Halo: The Nameless War
Chapter 11: Triumph And Disaster
Even though both Lieutenants were in the team, it was Jerkin who now took command. They moved quickly towards the area they were to clear, guns raised and blasting at anything they came across. They knew the Chief would be fighting for his life not far beneath them.
Once they reached the cargo bay they found all of the entrances blocked by the ongoing battle between the Covenant and the Flood. The Flood were being kept at bay quite efficiently. With no time to lose Thyme and Reid fired rockets, blasting apart the Elites at the exit the team had chosen and knocking back the Flood. Quickly, the Covenant moved to refortify but they were swept clean by landmines Reid had set. The Flood in the cargo bay turned towards the Omega Team.
A second wave of rockets went out, killing most of the attacking Flood. Jerkin called for Suppressing fire, the team opened fire with their Assault Rifles, taking our hundreds of the small heads. The more vicious of the Flood began towards them, but as they got close Jerkin and Gainer switched to their Shotguns and blasted them apart.
Omega Team stood strong until the bulk of the area was clear and then moved away once they received a transmission from Cortana.
"Team, move away, I see you've done a good job. I am sorry for your losses, but I am afraid your safety is more important. Now is the time to leave, once the Chief is up he won't stop shooting until the way is clear. Go now."
Doing as they were told the team left the area and were soon chased by Covenant. They ran as quickly as possible, turning and moving until they were forced to stop.
They had ended up in a huge dark room with a gaping hole in the centre. From the hole came constant blasts of wind, almost knocking the team over. They could not see far enough to see just how wide the hole was. Turning around, they saw that they were cornered by a Covenant Assault group.
A Red Elite started blasting with it's Plasma Rifle, skimming Reid's shoulder before they dived into cover. Three red grunts and two blue Jackals opened fire from behind it. Mesa chanced a glance and almost lost her eyes. She signalled across to Gainer, who got the message. Throwing down a Plasma Grenade the Covenant scattered to escape it and before they could recover Omega Team was on them, blasting with Assault Rifles and Shotguns until all that was left was pieces of the Covenant forces. They had sent very little, very little could be spared.
Omega Team got running, hearing explosions behind them regularly. They just kept moving onwards until they came to a shuttle bay. They ran past a small battle and into a side room. It was a dead end.
"What the hell are we going to do now?" shouted Mesa, her years of Stealth and weapons training meant nothing here.
Gainer however, raised her Shotgun, "we ride out the storm."
The team moved quickly, backing against the opposite wall, where a Wraith tank was sat, turned off. Jerkin and Gainer took mid positions, their shotguns at the ready. Mesa stood to Jerkin's left with her Assault Rifle raised, while Reid and Thyme kept their Rocket Launchers pointed. Williams scrambled into the Wraith, but was immediately perplexed by the controls.
The door opened and rockets flied. Thyme dropped her Launcher, she had no rockets left. Reid began a hasty reload to her last two as the Flood came forward.
Chaos ensued.
Jerkin and Gainer stood still, not moving and blasting at every Flood that came their way. The combatants were crippled by the two of them. The heads were dealt with mercilessly by Mesa and Thyme. They continued shooting until they hit a deranged Hunter. The entire thing exploded, sending the Flood scattering and clearing the way a little. They took the time to reload.
"I'm almost out!" cried Jerkin, checking what was left of his ammo. He had four shells. Gainer passed him another three, but those were her lasts also. She now only had the eight in her gun. The march of broken feet began again, mashing towards the door.
"Use them only when completely necessary," said Jerkin, "aim for the exploders. Look sharp."
The Flood came at them quickly, but were blown apart by another rocket from Reid. Bedlam began again. The Flood came near and were blown by a deformed Hunter whenever they came close. Three were lucky enough to get close, but Jerkin took them all down with a blast of his Shotgun. He was down to four shots.
As the Flood began towards the doorway Jerkin called for a rocket. Reid decided against it and just sent a whole load of Needles into her targets. In the doorway all twenty exploded in three straight explosions. The Covenant were coming and were trying to trap the Flood in this room. The Flood seemed to think the Covenant more dangerous. The Covenant broke through them and were met by Reid's final rocket, clearing the path out. She dropped her launcher and grinned across at Jerkin.
"I knew I'd need it," she exclaimed, "now let's get the hell out of here."
Running again. They moved out into the shuttle bay, but soon realised they were trapped. They moved back into the room and waiting for the sound of gunfire to cease.
A whirring sound behind them brought them back to present.
The Wraith tank moved towards them and from it's head came the call of Williams, "This thing would be useful right about now, hop in."
It was too cramped for them all to get in, so they took well-guarded positions around it. Jerkin and Gainer knelt at the back, guarded by the top of it and slightly from the sides. The three remaining girls split themselves up. Thyme moved inside and helped Williams get the thing moving, while the other two clung on to the sides with their Assault Rifles up. Jerkin called for forward and Williams complied.
They burst out of the doorway and instantly hit a mortar at a group of Flood coming towards them. Mesa and Reid shot down the Covenant grunts and Elite coming behind them. The Covenant blasts ricocheted from the back of the Wraith, hitting nobody. When they were dealt with Williams moved on, through another door and into the corridor down. Sweeping down at maximum speed it ran over countless enemies before breaking through the next door and blasting down a battleground near the middle of the room. More blasts came from around the room and covering fire was made. Assault Rifle rounds were fired until another mortar was launched and hit another group of Covenant, taking out several crates around them.
Mesa and Reid leapt from the Wraith in the direction they were facing. Jerkin and Gainer covered, while the Wraith shot another mortar at its oppressors. Mesa and Reid disappeared into crates before reappearing driving Ghosts. They flanked the Wraith, shooting down Elites and chasing grunts until the whole area was clear of Covenant. A door flashed in the corner and the Wraith moved to turn. The Flood came forward, blasting with Plasma Rifles and other weapons but not making a dent in the armour of the covenant tank. The Ghosts moved forward, shooting down Flood and circling them until Williams called for them to move. A mortar ripped the Flood apart. The door closed.
The door behind the Wraith flashed and opened, leading in more Flood. Jerkin cried out, three were carrying Shotguns. The Ghosts moved forward, hitting down everything until a lucky swung brought Reid off of her Ghost. She hit the ground in a heap and scrambled up, shooting out bursts from her Assault Rifle as she did. The flood moved forward, but were hit by the other Ghost. Mesa cut through them and turned. Too slow. A Flood at the back of the pile moved forward and shot everything it had at the Ghost. Rocketfire blew the Ghost apart and Mesa on it. The Wraith shot a Mortar, knocking away the Flood. But it was too late.
The team had no time to waste. Saying a silent prayer, they moved on.
Chapter 11: Triumph And Disaster
Even though both Lieutenants were in the team, it was Jerkin who now took command. They moved quickly towards the area they were to clear, guns raised and blasting at anything they came across. They knew the Chief would be fighting for his life not far beneath them.
Once they reached the cargo bay they found all of the entrances blocked by the ongoing battle between the Covenant and the Flood. The Flood were being kept at bay quite efficiently. With no time to lose Thyme and Reid fired rockets, blasting apart the Elites at the exit the team had chosen and knocking back the Flood. Quickly, the Covenant moved to refortify but they were swept clean by landmines Reid had set. The Flood in the cargo bay turned towards the Omega Team.
A second wave of rockets went out, killing most of the attacking Flood. Jerkin called for Suppressing fire, the team opened fire with their Assault Rifles, taking our hundreds of the small heads. The more vicious of the Flood began towards them, but as they got close Jerkin and Gainer switched to their Shotguns and blasted them apart.
Omega Team stood strong until the bulk of the area was clear and then moved away once they received a transmission from Cortana.
"Team, move away, I see you've done a good job. I am sorry for your losses, but I am afraid your safety is more important. Now is the time to leave, once the Chief is up he won't stop shooting until the way is clear. Go now."
Doing as they were told the team left the area and were soon chased by Covenant. They ran as quickly as possible, turning and moving until they were forced to stop.
They had ended up in a huge dark room with a gaping hole in the centre. From the hole came constant blasts of wind, almost knocking the team over. They could not see far enough to see just how wide the hole was. Turning around, they saw that they were cornered by a Covenant Assault group.
A Red Elite started blasting with it's Plasma Rifle, skimming Reid's shoulder before they dived into cover. Three red grunts and two blue Jackals opened fire from behind it. Mesa chanced a glance and almost lost her eyes. She signalled across to Gainer, who got the message. Throwing down a Plasma Grenade the Covenant scattered to escape it and before they could recover Omega Team was on them, blasting with Assault Rifles and Shotguns until all that was left was pieces of the Covenant forces. They had sent very little, very little could be spared.
Omega Team got running, hearing explosions behind them regularly. They just kept moving onwards until they came to a shuttle bay. They ran past a small battle and into a side room. It was a dead end.
"What the hell are we going to do now?" shouted Mesa, her years of Stealth and weapons training meant nothing here.
Gainer however, raised her Shotgun, "we ride out the storm."
The team moved quickly, backing against the opposite wall, where a Wraith tank was sat, turned off. Jerkin and Gainer took mid positions, their shotguns at the ready. Mesa stood to Jerkin's left with her Assault Rifle raised, while Reid and Thyme kept their Rocket Launchers pointed. Williams scrambled into the Wraith, but was immediately perplexed by the controls.
The door opened and rockets flied. Thyme dropped her Launcher, she had no rockets left. Reid began a hasty reload to her last two as the Flood came forward.
Chaos ensued.
Jerkin and Gainer stood still, not moving and blasting at every Flood that came their way. The combatants were crippled by the two of them. The heads were dealt with mercilessly by Mesa and Thyme. They continued shooting until they hit a deranged Hunter. The entire thing exploded, sending the Flood scattering and clearing the way a little. They took the time to reload.
"I'm almost out!" cried Jerkin, checking what was left of his ammo. He had four shells. Gainer passed him another three, but those were her lasts also. She now only had the eight in her gun. The march of broken feet began again, mashing towards the door.
"Use them only when completely necessary," said Jerkin, "aim for the exploders. Look sharp."
The Flood came at them quickly, but were blown apart by another rocket from Reid. Bedlam began again. The Flood came near and were blown by a deformed Hunter whenever they came close. Three were lucky enough to get close, but Jerkin took them all down with a blast of his Shotgun. He was down to four shots.
As the Flood began towards the doorway Jerkin called for a rocket. Reid decided against it and just sent a whole load of Needles into her targets. In the doorway all twenty exploded in three straight explosions. The Covenant were coming and were trying to trap the Flood in this room. The Flood seemed to think the Covenant more dangerous. The Covenant broke through them and were met by Reid's final rocket, clearing the path out. She dropped her launcher and grinned across at Jerkin.
"I knew I'd need it," she exclaimed, "now let's get the hell out of here."
Running again. They moved out into the shuttle bay, but soon realised they were trapped. They moved back into the room and waiting for the sound of gunfire to cease.
A whirring sound behind them brought them back to present.
The Wraith tank moved towards them and from it's head came the call of Williams, "This thing would be useful right about now, hop in."
It was too cramped for them all to get in, so they took well-guarded positions around it. Jerkin and Gainer knelt at the back, guarded by the top of it and slightly from the sides. The three remaining girls split themselves up. Thyme moved inside and helped Williams get the thing moving, while the other two clung on to the sides with their Assault Rifles up. Jerkin called for forward and Williams complied.
They burst out of the doorway and instantly hit a mortar at a group of Flood coming towards them. Mesa and Reid shot down the Covenant grunts and Elite coming behind them. The Covenant blasts ricocheted from the back of the Wraith, hitting nobody. When they were dealt with Williams moved on, through another door and into the corridor down. Sweeping down at maximum speed it ran over countless enemies before breaking through the next door and blasting down a battleground near the middle of the room. More blasts came from around the room and covering fire was made. Assault Rifle rounds were fired until another mortar was launched and hit another group of Covenant, taking out several crates around them.
Mesa and Reid leapt from the Wraith in the direction they were facing. Jerkin and Gainer covered, while the Wraith shot another mortar at its oppressors. Mesa and Reid disappeared into crates before reappearing driving Ghosts. They flanked the Wraith, shooting down Elites and chasing grunts until the whole area was clear of Covenant. A door flashed in the corner and the Wraith moved to turn. The Flood came forward, blasting with Plasma Rifles and other weapons but not making a dent in the armour of the covenant tank. The Ghosts moved forward, shooting down Flood and circling them until Williams called for them to move. A mortar ripped the Flood apart. The door closed.
The door behind the Wraith flashed and opened, leading in more Flood. Jerkin cried out, three were carrying Shotguns. The Ghosts moved forward, hitting down everything until a lucky swung brought Reid off of her Ghost. She hit the ground in a heap and scrambled up, shooting out bursts from her Assault Rifle as she did. The flood moved forward, but were hit by the other Ghost. Mesa cut through them and turned. Too slow. A Flood at the back of the pile moved forward and shot everything it had at the Ghost. Rocketfire blew the Ghost apart and Mesa on it. The Wraith shot a Mortar, knocking away the Flood. But it was too late.
The team had no time to waste. Saying a silent prayer, they moved on.