. "However their communications technology works, it's not compatible with our systems. That being said, with a bit of time and some more intel, we might be able to change that. Next question, Private Wilson."
The ODST cocked his head. "So just to be clear… we don't know where these guys came from?"
"I'm afraid so. Curie, do you have anything to comment?" Richard asked, looking up to the holographic projector as if speaking to her face.
A moment later, her voice funneled through one of the intercom speakers in the room. "It is possible this is a lost colony of ours, but it is also possible it is made by separatists or insurrectionists. It is clearly not connected to human civilization as we know it. The civilization on this planet is pre-spaceflight, and we have not even detected any man-made debris in orbit."
"They have no ships, at all?" Nathan asked, his eyes widened as her words sank in. "I thought you meant they just had no slipspace drives…"
"Indeed, they have no spacecraft, although we have spotted a handful of water-based and atmospheric naval vessels." Curie said. "Do you have any other questions?"
Ben raised his hand, prompting Richard to gesture to him to speak. "Sir, why land at such a remote location? If we're looking for intel, we could try one of the urban centers."
"We don't want to cause a panic." Richard answered. "While they seem to have some aircraft, we're likely to create something of global event if we set down in a major city with a spaceship. It's also likely that these people don't even speak the same languages as us, so we'll want to get some information on that before we try for a more urban insertion."
Ben nodded, Richards words made sense. He was hoping to avoid the same kind of first-contact scenario that the Covenant had opted for. They had simply touched down a dropship in the middle of an urban center on Harvest, and attempting to avoid that kind of interaction with these people was probably a good idea.
Fairfire however, seemed somewhat worried by what Richard said. As the squad leader, any questions she had took priority. "You don't think they speak English?"
"It's a likely possibility." Richard confirmed. "As such, Curie will be accompanying you to serve as a translator should the need arise. Ben's armor is capable of housing her, and this goes without saying, but her safety is critical, do you all understand?"
The ODSTs gave a stern nod, any sort of violation to the Cole Protocol was not an option.
"I have installed every known language and a translation software kit from the ship's database." Curie added. "In the event they do not know Base English, we will still have a chance to communicate."
"Are their other questions?" Richard asked. "Corporal Sato, go ahead."
"What about equipment?" She asked. "Do we need to bring anything out of the ordinary here?"
"Pack light, minimal load, you'll need speed more than firepower. Even in a worst case scenario, you should be running, not fighting." Richard answered, seemingly with a bit more respect for this question then her previous inquiry. "Curie will be acting as a carrier for all standard First Contact data packages, so she will be handling all non-standard equipment."
"Understood, when do we depart?" Fairfire asked.
"Oh-nine-forty-five." Richard answered. "Any further questions?"
Nobody spoke up.
"Stay safe, you're all dismissed." Richard said.
Orbit of an unknown planet, Pelican Zulu One-Nine-Eight
October 2nd, 0952 Local Time, 2552
The Pelican began to slightly rock as it began to undergo atmospheric entry, the familiar sounds of shaking titanium offering Ben a slight bit of reassurance on what would be his first real mission. The troop compartment of the Pelican was filled with chatter between the Helljumpers, while Ben and Curie quietly listened.
"So Sir, we're still getting paid right?" Wilson asked. "Like I know we're stuck out here, but are we still making money?"
"Can't say for sure Private." Fairfire responded. "Ask one of the officers when you get a chance that actually handles that kind of thing."
"Cause like, I love my job and all, but I'm trying to pay off my dad's mortgage..." Wilson continued, clearly not paying too much attention.
"Shut your trap and process what I said Marine." Fairfire ordered.
"Actually that brings up a good question, what does a Spartan make?" Nathan asked, turning to Ben as if expecting an answer.
Ben stopped inspecting his battle rifle and turned to face him. "I'm an E-Five, I make the same as any other Sergeant."
"Wait, Spartans don't get paid more than us?" Meadows asked, seemingly surprised.
"No, why would we?" Ben asked, reflecting on what an odd question that was. "We're still soldiers, same as you."
"Yeah, why would they? Under the armor, they're no different from us." Yu said indignantly. Even though what she said was clearly intended as a backhanded insult, it was actually somewhat reassuring.
At least she understands that we're still human under the suit. Ben thought, still disturbed from what Curie had told him regarding the rumors that surrounded the Spartan project.
"Well that's a fair point, but doesn't the brass send Spartans on high-risk missions all the time?" Meadows asked.
"They do, but we're trained and equipped to be ready for them." Ben said, feeling unwilling to disclose just how many Spartans for whom that had not helped. "And everyone gets hazard pay in situations like that, Spartan or not. You're a Helljumper, you should know that."
"I uh… yeah, fair enough." Meadows said, awkwardly leaning his helmet back against the walls of the Pelican.
"Alright, cut the chatter, I have some instructions for you knuckleheads and I don't feel like repeating myself." Fairfire loudly commanded.
The cabin quieted down as everyone gave Fairfire their attention.
"Now I just want to stress something here, our objective is to collect intelligence, that's it." Fairfire stated. "The Commander instructed us to initiate first contact if we have a good opportunity to do so, but otherwise, we're staying quiet, got it?"
"Yes Sergeant!" The squad confirmed.
"Uh… Liz, you know that black armor and white snow don't exactly mix, right?" Nathan asked.
Fairfire looked at him like he was stupid. "It's around ten in the morning Nathan, think about where on the planet we're going."
"Uh… towards the north?" Nathan answered, before the thought clicked in his head. "Oh, right, it's gonna be dark!"
"Congrats Nathan, you're a goddamn scientist." Yu commented, earning a soft chuckle from some of the other Helljumpers.
"One last thing!" Fairfire shouted, grabbing everyone's attention again. "If this does end up going south, we will radio Fireball for extract. We do not stick around and fight a battle we didn't come here to fight, am I clear?"
"Yes Sergeant!" The team shouted again.
"Good." Fairfire said. Around them, the Pelican ceased it's shaking, and the sounds of titanium under immense air pressure could no longer be heard.
"We're wrapping up reentry now. Standby, we'll be on the ground shortly." Fireball said over the radio.
"You heard the lady!" Fairfire said to the ODST's who began final preparations before glancing at Ben. "What about you Curie, you ready?"
"I may not be a qualified diplomat, but I will help however I can." Curie reaffirmed.
"That's good enough for me." Fairfire said. "How about you Ben?"
"Status Green, I'm ready to go." Ben said.
"That's also good to hear, hopefully your first mission with us is a smooth one." Fairfire said, her voice brimming with confidence.
"I am sure it will go very well Miss Fairfire." Curie said confidently.
The Staff Sergeant let out a snort of amusement at Curie's choice of words, before running a quick inspection on her shotgun. Ben followed her example, doing the same with his battle rifle. The rest of the trip was relatively quiet, it didn't take much longer before Fireball spoke over the radio once again.
"Alright boys and girls, this is your stop. Have fun down there!" She said as the dropship begin it's final descent to the planet's surface.