CHAPTER 4
1448 Hours, August 13, 2553 (Military Calendar)/ Somewhere in Raiek Compound
"We detect the Sparten soldiers within the compound."
In the core of the Fortress on planet Raiek, a golden Elite stood before his master. He was nervous, speaking before the Prophet who foretold of the soldiers' arrival. The Prophet talked in his normal 'we' and 'us' mannerism, which the Elite found annoying and aggravating. "We know you may be nervous, young one, but you have no reason to be. You were not given that golden armor for no reason. Weild your plasma sword with expert skills, and you shall be rewarded. Lead your team to victory, and kill the Spartans. If you do this, you will make us very happy."
The Elite spoke in a strange tongue. "Sey, I lliw od sa uoy hsiw." The mixed language was that of the Covenant race, spoken by primarily the Elites. But the UNSC had a trick to decoding it. They read the text backwards, and the words usually fit.
Hovering in the air, legs crossed, his headdress bobbing as he floated easily, the Prophet nodded. "Of course you will. Go, our son, and do as you are bid." The headdress itself was a brilliant brass color, and the Prophet wore a red robe with a gold underrobe. Tucked somewhere beneath all that clothing was the Prophet's grav belt, that allowed it to hover nearly a foot off the floor.
The Elite grunted, clenched his lower jaw, and turned on his heel, heading out the door to return to his troops.
James sprinted down the hallway, and quickly found himself lost. Holding his assault rifle nervously in his hand, he slowed his pace and breathed for a second. Just then, a voice sparkled over his headset. Tapping the side of his helmet, James spoke into it. "Say again."
James recognized the voice of Bryce easily as it came in clearer this time. "James, we are not far from your location. Are you on your way to the open area in the center of the compound?"
Speaking into the mic was a certain quietness, James tried to get some information from his crewmember. "Affmirative. Any word from O'Hara on- board Foehammer?"
Bryce's voice came back through the mic, a little more shakily this time. "Of course. Patrick relayed some information to us from Moores. The Marines are on their way to the center area, where some Covenant warriors have been spotted. Mostly Grunts, but they appear to be working on some sort of cannon. According to their calculations, it's aimed right for the Pillar of Winter in orbit."
James sighed. He'd feared this would happen. Grunts were weak, but hordes of them could be dangerous. They wore outfits that simulated the frozen environment of their home world. The packs strapped to their backs was one weakness. If shot, they could take out multiple Grunts after the explosion.
Moving further down the hall, assault rifle in hand, James continued to speak into the mic. "Is there any way for the Marines to handle it without us? We need to locate the Prophets in this place. They have to be somewhere."
"No way," Bryce said. "They desperately need our help. The Grunts are using plasma grenades to hold them off. If they hope to break through to the cannon, they need backup from Spartans."
"Right," he said, sighing again. "Continue your mission, soldier. Relay this to Alex: Do not come looking for me. I am coming upon a room with several maps in it, looks like a navigation room. It's abandoned, but I should be able to find a map of the place."
"No one will come after you, sir," Bryce confirmed.
"The next time you try to contact me, if I am unreachable, forget me. The mission is what's important. I will be fine on my own. I didn't get my rank for nothing, you know."
Bryce laughed, his voice coming through fizzled and distorted. "Of course."
"End transmission." James killed his link as he walked through the door leading to an abandoned nav room. Among it was everything he could possibly need. Maps of the compound, maps of Raiek, maps of everything. As he came upon a table, James noticed blueprints laid out. Taking a look at them, he saw that these must have been the plans to that cannon Bryce mentioned.
Using the camera function in his HUD, James snapped a picture, and grabbed several holo-maps from the wall. Then, he unloaded several assault rifle rounds into the blueprints, the computers, and the remaining devices. With that, he quickly sprinted from the room and used the holo-map he had to direct himself to the open center area.
Remembering what Moores had told him, James hefted a metal pack strapped to his back, larger than ones normally worn, higher up. It was beginning to bother him. Inside were four explosives. He had often heard of something called a 'nuke' used long ago. Just one of what he carried with him had the explosive power of four of these. It was hard to believe that such power could be crammed into a package only half a foot tall.
Moving as swiftly as he could, James Carser quickly made his way to where he was needed. He planned to use one of the LOTUS bombs to obliterate that cannon.
Alex Daufel and his teammates ran right through the doors leading to the battlefield. There was nothing that could have stopped the mêlée. But the four Spartans came striding up to a weary-looking officer of about thirty-two years of age, standing behind an overturned Warthog.
The Warthogs were green-colored, jeeplike vehicles, often used for quick transportation. They also came in various styles. Ones with treads for snow, cammouflage for jungle travel, and ones with large backs capable of holding five or six extra Spartans.
Alex moved to the ragged Colonel and berrated him with questions. "When is Foehammer going to arrive? We need a transport Warthog to break through that crowd."
The Colonel frowned, issuing several grenades to tired-looking soldiers. "That's just the problem. For all we know, Foehammer has been shot down. After checking our status equipment several times, we cannot locate the whereabouts of the dropship."
Jason came up behind them and cursed under his breath. "What was the last thing you heard?" he asked. Alex nodded in agreement.
The Colonel thought for a moment. "Last I heard they were heading over the rim of the base to meet us, but that was almost an hour ago! I don't know how much longer I can keep my men out there. They're being annihilated trying to reach that cannon. If we let them build up all the power they need from the planet's core, we'll never be able to stop them."
"So, that's what they want this planet for, eh?" Alex asked the Colonel.
"Of course. This planet's core is solid plasma, so if they can extract enough power, that cannon will destroy any of the Outer Colonies in one shot. Unless we can stop them."
"This won't be as easy as we thought," Bryce said to them.
Jarret came up behind all of them. "I hope James makes it out of there in one piece. Who knows what will happen to him?"
Alex sighed, looking back towards the base as bullets flew around them. "I don't know. But we should hold strong. Have faith in our commander. He'll know exactly what to do if he makes it out of there."
James had a strategy in mind. He would use one LOTUS in his pack to destroy that cannon after taking out the Grunts around it. Then, he would use the remaining three LOTUS's to obliterate the planet's complex, and turn it into a desolate wasteland. He did not want to completely destroy it, because perhaps it could be used sometime in the future.
He came out from the complex and into the large open field. What he saw horrified him. Thousand of Grunts crowded around the large weapon in the very center of their large area. According to his map, this was not the rendezvous point. This area was just next to that place. A small opening lead off the side to their large open area.
"Time to get busy."
From several hundred meters away, Alex and Jason spotted James come out of the complex, much higher up than they were, on a large ridge situated where he came out. It rushed up from the ground several hundred feet up, at an almost forty-five degree angle.
Knowing Bryce still had the Jackhammer, James activated his Comm-Link. "Master Chief Bryce McClain, this is Master Commander James Carser. Do you still have the Jackhammer formerly held by Brent Ashley?"
The voice crackled through his helmet. "Of course, sir."
"I want it." James's orders were clear and simple.
Down with Alex, Bryce handed the Jackhammer over to a Marine. "Take it, soldier," he said, "and get it up that hill to the Commander at all costs." The Marine nodded and gingerly took the Launcher. Nodding to some of the other Marines around him, the seven of them took off for the hill where James stood.
Jason and Jarrett looked skyward. Pointing, Jason motioned to the Pelican dropship Foehammer. The old ship had been rebuilt after it crashed several years ago. Coming in at an odd angle, the ship bucked and swayed in mid-air. The pilot's voice crackled through Alex's mic. "Sir, we have a problem. I am under control by three Elites and a Hunter. I have no way of escape. The jump director Patrick O'Hara is dead. I am the only left on- board."
Alex radioed his message back. "If you are to die so soon, we shall honor you. All you must do is release a Transport Warthog."
"Aye, aye, General," the Colonel responded. As the Dropship swooped down, a Warthog plopped onto the ground in front of them. On the back was a large flat space, replacing the usual mounted gun, used for transporting soldiers. It could hold up to seven.
Alex sent this information to James, and waited for a response. "I'm going up after them. That pilot is going to live!"
"What?!" Alex shouted back. "That's insane!"
Jarrett looked up and pointed. "It's too late!" The Marines lugging the Jackhammer had made it up. However, there were only three left now. The bodies of the others lay sprawled at different places on the hill. As James took the Launcher in his hand, he aimed at at the group of Grunts. He immediately pulled the trigger, and a large group of them howled in pain as they were engulfed by the resulting explosion.
Just then, as James readied another shot, the cannon jerked into motion. Slowly, it began to sink into the ground. As it did this, seven Banshees appeared in the sky, flying in a tight V-formation, firing at the Marines below, eliminating them by the handfuls with each shot.
Quickly hopping into the Warthog's driver seat, Alex pointed up as Foehammer circled back around, staying within their sight. "I have a feeling James is going to try to save Foehammer's pilot."
"It's suicide!" Jarrett breathed as he hopped into the flat area of the back. Bryce got in next to Alex, holding his assault rifle over the dashboard as Alex started the engine. Jason also jumped in next to Jarrett. Alex jammed his foot on the gas pedal, and the vehicle shot forward, tearing through the wintery ground.
The cannon was gone, and the Grunts were retreating. This left the path to the second sector of the base open. Seizing the opportunity, most Marines followed in Warthogs. James spotted his crew following in a Transport Warthog.
As he looked skyward, James noticed the Banshees swooping towards him. Aiming the Jackhammer up at them, he fired, taking out the leader and three others. As they turned in a tight manner, trying to evade the next attack, James ditched the Launcher and leaped at one of them...three meters straight up.
Grasping the meter-long wing of the Banshee, James struggled to hold on as it gradually gained height. Using his left arm, he reached into the cockpit with his pistol and shot a single bullet into the head of the Elite pilot. The warrior tumbled out.
James slowly maneuvered himself to the cockpit. However, with no pilot, the aircraft was starting to dip towards the ground. Just as it grazed the ground, James threw himself in and grabbed the controls, easily angling it back upwards.
"Now, it has to be around here somewhere." Using the scanners, the Commander located dropship Foehammer, circling around where his crew was heading towards the next area. At full speed, James pulled alongside the ship, and saw where the Elites and Hunter had obviously entered. A small opening in the dispatch ramp. Guiding himself closer, James threw himself from the Banshee and latched onto the open ramp. James sucked in a deep breath and slipped inside, only to find two Elites staring right at him.
"Teg mih!"
1448 Hours, August 13, 2553 (Military Calendar)/ Somewhere in Raiek Compound
"We detect the Sparten soldiers within the compound."
In the core of the Fortress on planet Raiek, a golden Elite stood before his master. He was nervous, speaking before the Prophet who foretold of the soldiers' arrival. The Prophet talked in his normal 'we' and 'us' mannerism, which the Elite found annoying and aggravating. "We know you may be nervous, young one, but you have no reason to be. You were not given that golden armor for no reason. Weild your plasma sword with expert skills, and you shall be rewarded. Lead your team to victory, and kill the Spartans. If you do this, you will make us very happy."
The Elite spoke in a strange tongue. "Sey, I lliw od sa uoy hsiw." The mixed language was that of the Covenant race, spoken by primarily the Elites. But the UNSC had a trick to decoding it. They read the text backwards, and the words usually fit.
Hovering in the air, legs crossed, his headdress bobbing as he floated easily, the Prophet nodded. "Of course you will. Go, our son, and do as you are bid." The headdress itself was a brilliant brass color, and the Prophet wore a red robe with a gold underrobe. Tucked somewhere beneath all that clothing was the Prophet's grav belt, that allowed it to hover nearly a foot off the floor.
The Elite grunted, clenched his lower jaw, and turned on his heel, heading out the door to return to his troops.
James sprinted down the hallway, and quickly found himself lost. Holding his assault rifle nervously in his hand, he slowed his pace and breathed for a second. Just then, a voice sparkled over his headset. Tapping the side of his helmet, James spoke into it. "Say again."
James recognized the voice of Bryce easily as it came in clearer this time. "James, we are not far from your location. Are you on your way to the open area in the center of the compound?"
Speaking into the mic was a certain quietness, James tried to get some information from his crewmember. "Affmirative. Any word from O'Hara on- board Foehammer?"
Bryce's voice came back through the mic, a little more shakily this time. "Of course. Patrick relayed some information to us from Moores. The Marines are on their way to the center area, where some Covenant warriors have been spotted. Mostly Grunts, but they appear to be working on some sort of cannon. According to their calculations, it's aimed right for the Pillar of Winter in orbit."
James sighed. He'd feared this would happen. Grunts were weak, but hordes of them could be dangerous. They wore outfits that simulated the frozen environment of their home world. The packs strapped to their backs was one weakness. If shot, they could take out multiple Grunts after the explosion.
Moving further down the hall, assault rifle in hand, James continued to speak into the mic. "Is there any way for the Marines to handle it without us? We need to locate the Prophets in this place. They have to be somewhere."
"No way," Bryce said. "They desperately need our help. The Grunts are using plasma grenades to hold them off. If they hope to break through to the cannon, they need backup from Spartans."
"Right," he said, sighing again. "Continue your mission, soldier. Relay this to Alex: Do not come looking for me. I am coming upon a room with several maps in it, looks like a navigation room. It's abandoned, but I should be able to find a map of the place."
"No one will come after you, sir," Bryce confirmed.
"The next time you try to contact me, if I am unreachable, forget me. The mission is what's important. I will be fine on my own. I didn't get my rank for nothing, you know."
Bryce laughed, his voice coming through fizzled and distorted. "Of course."
"End transmission." James killed his link as he walked through the door leading to an abandoned nav room. Among it was everything he could possibly need. Maps of the compound, maps of Raiek, maps of everything. As he came upon a table, James noticed blueprints laid out. Taking a look at them, he saw that these must have been the plans to that cannon Bryce mentioned.
Using the camera function in his HUD, James snapped a picture, and grabbed several holo-maps from the wall. Then, he unloaded several assault rifle rounds into the blueprints, the computers, and the remaining devices. With that, he quickly sprinted from the room and used the holo-map he had to direct himself to the open center area.
Remembering what Moores had told him, James hefted a metal pack strapped to his back, larger than ones normally worn, higher up. It was beginning to bother him. Inside were four explosives. He had often heard of something called a 'nuke' used long ago. Just one of what he carried with him had the explosive power of four of these. It was hard to believe that such power could be crammed into a package only half a foot tall.
Moving as swiftly as he could, James Carser quickly made his way to where he was needed. He planned to use one of the LOTUS bombs to obliterate that cannon.
Alex Daufel and his teammates ran right through the doors leading to the battlefield. There was nothing that could have stopped the mêlée. But the four Spartans came striding up to a weary-looking officer of about thirty-two years of age, standing behind an overturned Warthog.
The Warthogs were green-colored, jeeplike vehicles, often used for quick transportation. They also came in various styles. Ones with treads for snow, cammouflage for jungle travel, and ones with large backs capable of holding five or six extra Spartans.
Alex moved to the ragged Colonel and berrated him with questions. "When is Foehammer going to arrive? We need a transport Warthog to break through that crowd."
The Colonel frowned, issuing several grenades to tired-looking soldiers. "That's just the problem. For all we know, Foehammer has been shot down. After checking our status equipment several times, we cannot locate the whereabouts of the dropship."
Jason came up behind them and cursed under his breath. "What was the last thing you heard?" he asked. Alex nodded in agreement.
The Colonel thought for a moment. "Last I heard they were heading over the rim of the base to meet us, but that was almost an hour ago! I don't know how much longer I can keep my men out there. They're being annihilated trying to reach that cannon. If we let them build up all the power they need from the planet's core, we'll never be able to stop them."
"So, that's what they want this planet for, eh?" Alex asked the Colonel.
"Of course. This planet's core is solid plasma, so if they can extract enough power, that cannon will destroy any of the Outer Colonies in one shot. Unless we can stop them."
"This won't be as easy as we thought," Bryce said to them.
Jarret came up behind all of them. "I hope James makes it out of there in one piece. Who knows what will happen to him?"
Alex sighed, looking back towards the base as bullets flew around them. "I don't know. But we should hold strong. Have faith in our commander. He'll know exactly what to do if he makes it out of there."
James had a strategy in mind. He would use one LOTUS in his pack to destroy that cannon after taking out the Grunts around it. Then, he would use the remaining three LOTUS's to obliterate the planet's complex, and turn it into a desolate wasteland. He did not want to completely destroy it, because perhaps it could be used sometime in the future.
He came out from the complex and into the large open field. What he saw horrified him. Thousand of Grunts crowded around the large weapon in the very center of their large area. According to his map, this was not the rendezvous point. This area was just next to that place. A small opening lead off the side to their large open area.
"Time to get busy."
From several hundred meters away, Alex and Jason spotted James come out of the complex, much higher up than they were, on a large ridge situated where he came out. It rushed up from the ground several hundred feet up, at an almost forty-five degree angle.
Knowing Bryce still had the Jackhammer, James activated his Comm-Link. "Master Chief Bryce McClain, this is Master Commander James Carser. Do you still have the Jackhammer formerly held by Brent Ashley?"
The voice crackled through his helmet. "Of course, sir."
"I want it." James's orders were clear and simple.
Down with Alex, Bryce handed the Jackhammer over to a Marine. "Take it, soldier," he said, "and get it up that hill to the Commander at all costs." The Marine nodded and gingerly took the Launcher. Nodding to some of the other Marines around him, the seven of them took off for the hill where James stood.
Jason and Jarrett looked skyward. Pointing, Jason motioned to the Pelican dropship Foehammer. The old ship had been rebuilt after it crashed several years ago. Coming in at an odd angle, the ship bucked and swayed in mid-air. The pilot's voice crackled through Alex's mic. "Sir, we have a problem. I am under control by three Elites and a Hunter. I have no way of escape. The jump director Patrick O'Hara is dead. I am the only left on- board."
Alex radioed his message back. "If you are to die so soon, we shall honor you. All you must do is release a Transport Warthog."
"Aye, aye, General," the Colonel responded. As the Dropship swooped down, a Warthog plopped onto the ground in front of them. On the back was a large flat space, replacing the usual mounted gun, used for transporting soldiers. It could hold up to seven.
Alex sent this information to James, and waited for a response. "I'm going up after them. That pilot is going to live!"
"What?!" Alex shouted back. "That's insane!"
Jarrett looked up and pointed. "It's too late!" The Marines lugging the Jackhammer had made it up. However, there were only three left now. The bodies of the others lay sprawled at different places on the hill. As James took the Launcher in his hand, he aimed at at the group of Grunts. He immediately pulled the trigger, and a large group of them howled in pain as they were engulfed by the resulting explosion.
Just then, as James readied another shot, the cannon jerked into motion. Slowly, it began to sink into the ground. As it did this, seven Banshees appeared in the sky, flying in a tight V-formation, firing at the Marines below, eliminating them by the handfuls with each shot.
Quickly hopping into the Warthog's driver seat, Alex pointed up as Foehammer circled back around, staying within their sight. "I have a feeling James is going to try to save Foehammer's pilot."
"It's suicide!" Jarrett breathed as he hopped into the flat area of the back. Bryce got in next to Alex, holding his assault rifle over the dashboard as Alex started the engine. Jason also jumped in next to Jarrett. Alex jammed his foot on the gas pedal, and the vehicle shot forward, tearing through the wintery ground.
The cannon was gone, and the Grunts were retreating. This left the path to the second sector of the base open. Seizing the opportunity, most Marines followed in Warthogs. James spotted his crew following in a Transport Warthog.
As he looked skyward, James noticed the Banshees swooping towards him. Aiming the Jackhammer up at them, he fired, taking out the leader and three others. As they turned in a tight manner, trying to evade the next attack, James ditched the Launcher and leaped at one of them...three meters straight up.
Grasping the meter-long wing of the Banshee, James struggled to hold on as it gradually gained height. Using his left arm, he reached into the cockpit with his pistol and shot a single bullet into the head of the Elite pilot. The warrior tumbled out.
James slowly maneuvered himself to the cockpit. However, with no pilot, the aircraft was starting to dip towards the ground. Just as it grazed the ground, James threw himself in and grabbed the controls, easily angling it back upwards.
"Now, it has to be around here somewhere." Using the scanners, the Commander located dropship Foehammer, circling around where his crew was heading towards the next area. At full speed, James pulled alongside the ship, and saw where the Elites and Hunter had obviously entered. A small opening in the dispatch ramp. Guiding himself closer, James threw himself from the Banshee and latched onto the open ramp. James sucked in a deep breath and slipped inside, only to find two Elites staring right at him.
"Teg mih!"