Chapter 19: A Day to Remember
June 22, 105,453 B.C.E.
Erde Tyrene System (Slipstream Space)
Echo was awoken from his rather peaceful, if dreamless sleep by the soft sound of a starship leaving the Slipstream. The small civilian ship that he was aboard was nothing special when compared to the Inner World luxury vessels that were so commonplace among families of his own's stature. The ship's Ancillary pilot caused the ship to shift on a downwards angle a slight bit, throwing off the artificial gravity's center for just the slightest fraction of a second.
He spared a short glance at the window as he pulled his jumpsuit over his body. Before him rested the Human world of Erde Tyrene. No Forerunner was quite sure what the name meant, but it seemed to hold quite a bit of sentimental value to the natives, who had lost a war of conquest against the Forerunners a mere six centuries ago. From what his father had shared with him, Echo knew that these locals, these Humans, were capable fighters with technology that once matched, and sometimes even outperformed, Forerunner counterparts. This species had always interested Echo, especially after all of the stories that had surfaced about them. As such, he paid for a small starship, gathered some supplies and a few weapons for self-defense, and set out to study these Humans. It was a wonder that the Librarian had allowed him to undertake such a mission, but he was grateful for her patience with the younger Forerunner.
The Librarian had warned him that the local sentient life, while friendly enough, was quite diverse in terms of their appearance. She had seemed quite vague with her descriptions for some reason or another, but he paid that no mind. She had also warned of rather… dangerous local wildlife and plant life, which concerned him a bit more. You could predict the actions of a sentient creature fairly easily; an animal or a plant was rather difficult to understand without decades of study in their responses to stimuli.
Echo gathered his meager collection of weapons, ammunition, and supplies, throwing them into a small pack. He slung the pack over his shoulder and made his way through the small vessel. He stepped out of the rather cramped living quarters, designed to comfortably fit only one, and saw the holographic representation of the ship's Ancilla. He paid the artificial being no mind, as it was scarcely intelligent enough to hold a conversation over anything other than taking orders. He watched in mild interest as the Ancilla worked to land the ship on a seemingly random point on the surface of one of the planet's continents.
As the ship landed, the plant life looked anything but dangerous. For the most part, it appeared to be mostly harmless trees, grass, and flowers. He gave the quick order for his Ancilla and the vessel to shut down, then made his way onto the planet's surface. Thankfully, the planet was incredibly clean in terms of air quality. It was hard to believe that, just a millennia ago, this planet once housed the second most-powerful empire that the Galaxy had ever seen. Now… it seemed like a harmlessly beautiful garden world that was just beginning to spread the seeds of life throughout its soil. The pleasant chirping of nearby creatures drew him back into the reality of the situation around him, allowing him to take in the beauty of the planet as he walked.
As he made his way through the rather sparse forest around his landing zone, he continued to scan over the surrounding wilderness with a sense of wonder. He had never seen truly untapped wilderness before. The closest thing he had ever seen was the preserves on his homeworld, but those were manicured to perfection by Lifeworkers. As Echo lost himself in thought again, he heard a rather strange noise from behind him. Simply put, it was the deep call of an animal. Echo wheeled around, his hand hovering over the grip of his Bolt Pistol, fully prepared to draw his weapon. He was greeted by a relatively small, furry creature that looked up at him from its position on the ground. It had four stumpy little legs, a snout ending in a black nose, gray and black fur, and a pair of inquisitive silver eyes. Echo smiled as the small creature's tongue lolled out of the side of its mouth, the animal looked to be smiling back.
As the small creature neared, seeming to sniff the air between Echo and itself, Echo removed his hand from its position over the grip of his weapon. The small critter began sniffing Echo himself once he drew close enough. The creature seemed to be taking in every detail of Echo's insulated jumpsuit's scent. Echo knelt down, prompting the creature's ears to perk up as the grass rustled beneath Echo's boots. It began sniffing at Echo's hand, then attempted to push its snout between Echo's palm and its resting place on his knee. Echo decided to allow the small fuzzy creature to continue in its observation, but was surprised to find that it nestled its head underneath Echo's open hand, seeming to scratch itself on Echo's fingers. Echo grinned as he scratched the animal behind its ear, earning another one of the creature's rather adorable smiles as its tongue lolled out of its mouth.
"He likes you." An unknown voice explained from somewhere behind Echo. Echo quickly turned around, surprised to find a rather tall-looking female of the Human species. She wore a white gown of some kind, had black fiber hair running from her head, all the way down to the small of her back, and had a very curious look about her. Either Echo was so lost in playing with the small creature that he didn't hear her approach, or she was simply too sneaky for him to ever dream of spotting.
Echo nodded, shaking off the startle that she had given him. He was rather surprised to find the animal running over to the human girl, nuzzling her leg with its snout. "Yours?" Echo asked.
"Yes." She responded, smiling. "I don't think I've ever met one of your kind before. Might I ask what to call you?"
"Echo…" Echo explained, smiling. "I'm Forerunner."
"You're a Forerunner?" The woman asked, surprised. "I thought that your kind were only legends! Did you come with one of the Wandering Stars?"
"Wandering Star?" Echo asked, his brow cocked in a questioning manner.
"One of your lights that travels across the night sky, then disappears as soon as it comes." The woman explained.
"A starship?" Echo asked, putting the pieces together in his head.
"Is that what you call them?" The woman asked, perplexed.
"It is…" Echo said, amused. "Do you have a name?"
"I do." The woman responded, smiling. "Soleia."
"Do you not have a family name?" Echo asked, cocking his brow again.
"I do… do you?" Soleia asked.
"Not quite yet." Echo responded. "I have yet to earn it."
"You need to earn your family?" Soleia asked, confused.
"Not exactly." Echo responded with a slight chuckle. "Simply the right to bear the name."
"Your name shouldn't be earned." Soleia said, a saddened expression on her face. "Let me give you one!"
"I don't see why not…" Echo said, an amused smile on his face.
"Why not Echo of Wandering Stars?" Soleia asked, a glint of humor mixed with… hope in her eyes.
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June 22, 2682; 1128
Earth, Sydney (Museum of Humanity, Living Monument)
"Ivan… there you are." Winter said, pulling Ivan out of another Geas-induced vision.
"Hmm…" Ivan said, shaking his head slightly to clear his mind. "Hey, Winter." Ivan was legitimately surprised to see Winter dressed casually. She wore a pair of blue jeans, a white short-sleeved t-shirt, and had her hair back in its usual bun.
Winter sat down on the stone bench next to Ivan, scanning over the slab of iron that Ivan looked to be staring at. When she read the text above the metallic plate, a sense of understanding dawned on her. "Visiting old friends?" She asked, giving Ivan a genuine look of concern.
"In a way…" Ivan said, shrugging.
Winter read over the hundreds of names on the list, noticing a very strange pattern. "Why are they all MIA?"
Ivan smiled slightly. "It's an old tradition… Back during the Human-Covenant War, SPARTANs were Humanity's last, best hope to stop the Covenant. How do you think the public would've reacted when they learned that the best soldiers that Humanity could create were just as killable as the average Marine?"
"Probably not well…" Winter agreed.
"So ONI drew up this little idea for the presses… 'SPARTANs never die, they're just Missing in Action.'" Ivan let out a soft sigh. "SPARTANs, and a good portion of the public, know better now. Doesn't stop them though."
"Who do you… know, up there?" Winter asked, looking to the SPARTAN next to her.
"Annalise Chesnokov." Ivan responded. "My mother."
"Oh… I'm sorry." Winter said, her voice somber and low.
"Don't be… it happened seven years ago. She's probably one of the few actual MIAs on that list." Ivan explained.
"What… happened, if you don't mind me asking?"
"ONI pulled her away for a scouting operation on the fringes of known space. Missions like that are routine, easy, and high in demand. Most SPARTANs dream of getting an extended assignment like that, kinda like the one I got. A few months after her Prowler left Human Space, its Slipspace Transponder disappeared and all outgoing signals from the ship went dark. They haven't found any trace of the ship."
"Oh…" Winter said, unsure of how to respond. "What was she like?"
Ivan smiled rather broadly at this. "Man… she was pretty awesome. Ruby always says that her mom was, and I quote, 'baker of cookies and slayer of giant monsters'… my mom was the same way." Winter gave a smile at Ivan. "She had me a few years after she became an ODST. She was on reserve status for around six years, then left for Reach to become a SPARTAN after she had my sister. When she came back after around a year… it was a bit weird."
"How so?"
"She… grew a few inches." Ivan explained. "I was a bit too young at the time to really understand what the SPARTANs were or what happened to them during their training. She came back with a few surgical scars, had a few more inches added onto her height, and was way stronger than before she left. She got really lucky with her assignments for a few years, getting assigned to the Earth Defense Force, so she got to stay at home as a Reserve Officer. When I was thirteen and Sasha was six, she got pulled out for the little scouting run with ONI. The rest is history, I guess."
"Do you think she's still out there?" Winter asked.
"I don't know, to be honest with you." Ivan responded. "Seven years is a long-ass time to be drifting through space. Even if, by some miracle, the Prowler managed to crash on a garden world, Prowlers weren't designed to land on planets, let alone crash on them."
Winter gave Ivan a weak smile, elbowing him playfully. "Hey… you said she was actually MIA. She could still be out there for all you know."
Ivan shrugged. "Maybe… Hopefully…"
Winter smiled, placing her hand atop Ivan's. She leaned against his shoulder, earning a smile from the SPARTAN. Neither spoke, not wanting to ruin the moment.
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June 22, 2682; 1139 Hours
Earth, Sydney (Museum of Humanity)
Weiss was eventually allowed to stop by Ruby. They were standing in the middle of a large circular room, covered in various artifacts. There was an obvious starting point, labeled "SPARTAN I: Project ORION." Ruby led Weiss over to the first display, showcasing the nature of the first SPARTAN program.
ORION troopers were little more than Marines or ODSTs with very basic genetic augmentations, barely outperforming standard UNSC soldiers in terms of combat effectiveness. Most, after the project was deemed a moderate success, were reassigned to various divisions of the Marine Corps, and ordered to keep their true nature a secret to all personnel ranked below Captain. Their armor was rather similar to the ODST armor, but was notably lighter and seemed to have a very lightweight exoskeleton to assist in movement and load-bearing. On a short list of notable ORION personnel, one name in particular stood out: Master Sergeant Avery Johnson, UNSC Marine Corps, Colonial Cross recipient, KIA during the Battle of the Ark. Next to the list of names, stood a small statue to memorialize the SPARTAN-Is, a simple marble statue of soldiers wearing the ORION armor, standing back-to-back with their MA5s pointed outwards.
Weiss spent a few more moments inspecting the nature of the armor, finding it remarkably similar in design to the Atlesian Knight's internal servos, but she was eventually beckoned towards the second display, which was notably larger. The standee for this display was rather ornately decorated, reading: "ORION Project Generation II, The SPARTAN IIs." This display was markedly different than the first, showcasing the various teams that existed from this program. Weiss decided to read over the small plaques that decorated the wall next to each display. Her eyes widened as she read over the in-depth analysis of the SPARTAN II Project. Children as young as six abducted from their parents, replaced by defective clones that were designed to "expire" within eighteen months. For ten years, these children would be put through some of the most brutal training imaginable, being broken down and rebuilt several times. Honestly… it reminded her of Huntsmen in a way. When she read over the augmentation process, her stomach started to churn a bit.
At the age of fifteen or sixteen, the candidates were subject to a series of biological augmentations that were designed to boost muscle mass, reaction time, bone density, eyesight, and everything about their physical forms. Children at sixteen wound up looking like twenty year old athletes. The Augmentation side-effects were truly mind-numbing. Elephantitis, complete paralysis, permanent blindness, retinal rejection, Parkinson's and Fletcher's syndrome, fatal cardiac inflammation, catastrophic bone pulverization… these conditions seemed so insanely brutal that they almost didn't sound real. She wasn't even sure if half of these conditions were even real to begin with. The fact that only 33 of the 75 initial trainees survived the entire process was truly amazing.
Ruby grabbed her attention once again, gesturing to a large collection of armored suits on display. This large glass display showed complete sets of each generation of MJOLNIR that the SPARTAN-IIs would wear, all the way from the relatively basic Mk. I to the advanced Mk. VI. The armor progressively got stronger, gained shielding technology, and enhanced the wearer's strength to unimaginable degrees. For the slightest moment, Weiss found herself wondering what it would be like to wear the suit. That thought was quickly dashed from her mind when she read over a few lines from the informational display in front of the armor. "MJOLNIR armor is a system that, to this day, remains incompatible with unaugmented humans. A standard human attempting to wear a suit of true MJOLNIR armor would find themselves snapping bones with the most minute movements, eventually breaking themselves into pieces with their own agony-induced writhing."
Weiss shivered slightly as she processed just how dangerous this armor really was. She was pulled to another display by Ruby, which was a small plate of metal that looked to be a piece of steel with each SPARTAN-II's name engraved on its surface. Each name had a single name, a designation, and a nickname if one was applicable. Above that small memorial to the long-dead SPARTAN-IIs, was a statue of a very specific SPARTAN. It stood at least seven feet in height, seemed to be milled from actual metal, and depicted a SPARTAN standing with one foot on a rock, gazing off in the distance like a hero from a children's storybook. His rifle was propped up against the ground, his right hand gripping the slightly extended barrel. Etched on the statue's metal chestplate, simply and elegantly, was 117. Weiss couldn't help but read over the small informational blurb about this SPARTAN. Weiss felt Ruby over her shoulder, trying to read off of the same plaque.
"SPARTAN-II Operative Sierra one-one-seven, better known as John-117 or simply: The Master Chief." Weiss read aloud, allowing Ruby to more easily get the information, rather than trying to read over the heiress' shoulder. "Born in 2511, conscripted into the SPARTAN Program at six years old. To this day, he remains the most highly-decorated soldier in UNSC history, earning every medal in existence with the exception of the Prisoner of War Medallion. Noted for his exceptional service in the battles of Circinius IV, The Eridanus Campaign, Raid on the Third Fleet of Glorious Consequence, Battle of Reach, Battle of Installation 04, Battle of Cairo Station, Battle of New Mombassa, Battle of Delta Halo, Infiltration of High Charity, Guerilla operations against occupying Covenant forces on Earth, Ark Campaign, First Battle of Requiem, Destruction of The Mantle's Approach, and the Defeat of Forerunner Guardian Constructs." Weiss had no idea what any of these events were, but the sheer number of battles, campaigns, and exceptional service awards given to this one soldier was simply breathtaking… literally. Weiss drew in a deep breath after rattling off the long list of battles that the Chief participated in, returning to the plaque again.
"SPARTAN 117 served as the commanding officer of SPARTAN II Blue Team. He commanded SPARTAN Kelly-087, Frederic-104, Kurt-051, Samuel-034, William-043, and Linda-058. Together, Blue Team was the most effective SPARTAN Fireteam to ever exist, outperforming all SPARTANs of their generation and beyond. To this day, John-117 remains one of the few SPARTANs of any generation to receive the designation 'Hyper-Lethal'. John-117 gave everything to protect the human species, and the human species will give everything to ensure that his sacrifice was not in vain. His actions, still, serve as the guiding principles that the UNSC instills in all of its personnel: Self-sacrifice, teamwork, leadership, duty, and honor."
"Whoa…" Ruby said, still processing everything about this one specific soldier. If she understood correctly, this one man was responsible for saving the human species not once, not twice, not three times, but four or five times. She made a mental note to ask Ivan about this later, smiling to herself as she looked on at the statue's powerful form.
"It's hard to believe that Remnant missed all of this…" Weiss commented. "We were all sitting around fighting a petty war over self-expression, thinking it would be the war to end all wars… all-the-while there's a galaxy-wide war between humans and aliens raging on."
"It puts a lot in perspective…" Ruby agreed.
"Now c'mon, you dolt. There's still two more sections to look at." Weiss said after a few moments of silence, grabbing Ruby and pulling her towards the display labeled: "SPARTAN-III Program". Ruby smiled, seeing that the tables had been turned, and followed along.
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June 22, 2682; 1128 Hours
Blake and Yang stepped into the small, quaintly decorated bookstore. It was rather sparsely lit, giving it a very comfortable atmosphere. It had dozens of shelves forming small aisles, shelves lining the walls, and a few small sofas set up around a few coffee tables. There was a single counter near the front of the store, manned by an older gentleman with slightly greying hair. Other than Blake and Yang, there were only two other patrons in the store.
"Hi there." The older man said, giving them a warm smile as they stepped in. "Welcome! Can I help you two find anything?"
"We're just looking." Blake said, returning the smile, albeit hers was a bit more reserved.
"Glad to see that a few younger people still have an appreciation for paper books." The older man commented, his smile still present. "Most people just read those E-books on Waypoint nowadays."
Blake shrugged. "I prefer having pages to flip through."
"Thankfully, enough people share your thoughts to let me stay in business." The man joked, chuckling. "Let me know if you need anything, I'd be glad to help."
Blake smiled. "Sure thing." Blake walked through the labeled aisles, which were thankfully labeled in English. She strolled through the fiction section first, simply looking for anything that would catch her eye. She was rather surprised to find a few books that she had read before, namely Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and Frankenstein. After finding nothing exceptionally noteworthy, she made her way through the non-fiction section of the store. Upon entering it, a blue book caught her eye rather quickly. She picked it up from its spot on the shelf, inspecting the cover.
The cover itself was rather sparse, having a few letters in a runic language that she could never hope to decrypt. Just below those letters however, was what she assumed to be a translation: On the Blood of Our Fathers, On the Blood of Our Sons. She scanned for the author's name, finding it to be written by someone named Rtas'Vadum. She had never seen a name like that before, but she disregarded that. She flipped the cover open, surprised to find a few hand-drawn pictures of eerily familiar starships, all of them following the Covenant design philosophy. That allowed her to make the connection instantly, the author was a Sangheili. Something like this was simply too good to pass up.
Blake turned around, surprised to find Yang holding a pair of hardcover books, one titled Metro 2033, the other titled The Road. Blake shot Yang an amused smile. "You're actually going to sit down and read those?"
"Yeah!" Yang defended. "They looked really cool, so I figured I'd give them a try. Contrary to popular belief, I do enjoy reading… when I can read what I want."
Blake simply smiled as she turned and made her way over to the small sofa. Unsurprisingly, her boisterous blonde sat down next to her, almost snuggling into place into her partner's side. Blake grinned as she watched Yang actually open the cover of a book and start reading. It looked like she had decided to start with The Road.
Blake flipped past the second page, reading over the forward, written by Rtas'Vadum. "For much of my life, I gladly served the Hierarchs and their goals, blindly willing to follow their word into the empty maw of war. It was through my own blindness that I found myself standing at the edge of all life in this galaxy, nearly willing to end it all for a foolish lie of salvation. I write this collection of stories that I have gathered through my decades of service to the Prophets in an attempt to give insight into the Covenant, their motives, and the direction they took that nearly led to the extinction of all life on a galactic scale. This is not my story, nor a story of the Sangheili; this is the story of the Covenant." Blake found herself intrigued by the rather vague forward, deciding to read a few pages of the first chapter. She flipped to the next page of the massively thick book, which had well over 1400 pages, even with rather small print, and started reading.
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June 22, 2682; 1730 Hours
Earth, Sydney
Ivan had a small smile on his face as he walked back towards his parked car, Winter following at his side. The sun had started its descent towards the horizon, with Ivan's watch reading 5:30 P.M.. Among the rather bland-looking populace of Sydney, Winter stood out like a sore thumb. Her ivory hair certainly drew a few curious glances from passing pedestrians. Ivan wasn't quite sure whether he should chalk that up to her white hair, or the fact that she was absolutely stunning, even in rather casual clothes. "Any idea where Weiss and Ruby could've gone?" Winter asked, glancing down to her barely-functional scroll. It had been a fair bit of time, but integrating Remnant's radically different computer and personal electronics hardware with UEG systems was proving rather difficult. As such, Scrolls still had very limited function away from Remnant's communications grid. "My Scroll's hardly more than an over-engineered clock right now."
"No idea where they got off to." Ivan confessed. "Weiss saying 'historical sites' doesn't narrow the search by much, given the circumstance." He gestured towards the Museum of Humanity. "Damn city's almost nine hundred years old." Ivan cracked a small smile. "Blake and Yang on the other hand… I know exactly where they are."
"Where would that be?" Winter asked.
"The only actual bookstore in all of Sydney." Ivan said with a small grin. "Blake's way too predictable. And I predict that she wouldn't be able to pass up an Earth bookstore."
Winter hummed in agreement. "I'm surprised that you still have actual books. I figured you'd switch to more electronic books."
"Oh, we did." Ivan said, gesturing to his pocket that contained his datapad. "Every UEG Public School uses electronic textbooks, most publications are done through Waypoint, and almost every novel released over the past four hundred years was done through E-Books. There are a few paper-print books still, but they're considered a novelty for the most part."
"Makes sense, I suppose." Winter agreed, following next to Ivan as he walked through the streets of Sydney. As they walked through the streets of the UEG's capital, Winter's hand found its way into Ivan's as they walked. Ivan, unsurprisingly, tensed up at the contact, but seemed to relax as they walked.
Ivan casually made his way towards the bookstore in question, New South Wales Booksellers. He pushed the door open, earning a smile from the older gentleman behind the counter. "Ivan?" He asked, surprised to see the SPARTAN. "It's great to see you again! How've you been?"
"I've been fine, Mike." Ivan responded, shaking the older man's hand. "It's great to see you too."
"Feel free to look around." The storeowner said, gesturing to the shelves. "We just got a new stock of War History books from Revelle Germany and a bunch of books from that Sangheili publishing company that just expanded into UEG space. I've heard that Rtas's book is quite good."
"That came out?" Ivan asked, surprised. "I'll be sure to check it out, thanks Mike."
"Of course, my boy!" He said, clapping the SPARTAN on the back. "I'll let you and your lady-friend here get back to your business." At that, Winter and Ivan both felt the warmth of a blush creep up their cheeks. Mike let out a soft laugh at the SPARTAN's expense as he turned back towards his laptop terminal, returning to taking inventory.
Ivan smiled, turning to look at a collection of small sofas and coffee tables. Unsurprisingly, he found a black-haired girl sitting on one of them reading a rather thick novel. Unsurprisingly again, a blonde mane was visible, resting on the onyx-haired girl's lap. Ivan was actually surprised to see Yang reading a book, especially a classic like The Road. "Hey, lovebirds." Ivan said, walking over.
"Look who's talking…" Blake commented from her position on the sofa, her eyes never leaving the page she was on. She made a gesture towards Ivan and Winter's interlocked digits, earning a smile from Yang.
"Hardy har har." Ivan responded, looking down at the rather relaxed-looking pair. "You guys know where Ruby and Weiss went?"
"No idea." Yang responded, folding the corner of her current page in and sitting upright.
"Well, we should probably start looking for them." Blake said, looking up to a clock on the wall. "It's already almost six, and they're probably at the car by this point."
"Just looked there, they weren't." Ivan said, shrugging.
"They can't be far." Yang said, shrugging.
"Let me go pay for these books, then we'll get searching." Blake said, standing upright and gathering her and Yang's books, heading for the counter.
Yang shot a glance towards Ivan and Winter, who were still holding hands. A stupid grin crossed her face. "So what's your guys' pet name?"
"What?" Ivan asked, honestly confused.
"Your name for your relationship." Yang clarified. "You know how JNPR calls Blake and I Bumblebee? What's yours?"
Ivan looked to Winter, who simply shrugged. "I wasn't aware that this was a thing." Winter said.
"I don't know." Ivan said, shrugging.
"Well, either you guys think of one, or I let Nora think of one." Yang threatened, a smile on her face.
"Yang… you wouldn't..." Ivan said, a look of mock horror on his face.
Yang simply smiled as she strolled over towards her Faunus partner, wrapping an arm around her waist as she paid for the small collection of books.
"Bumblebee… that's pretty good." Winter commented, earning a smile from Ivan.
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June 22, 2682; 1812 Hours
Earth, Sydney
Weiss walked alongside Ruby as they descended the stairs out of the Museum's main building, along with a small group of other patrons. Ruby was ecstatic during the remainder of their escapades, while Weiss was simply happy to be around her constantly energetic partner. Ruby's cheerful attitude was proving to be rather infectious, as Weiss still had a smile plastered on her face.
Ruby, unsurprisingly, focused mostly on the weapons that were on display throughout the museum, while Weiss was a bit more concerned with the history being represented there… and starships. She really liked the starships. She had actually made a bit of an impulse buy, a small book that was a collection of service history for the UNSC Infinity. The ship's history really started to interest her when she read about its captain: Thomas Lasky. There were more than a few small displays dedicated to the crew of Infinity.
Ruby and Weiss made their way into the evening light of Sydney, greeted by the silhouette of an Orion-Class Battlecruiser against the backdrop of the silver city, accented by the orange sunset. There was a certain beauty of the UEG's homeworld. There was no need for massive walls, defense emplacements, or massive amounts of soldiers and police patrolling the streets. This world was at peace, and it showed. There was actual countryside you could live in without fear of being mauled by Grimm, no fear of persecution based on one's heritage, no need for huntresses or huntsmen… It was almost too much for Weiss to think about in the short few moments that she had before Ruby was pulling her back down the streets of Sydney. "Where are you dragging us off to now?" Weiss asked, following her partner.
"Didn't Ivan say to meet up at the car around five?" Ruby asked.
"Yeah…" Weiss said, raising an eyebrow.
"It may or may not be like, six."
Weiss sighed, looking down at her Scroll's clock. "I swear, Ruby Rose… ever since we became friends, I've had a harder time keeping a decent timetable." Weiss had a warm smile on her face as she followed Ruby back towards the familiar parking spot. She was rather surprised to find nobody waiting there for them.
"Looks like you're not the only one who can't keep a schedule." Ruby joked, jumping up and sitting on the metal hood of Ivan's car, kicking her feet back and forth.
After a few minutes of waiting and casual conversation, Weiss was able to make out the familiar banter between Ivan and Yang, obviously arguing about something trivial, as usual. She looked towards one end of the square, finding the rather boisterous blonde brawler walking hand-in-hand with Blake, who was walking alongside Ivan and Winter, whom were also holding hands. "Awwwww!" Ruby said, seeing Ivan and Winter holding hands. Weiss simply groaned at the sight of her older sister holding hands with the SPARTAN. She knew it was childish for her to think this way, but that didn't quite stop her from finding it weird.
"Glad to see you made it." Weiss said once the group reached earshot.
"Look who's talking." Ivan commented. "We only looked all over the square for you two. Where were you?"
"The giant museum!" Ruby said, excitedly. "It was really cool! Weiss even got something!"
"Really?" Ivan asked, seeing the small plastic bag containing the Infinity's service record, schematics, operational history, and basic information, as well as a few crewmember's stories and photos of the actual ship. Infinity itself was re-fitted fifty years ago to be put up to the rest of the Navy's standards, but she still held her name and rather feared reputation among Covenant Storm. If Ivan remembered properly, Infinity was actually reassigned to the Deep Space Exploration Flotilla in its original role as a scientific vessel. "Didn't think you'd be into starships, Weiss."
"They're interesting." Weiss admitted. "I must say, the more I learn about the UNSC, the more impressed I am."
"Especially the SPARTANs!" Ruby added. "The memorial to them in the museum was really cool!"
"Oh, you saw that one?" Ivan asked, smiling. "It's a really interesting exhibit. The fact they actually have John's armor and Noble Six's helmet on display is pretty damn cool." Winter, Blake, and Yang seemed out of the loop, but Weiss and Ruby seemed surprised at Ivan's words.
"They had his actual armor?" Ruby asked.
"You know that giant metal statue of him standing with his rifle on the ground?" Ivan asked, earning a nod from Weiss and Ruby. "That's not actually a statue… that's his actual armor. To be fair, it was his suit of Mk. V armor that he wore before Earth got invaded, but it was still his armor."
"Whoa…" Ruby said, realizing that she stood in front of a suit of armor that had seen more conflict than most ships in the UNSC fleet. "Whatever happened to him?"
"Died peacefully fifty years ago." Ivan answered. "Pretty much the entire human species mourned his passing, with a massive service on Eridanus II, where he was born." Ivan sighed, smiling slightly. "But enough about ancient history, apparently we're going to dinner with my dad tonight."
"Really?" Blake asked. "When did you find out about this?"
"When Winter and I were looking for you two." Ivan responded.
"There's one issue with that, though." Weiss said, earning everyone's attention. "There's not enough seats in your car for all of us, mister 'I removed the seats for weight reduction'."
Ivan smiled, shrugging. He pulled out his datapad, typing in a few things onto the small, transparent screen. He placed the datapad up to his ear, the dial tone barely audible. "Hello?" Sasha answered.
"Sasha… could you be amazing and swing by the Museum on your way there?" Ivan asked, smiling. "Winter's coming too, and I don't have enough seats in my car."
"You're such an idiot." Sasha replied. "I'm on the way." With that, she hung up, allowing Ivan to slide his datapad back into his pocket.
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June 22, 2682; 1904 Hours
Earth, Sydney
Ivan and Winter stepped out of his car in front of a small restaurant on the eastern outskirts of the city center. Blake and Yang had volunteered to drive there with Ivan's sister, with Weiss immediately wanting to go along when she learned that Winter would be riding with Ivan. Naturally, Ruby remained with her ivory-haired partner, leaving Ivan and Winter with the supercar. Ivan had decided to drive a bit more… legally this time around.
The restaurant was nothing special, a small one-story building colored in a rather pleasant tan with green tile roofing material. It had rather loud and colorful painted advertisements for beers and wines on the side of the building, along with some rather upbeat swing music playing over loudspeakers. "Quaint little place." Winter said with a smile. The entire parking lot was practically full of all types of cars, both expensive and relatively cheap. This restaurant was rather large and popular, and it showed through the amount of establishments they had.
"Always loved this place." Ivan said with a grin, which was immediately joined by a blush as Winter locked her arm with Ivan's. Ivan led the way through the small line that was waiting outside, thankful that his father had already reserved a table. As to be expected, Winter stood out in the crowd of rather bland-looking people, her white hair contrasting rather heavily amongst the blondes, brunettes, and black haired people. Not to mention the fact that, in Ivan's eyes, she was drop-dead gorgeous. She had a certain… intimidating presence that commanded respect, but she had shown a very playful and friendly side to the SPARTAN. Ivan could tell rather clearly that Winter didn't share that side of herself too often, if at all.
Ivan spotted his father, sister, and all of Team RWBY sitting at a round table, the booth having more than enough room to accommodate all of them. His father waved them over, a slight smirk on his face as he saw Ivan with a rather attractive woman at his side. "So Ivan…" Sergei began, smiling. "Mind introducing me to your lady friend again, maybe as your girlfriend this time?"
Sergei almost laughed at Ivan and Winter's apparent discomfort. Even though Ivan was generally a laid-back person, he still wasn't quite used to the idea of having a significant other. Winter simply felt bashful being in the presence of her own partner's father, even if he had been nothing other than friendly and welcoming to everyone from Remnant. Ivan smiled as he sat down at the table next to Sasha, with Winter sitting on his right. "Dad, this would be Winter, my girlfriend." He said, putting emphasis on the end. A small smirk crossed his lips as he saw Weiss shake her head in exasperation.
"Was that so hard?" Sergei asked with a smile. "Why didn't you tell me at the spaceport?"
"Because it was literally a thing for a day." Ivan answered, smiling.
"And the third made a difference?" Sergei asked, smirking.
"Apparently so." Ivan responded, shrugging.
"So, Winter…" Sergei began, taking a sip from a glass of water that was placed before him by a hostess. "Ironwood speaks highly of you, says you're one of the best operatives that he's ever had the privilege of working with. How long have you been military?"
"Ever since I was eighteen." Winter responded, her posture slightly more formal than usual. "I joined the Specialists once I finished with my training in Atlas' Combat School."
Ivan watched as his father questioned Winter for a few minutes, eventually relenting with his questions. He gave Ivan a look that said "good choice", earning an eye-roll from the SPARTAN. "And now that you're on leave for the trip, you can feel free to stay with us." Sergei said, still addressing Winter.
"Are you sure?" Winter asked. "I would hate to be a burden."
"Oh, please." Sergei said, shaking his head. "The damned dog is more of a burden than you could ever be." Sergei joked. "After all, I'd imagine that you'd be in the house enough anyways, might as well cut out the commute."
"Dad…" Ivan began, giving his father a joking glare, which Sergei returned with a grin.
"Only if you're absolutely sure." Winter said, grinning at Ivan's antics with his father.
"Of course I am." Sergei said, smiling.
After a few more minutes of idle conversation, the food arrived. Sergei had decided to get a rather large Chicago-style pizza for the entire table, with everyone else choosing to get all manner of food, from simple pasta to the rather ornate ziti in a bread bowl.
"So…" Ivan began, starting up the conversation again. "How was the Senate Hearing?"
"Oh god… Don't remind me." Sergei said, sighing. "I thought the representatives from Vacuo and Mistral were going to get into a damned fistfight over the voting district issue. Neither of them seemed to understand that they'd get the same amount of representatives; just the voting districts would look different between the two kingdoms. Because, you know, the cities are laid out differently."
"They're politicians, after all." Weiss said, having a fair bit of experience in dealing with politics.
"No kidding…" Sergei said. "Thankfully, we managed to agree on most things. It's going smoother than I thought."
"There's no real issue?" Blake asked. "What about the Faunus?" Nobody at the table was exactly surprised at Blake's question, even if Sergei and Sasha didn't know what was hidden underneath the bow. Sergei knew that the Faunus were a very big talking point to this day on Remnant's political stage.
"Honestly, I find the issue with the Faunus absolutely insane." Sergei said, sighing. "The sheer fact that the Kingdoms of Remnant tried to contain an entire race of people to a small Grimm-infested island, leaving them there to die, is simply disgusting." Blake smiled a slight bit at Sergei's words, which were rather impassioned. "If this treaty is signed by all parties, then the situation for the Faunus will look quite different."
"Treaty?" Weiss asked. "I thought this was just for a meeting and some basic talks between leaders."
"Initially, that was the case." Sergei explained. "After a few hours of… interesting deliberation, the President proposed the idea of fully integrating Remnant into the UEG."
"And the Kingdom leaders didn't lose their shit?" Ivan asked.
"At first, there was a fair bit of yelling." Sergei admitted. "Once the President actually explained what he meant by 'integrating', the situation calmed down a bit."
"And what did he mean?" Yang asked. "I thought Remnant would remain a protectorate planet, since the UEG didn't technically found the colonies that became the four kingdoms."
"The President's proposition was pretty simple." Sergei began, taking in a deep breath as he started his explanation. "Remnant would be fully brought into the fold, but would be granted the exact same sovereignty that every other UEG planet has. Nothing about Remnant's government would change in any measurable way, other than having the right to vote in UEG elections, getting representation in government, and they would only have to abide by certain UEG laws that are passed on a UEG-wide scale. For the most part, that's just minimum wage laws, basic human rights laws, Corporate laws, et cetera. Those rights would also extend to the Faunus, which from what I've heard, would greatly raise their standard of living on Remnant."
"That sounds… amazing." Blake said, smiling. She was truly amazed at the lengths that this human from another world was willing to defend the rights of a race that he had never had knowing contact with, even going so far as to propose bringing Remnant into the fold of a space-faring empire to make the lives of the average citizen better. It almost seemed too good to be true.
"Corporate Laws?" Weiss asked, cocking an eyebrow.
"Set corporate tax rates, minimum standard wage for workers, prevention of monopolies, et al." Sergei said. He saw Weiss' brow furrow, his memory being jogged at her apparent distaste for that little part of the treaty. "I know that Schnee Dust has some… interesting business practices, and they would certainly be investigated by the UEG if what I've heard is true. I doubt it would affect your company in any way other than improving the standard for the Faunus workers and preventing the rather… questionable practices that the SDC has been allegedly undertaking for these past few years."
"You're talking about destroying my family's company!" Weiss argued. "Why does the UEG need to get involved in a business that my family worked for generations to build?"
"It's not like we're demanding that Schnee Dust give up the market share for a smaller company to take, we're simply going to ensure that the laws regarding labor and better business practices are being followed." Sergei countered. "I know that you're the heiress to the company, and that you have a certain obligation to see it grow. The UEG does not like to get involved in private business; we'll only get involved if the law is being broken. The only issue I see that could cause the UEG to get involved, would be the stories I've heard about Faunus labor in the Dust quarries."
Weiss took a deep breath, nodding. She knew that Sergei was a politician, but he was a damned good debater. "I suppose you have a point." Weiss said. "I'm sorry."
"Don't be sorry for speaking your mind." Sergei said, waving his hand dismissively. "Like you said, it's your family's company and you want to see it grow, I understand that."
After a few moments of eating and rather casual, if slightly reserved conversation, Sergei smiled slightly. "So, Ivan…" He earned a questioning look and cocked eyebrow from the SPARTAN. "What exactly happened on Remnant? The reports I got weren't very clear."
Ivan smiled slightly. "You guys mind helping me tell this one?" Ivan asked, looking to Team RWBY for help. Ruby and Yang nodded enthusiastically, while Blake and Weiss seemed a bit more reserved. Ivan grinned and mentally prepared himself to tell a long, convoluted, and fun story.
XXXXX
June 22, 2682; 2301 Hours
Earth, Sydney
Ivan stepped back into his home in the suburbs of Sydney, smiling as Hans, the German Shepard, perked up from his slumbering position on the couch, then set his head back down once he saw who was coming in. He held the door open for Winter, who was carrying a small bag containing her personal belongings. They had debated the sleeping arrangements for the entire ride back from Winter's hotel room, with Winter refusing to relent on her insistence to take the couch. Ivan eventually got her to agree to letting him take the couch tonight, but they would alternate every other night.
Due to the late hour, everyone else had already returned to the residence and was probably sound asleep. Ivan smiled as Winter looked around the comfortable home, petting Hans as she walked by. Ivan led the way upstairs, opening the door to his bedroom. Winter glanced around to the SPARTAN's rather bland-looking room, the only thing giving it any real decoration was the pair of paintings on the wall, both of them depicting some unnamed planet. Winter smiled, turning to the SPARTAN. "I'm surprised… I was expecting it to be a bit nerdier."
Ivan smiled as he tossed his belongings into a corner. "What did you expect, action figures and comic books?"
"Maybe a bit." Winter admitted, smiling.
"I'm not that obvious of a nerd." Ivan countered, laughing softly. He gestured to his room. "Like I said, make yourself at home."
"I still don't feel right about taking your room." Winter tried one final time, seeing if she could get the SPARTAN to agree to let her take the couch.
"Winter… it's fine." Ivan insisted. "The rest of them took the two guest rooms, so this is yours for tonight."
"If you're sure…" Winter relented, smiling as she placed her bag on the bed.
"I'm sure." Ivan said. "Now, I'm gonna let you get some sleep."
"Thank you, Ivan." Winter said. "For accommodating me."
"Don't mention it." Ivan said, a small grin on his face.
Winter blushed slightly as she leaned in and planted a soft kiss on Ivan's cheek. "Goodnight, Ivan." She said, her cheeks warm.
"Y-You too…" Ivan stuttered slightly, still not used to the more intimate contact. As he awkwardly stumbled over his words, Winter simply giggled.
Ivan gave a stupid grin as he backed out of his room, making his way towards the couch. He gave Hans a light scratch behind the ears as he laid down on the elongated section of the L-shaped couch. A flurry of emotions flew through his head as he laid there, staring at the slowly spinning ceiling fan. His cheek tingled slightly where Winter had placed her kiss, earning the familiar awkward butterflies from Ivan's chest. After a few minutes of Ivan's rather excited emotions playing havoc with his mind, he eventually fell into a relaxed sleep.
