Disclaimer: You know it, I know it, but here it is again; I own
nothing
&&&&&&
The first and second attack flights flew out of the remaining two frigates to their targets. An aerial assault on the 'Bloody-Handed Zealot', and a ground-based attack on the 'Word of the Gods'.
Jamis looked on blankly as the Carryalls flew off, carrying the siege and combat tanks, where they would meet up with the quicker quad and trike squads. He looked back at his flight group and hunched his shoulders. Three minutes ETA, no turning back. All combat 'thopters had been sent out in a diversion, in order to occupy the Covenant vessel, or the BHZ as some had started to call it.
All the 'thopters with the heavy payloads; thermal bombs, bunker- busters, shells, lasguns and the like, had been equipped with Holtzman generators, but they had a tendency to short out when shielding vehicles.
On the other hand, lighter 'thopters, like the one he was flying now, were equipped with no shielding. They were to be used in fighting any possible enemy fighters. Jamis had seen a few of them once or twice. Hell, he'd managed to shoot one down, but then again, it was being forced down by enemy fire to begin with, so he couldn't really convince himself that it would be easy.
The flight group, as one, turned and started to fly across the Circle Sea, heading towards their target.
&&&&&&
Pardee tried to fit the uncomfortable armour over his new and unusual frame. His appearance, that of a Covenant Elite, was bizarre for him, but it needed to be done. One technician handed him an alien rifle, which looked to him like a purple-quilled porcupine, but he took it anyway.
While the humans quickly went over his appearance, and what he would say, he was recalling the original mission he was sent on by the Bene Tleilaxu, to inspect and bring back samples of any alien life. Then he compared it to his new mission; to secure an alien spaceship, and kill any who was in his way.
A tough decision, he thought humourlessly, as he repeated some of the jaw-numbing alien language a Mentat was teaching him.
The last piece of armour that was put on him was the tight-fitting helmet. He heard a whine, and saw alien symbols light up inside the helm, felt a field form around him. He grabbed a small knife presented to him, and hid it beneath a shin-pad.
The group stepped back from him, and the Mentat Ingsley nodded his head. His hands flew over a panel, and rings of orange-white surrounded Pardee.
&&&&&&
Bomoko sighed faintly as he saw the last of the 'thopter defence fly off to join the strike-force against the Covenant ship. Although all vessels were needed in the attack, Bomoko couldn't help but feel nervous by the lack of military presence. Only a few squads were left, all of which would be used to take over the 'God's own Wrath', the alien ship Pardee was on, once Pardee sent the signal he had secured the bridge, or whatever passed for the bridge on such a vessel.
Idaho walked beside him and sat down on the tropical sand, his rodent- eyes ringed with tiredness, and his breath stinking of rachag and caffeine stimulants.
"Well, Bomoko, this is the proverbial 'it', for us." He muttered, his feet shifting unconsciously from time to time. "I wonder if we shall be able to pull it off?"
Bomoko fixed him with a tired smile. "Don't ask a Mentat a question if you don't want to hear the answer." He replied, taking a sip of the cranberry-red sapho juice.
"Is it really, that bleak, Mentat? Tell me; is there no chance of survival?"
Bomoko put the small flask to the side and put his fingers to his temples. "Most of our strategy..." he began. "Is based on chance. We have limited knowledge of our enemy's forces, little knowledge of their defences, how they react under pressure, etc. etc" Bomoko turned to Idaho. "In our training, we were always told to expect the worse with unknown chances, hence you could compensate for them in other calculations. However, I cannot compensate for the unknown chances anymore, so our chances are... astronomical, to say the least."
Idaho nodded slightly, and sighed. "Tell me," he said suddenly. "Since we're all going to die, by your calculations, what does that sapho juice taste like?"
&&&&&&
Chakosba grinned in anticipation as the flight group headed towards the humans Command Centre. In their fanatic haste to occupy all defensive positions on the Halo, they had neglected the 'Silent Cartographer'.
All Halos were pretty much the same, and the original schematics for a Halo had been sent back to the Covenant homeworld. Since all ships know had a detailed map on Halos, they had forgotten about the map-rooms on the Halos they had occupied, thinking that occupying the island would be a waste of resources.
Their mistake almost cost them this battle, but Chakosba now knew he had the head of the serpent in his grasp, ready for the fatal blow.
The tropical island came into view...
&&&&&&
The Carryall 'legs' disconnected from the Siege tanks' tread armour, and flew off, jinking through the rocky mountain outcrops. The tanks rumbled forward, heading towards the Covenant ship suspended in the mountainous region of the Halo. In order to avoid detection, the Carryalls had to drop their payloads off at least five miles away from the target, and the terrain was not the most suited for any form of treaded vehicle.
Wet snow pattered against the hull of the tank, and Umman Kudu shivered from his seat. The driver gunned the engine, trying to overcome the iced surface of the mountain ledge. Thankfully, Siege tanks had heavily treaded tracks and powerful engines, designed specifically to traverse unfriendly terrain, but still, it was an unsettling experience to know that with one slip, you could be falling of the ledge of a mountain, and crash into the ground with the force that only a five-tonne tank can do.
The tank slewed to the side briefly, and Kudu nearly jumped out of his skin, but the driver quickly compensated. He looked at the chronometer inside the turret. Three minutes until estimated contact. Kudu fervently wished that others would make it too.
&&&&&&
The beautiful sky-blue waters sped beneath the 'thopter formation, their irregular wing beats maintaining their velocity as they headed towards their target. Jamis peered at the 'thopter next to him, and nodded at the pilot, who acknowledged him with a wave.
The radio crackled briefly, and the flight leader's voice crackled through. "Alright people, the BHZ is half a minute away. I want a box- formation, with combat 'thopters on the flanks, and the bombing 'thopters in the centre. Gunners, prepare your weapons. Pilots, keep your eyes peeled. We haven't had much experience with these aliens, and by God I hope it remains that way. Good luck."
The 'thopter formation re-arranged, with the lighter-armed 'thopters escorting the more heavier-armed ones. Jamis heard his gunner activate primary weapons, twin-linked machine guns with a 90-degree rotational ability, and secondary weapons, light shell-burst cannons.
Jamis himself deactivated the wing-drive, switching to the slower and more fuel-consuming jet turbines. They may be inefficient, he thought, but they allow a good turning circle. He looked out a side-window, and saw that most of the escort 'thopters were doing the same.
A target indicator popped up on the inside of his windscreen. He watched the distance indicator scroll down alarmingly fast, and saw, out of the sea mist, the BHZ, suspended over a stony beach.
The radio crackled.
"Fire."
&&&&&&
The crew on the destroyer 'Sublime Retribution' were not quite as taxed as any of the other ships in this picket fleet. Yes, they may have been the weaker of all of them, and more likely to be defeated in a battle, but they had dropped down nowhere near any of the human ship-bases.
Their ship commander had distributed a few forces here and there to secure their position, and they had sent supplies to the other vessels more in need of them, but otherwise, they had so far escaped unscathed.
Major Umfraylitt'ltun strolled leisurely through the ships corridors, nodding occasionally at the various crew members. Unlike most Covenant commanders, he was quite lax, knowing there was a time for war, but also a time for peace. As a result, the soldiers he commanded were often more relaxed then the typical Covenant trooper.
He passed through the bridge, nodding at the Elite on duty, and stepping around several of the slumbering Grunts. An urgent chime from the Communications post caught his attention. A brief static burst, and there was the sound of a battle.
"This is the 'Word of the Gods' to all ships in the fleet, we are under attack by human forces. I say again, human forces. We are unable to escape area; they have caught us in a crossfire! Repeat, we are under attack!" The communication link was deactivated.
Umfraylitt'ltun looked at the on-duty Elite pensively and opened a comm-link to the entire ship using the same post. "Brethren! Prepare yourselves! We have just received a distress call fr-"
There was a brief flash of orange-yellow, and an arrangement of light- rings appeared above the centre of the podium. The rings dissipated, and a two-foot high metallic cylinder was left in place. Umfraylitt'ltun drew his side-arm, and pointed it at the new object. The slumbering Grunts had awakened, and were now in a mild state of panic.
There was a sudden inflow of messages from the rest of the ship: "This is the main armoury, we have had an alien obje-" "Engineering here! What's going on? There's som-" "This is the maintenance crew reporting that an unidentified device has just appeared from some sort of phenomena..."
Umfraylitt'ltun heard where all the reports were coming from and his mind raced. Why would the humans be teleporting...
He realised the instant the atomics detonated.
&&&&&&
The twin 'Groundshaker' shells spat out from the Siege tanks' cannon, flying straight at the Covenant ship. Both projectiles smashed home, their high-yield explosives being absorbed by the Covenant shielding. Another two shells collided with the ship, then another, and another.
Kudu covered his ears as the main cannon fired again, the recoil pushing him into his chair. When the ringing finally abated, he peered through the oil-glass scope to see the shells collide, but cause no damage. To his mounting annoyance, weapons fire from the surface of the craft started to pepper the areas where some tanks were, but the ship was entirely surrounded. Their first shots had knocked out the Covenant sensors, making them effectively blind in a navigational sense, but then the aliens had managed to activate the shielding, preventing any further damage from the tanks for now.
There were the sliding and clunking sounds of the new shells loading into the breach, and Kudu aimed the turret at a new point. These shields seemed to make the Covenant invulnerable, but through enough mud at a wall...
He saw through the scope the first of the dropships fly out from the launch bays of the Covenant ship, and swore angrily.
&&&&&&
The first wave of bunker-buster missiles flew ahead of the main 'thopter force, screaming towards the BHZ with a relentless determination. Three managed to smash into the ship, their 'Heavy Tungsten'-tipped warheads penetrating the armour before the payload exploded, widening the gap. The rest of the missiles impacted against the shields, giving a shimmer of green-blue around the ship, but causing no further damage.
The radio crackled. "Listen up, those shields may look tough, but they're not invulnerable. I want all lasgun-armed 'thopters, yes lasgun- armed, to open fire on the ship. When the shields are out, we drop the main payloads on them. The rest of you, keep your eyes open for enemy bandits and avoid that fire!"
Purple-blue flashes from the BHZ's surface flew out to meet the 'thopters advance. Jamis rolled away from it, but a nearby 'thopter detonated in a spectacular fireball, spinning earthwards before slamming into the shallow surf.
The foremost 'thopters fired with their lasguns, purplish beams slicing forward, cutting at the shields of the Covenant, but the shields still held. The flight group split up and around the ship, a river around a stone, twisting at get another run at it.
"Keep your cool, man!" Jamis yelled to his gunner. "Don't waste any ammo on the big sucker just yet, okay?" The gunner nodded.
Jamis turned his head in time to see the first wave of Banshees fly out of the launch bays...
&&&&&&
The orange-yellow light dispersed, and Pardee quickly checked his position. Ingsley had chosen a rather abandoned part of the ship for him to teleport to, and thankfully, no-one was there.
Pardee walked around the corridor, the Covenant armour clanking slightly as he moved. He shifted his shoulders, trying to dislodge a particularly annoying piece of armour which was digging into his neck.
He took the next left, heading towards the bridge, when suddenly, it struck him:
Where was everyone?
This may have been an alien vessel, with unknown ceremonies and suchlike, but it would seem highly unlikely that an entire crew would take a spontaneous break. In fact... Pardee looked around the corridor... nothing seemed to have been here for some time.
He drew the Needler, and advanced slowly, taking the next right, and walking up a ramp, just missing the soft patter of congealing purple blood pooling from a grate.
Pardee paused again, and shook his head. Did he hear water? Some type of a slithering...?
The door in front of him opened, and all hell broke loose.
&&&&&&
Bomoko checked his wrist-strap chronometer. "Pardee should be well within the 'God's Own Wrath', now." He looked back up at the darkening tropical beach. "Once he gives the signal that he's secured the area, we'll teleport the rest of the crew here to the ship, and secure it."
Idaho nodded slightly, his eyes focused on a spot above the sea.
A conscript walked up to them, his rifle slung at a casual angle. He saluted stiffly, then; "Trooper Byrnes, sir. Just to let you know I'm taking this watch now, sir. You can take a rest now."
Bomoko nodded thankfully, and stood up awkwardly, brushing loose sand from the folds in his clothes. Byrnes offered his hand to Idaho, who took it and pulled himself up, but his eyes stayed on that same spot.
"Tell me Byrnes, you've got the better eyes of the two of us, can you see anything just above the water, about thirty feet above a point a kilometre away in that direction?" Idaho pointed out a direction.
Byrnes squinted at the position, and then laughed nervously. "Well, sir, it looks like as if there are a few stars moving slowly about that place." He looked again, harder this time. "I wouldn't worry sir; they look like meteors, small space-born meteors. We used to get them all the time on Ecaz."
"Yes..." Idaho said, his voice distant. "But on Ecaz, you had a horizon. Meteors were in the sky. These lights are against the Halo, see?"
"Excuse my input sir, but I reckon it's nothing to be concerned about."
Silence, then;
"Tell me, Byrnes, just a slight, unnecessary question, but what gives the effect of a few meteors firing off a barrage of plasma?"
Byrnes swallowed. "I think that'd be caused by plasma weaponry, sir."
"Spot on, private." Idaho started to run off in the other direction, heading towards the Silent Cartographer. "Follow me, trooper!"
Byrnes quickly scrambled across the beach, Idaho and Bomoko in front of him, and a veritable hail of plasma fire scorching and melting the sand behind him. There was a drone like a large beetle, and three dropships ponderously flew overhead. A few gun-turrets opened fire, only to be silenced by the purple-blue plasma turrets slung under the ships.
He sprinted up the grassy slope, heading towards the Silent Cartographer. As he reached the stone-hewn building, he looked back at the dropships. All had stopped over the beach in a line, then all three, as one, descended, and opened their side doors.
Byrnes ran deep into the building, swearing every step he took.
Chakosba landed the Banshee on the loose sand and clambered out, drawing out his trusty plasma sword. He gazed at the crack troops arranged in front of him. All of them were loyal, zealous and fanatical. The perfect soldiers. He raised his sword above his head, and then pointed it at the building where the humans were hiding in.
As one, the soldiers advanced, their weapons ready.
&&&&&&
"I got dropships! I got dropships at three o' clock!" Screamed a combat tank commander. Kudu opened the turret hatch, and peered out in the dampening sleet. Sure enough, there were two dropships slowly drawing to a halt, only fifty metres away.
Kudu swung the cupola machine gun around to face the dropships. The turret rocked and a blast of sound nearly toppled him as another two shells continued the relentless bombardment of the Covenant vessel.
The combat tank fired upon one of the dropship, a shell slamming into the rear of the ship, blasting apart the shade gun. The side doors opened in response, and a few blurry shapes fell out. A brief flurry of snow obscured Kudu's vision, but he saw three green objects head towards the combat tank. There was a large explosion as all three fuel rods cracked open the tank and the explosives ignited the fuel and shells.
The tank seemed to explode in slow-motion, its turret blasted clean off the main body, both tracks flailing as they snapped, the hull buckling and shearing outwards, causing pieces of metal to fly outwards accompanied by a rose-red explosion which scorched the snow-swept skies.
Kudu pulled the trigger, the weapon buckling wildly as it unleashed a torrent of metal. There were a few screams, or was it just the wind? Kudu didn't know. The sky was too saturated with snow and sleet to see.
Another blast rocked the tank, and Kudu steadied himself, looking up at the ominous shape of the Covenant cruiser. The shells detonated, but the blue-halo shield still deflected the blast. All of their shots seemed to cause no damage, and more tanks were starting to be destroyed...
&&&&&&
"Enemy ships above and behind us!"
"I know! I know!" Jamis screamed at his gunner. "Stop yelling!" He pulled back on the joystick, sending the 'thopter up into the skies, then he dived suddenly, bracing himself for a possible blackout.
Blue spheres flew past him, a veritable flock of them. He rolled, diving and twisting, heading underneath the BHZ. The Banshees followed him relentlessly, firing non-stop.
He spun the 'thopter around, trying to catch them off. The three pursuing Banshees flew off, one of them heading back towards the dogfight around the main ship, the other two yawing to get him back in their sights.
The 'thopter screamed as it flipped and turned, the forces nearly tearing it apart. One of the Banshees came up in front, its purple armour glinting in the low light. The gunner fired, both machine guns spitting metal death at it.
Orange-red tracer rounds stitched the sky as the bullets flew by and around the Banshee. A sheet of purple metal flew off, followed closely by a trail of smoke, then fire. The Banshee slowly fell, spinning as it did so, slamming against the gritty sea.
The 'thopter jarred as a plasma sphere hit it. Jamis swung up, avoiding the rest of the strafe, but the Banshee was hot on his tail. "Hey! Hey! This 'thopter three calling the rest of the flight group! I got a bandit on my tail! Anybody reading me?" The Banshee fired off a fuel rod, and Jamis swung to the left. "C'mon guys! A little help!"
The Banshee was jolted to the side as a shellburst exploded slightly behind it. Another shell was fired, this time destroying it completely in an orange-yellow explosion. "This is 'thopter seven to 'thopter three, you okay there?" The radio crackled. Jamis sighed then flicked the reply switch. "I'm fine. How're the odds?"
"We've got at least forty enemy fighters up here, and those shields are still holding. Fly close to the BHZ, watch out for the turret fire, and you'll be fine." The radio cut out as the other 'thopter flew up, its cannons spitting at the Covenant Banshees.
Jamis nodded and swung back up, firing off a couple of shells at the belly of the ship, causing the shielding to buckle, but not break.
&&&&&&
Plasma fire and bullet fire burned the air in front of him. Covenant soldiers were screaming in hatred and disgust as wave upon wave of Flood fell upon them. Pardee saw one Grunt scream and cry in pain like a child as the carriers jumped on him, infecting him relentlessly. A comrade threw a plasma grenade at him as he fell to the ground. The blue explosion wiped out the small creatures before they could mutate the Grunt.
One combat-form was staggering about in an almost comical manner with no arms or head. An Elite shoulder-barged it smashing it to the ground, then roasted it's torso with plasma fire.
All the while more and more of the Flood poured out of a corridor, and it was obvious that the Covenant could not hold them for long. Pardee paused. Ingsley and Bomoko had not counted on the Flood attacking this ship, but he could not get to another ship in time, or communicate with them...
A gold-clad Elite fell, his body riddled with bullets. Pardee glanced at the broken corpse, then at the fire-fight.
For the first time, Pardee didn't know what to do.
&&&&&&
They'll be more a-coming soon! Keep those reviews rolling in! Okay I'm lying. Reviews have never 'rolled in' for me, but review anyway, please?
Hate-me17: Thanks for the review, like, hoped you like this little snippet of a dog-fight, more'll be coming soon. If you have any recommendations on how to make the action more readable, please let me know.
W1REF1RE: That's a good term; 'floodified'. Yes, I was wondering if anyone noticed the 'in-joke' with Jenkins, you're very sharp to have noticed it. There a quite a few others as well, see if you can spot them.
&&&&&&
The first and second attack flights flew out of the remaining two frigates to their targets. An aerial assault on the 'Bloody-Handed Zealot', and a ground-based attack on the 'Word of the Gods'.
Jamis looked on blankly as the Carryalls flew off, carrying the siege and combat tanks, where they would meet up with the quicker quad and trike squads. He looked back at his flight group and hunched his shoulders. Three minutes ETA, no turning back. All combat 'thopters had been sent out in a diversion, in order to occupy the Covenant vessel, or the BHZ as some had started to call it.
All the 'thopters with the heavy payloads; thermal bombs, bunker- busters, shells, lasguns and the like, had been equipped with Holtzman generators, but they had a tendency to short out when shielding vehicles.
On the other hand, lighter 'thopters, like the one he was flying now, were equipped with no shielding. They were to be used in fighting any possible enemy fighters. Jamis had seen a few of them once or twice. Hell, he'd managed to shoot one down, but then again, it was being forced down by enemy fire to begin with, so he couldn't really convince himself that it would be easy.
The flight group, as one, turned and started to fly across the Circle Sea, heading towards their target.
&&&&&&
Pardee tried to fit the uncomfortable armour over his new and unusual frame. His appearance, that of a Covenant Elite, was bizarre for him, but it needed to be done. One technician handed him an alien rifle, which looked to him like a purple-quilled porcupine, but he took it anyway.
While the humans quickly went over his appearance, and what he would say, he was recalling the original mission he was sent on by the Bene Tleilaxu, to inspect and bring back samples of any alien life. Then he compared it to his new mission; to secure an alien spaceship, and kill any who was in his way.
A tough decision, he thought humourlessly, as he repeated some of the jaw-numbing alien language a Mentat was teaching him.
The last piece of armour that was put on him was the tight-fitting helmet. He heard a whine, and saw alien symbols light up inside the helm, felt a field form around him. He grabbed a small knife presented to him, and hid it beneath a shin-pad.
The group stepped back from him, and the Mentat Ingsley nodded his head. His hands flew over a panel, and rings of orange-white surrounded Pardee.
&&&&&&
Bomoko sighed faintly as he saw the last of the 'thopter defence fly off to join the strike-force against the Covenant ship. Although all vessels were needed in the attack, Bomoko couldn't help but feel nervous by the lack of military presence. Only a few squads were left, all of which would be used to take over the 'God's own Wrath', the alien ship Pardee was on, once Pardee sent the signal he had secured the bridge, or whatever passed for the bridge on such a vessel.
Idaho walked beside him and sat down on the tropical sand, his rodent- eyes ringed with tiredness, and his breath stinking of rachag and caffeine stimulants.
"Well, Bomoko, this is the proverbial 'it', for us." He muttered, his feet shifting unconsciously from time to time. "I wonder if we shall be able to pull it off?"
Bomoko fixed him with a tired smile. "Don't ask a Mentat a question if you don't want to hear the answer." He replied, taking a sip of the cranberry-red sapho juice.
"Is it really, that bleak, Mentat? Tell me; is there no chance of survival?"
Bomoko put the small flask to the side and put his fingers to his temples. "Most of our strategy..." he began. "Is based on chance. We have limited knowledge of our enemy's forces, little knowledge of their defences, how they react under pressure, etc. etc" Bomoko turned to Idaho. "In our training, we were always told to expect the worse with unknown chances, hence you could compensate for them in other calculations. However, I cannot compensate for the unknown chances anymore, so our chances are... astronomical, to say the least."
Idaho nodded slightly, and sighed. "Tell me," he said suddenly. "Since we're all going to die, by your calculations, what does that sapho juice taste like?"
&&&&&&
Chakosba grinned in anticipation as the flight group headed towards the humans Command Centre. In their fanatic haste to occupy all defensive positions on the Halo, they had neglected the 'Silent Cartographer'.
All Halos were pretty much the same, and the original schematics for a Halo had been sent back to the Covenant homeworld. Since all ships know had a detailed map on Halos, they had forgotten about the map-rooms on the Halos they had occupied, thinking that occupying the island would be a waste of resources.
Their mistake almost cost them this battle, but Chakosba now knew he had the head of the serpent in his grasp, ready for the fatal blow.
The tropical island came into view...
&&&&&&
The Carryall 'legs' disconnected from the Siege tanks' tread armour, and flew off, jinking through the rocky mountain outcrops. The tanks rumbled forward, heading towards the Covenant ship suspended in the mountainous region of the Halo. In order to avoid detection, the Carryalls had to drop their payloads off at least five miles away from the target, and the terrain was not the most suited for any form of treaded vehicle.
Wet snow pattered against the hull of the tank, and Umman Kudu shivered from his seat. The driver gunned the engine, trying to overcome the iced surface of the mountain ledge. Thankfully, Siege tanks had heavily treaded tracks and powerful engines, designed specifically to traverse unfriendly terrain, but still, it was an unsettling experience to know that with one slip, you could be falling of the ledge of a mountain, and crash into the ground with the force that only a five-tonne tank can do.
The tank slewed to the side briefly, and Kudu nearly jumped out of his skin, but the driver quickly compensated. He looked at the chronometer inside the turret. Three minutes until estimated contact. Kudu fervently wished that others would make it too.
&&&&&&
The beautiful sky-blue waters sped beneath the 'thopter formation, their irregular wing beats maintaining their velocity as they headed towards their target. Jamis peered at the 'thopter next to him, and nodded at the pilot, who acknowledged him with a wave.
The radio crackled briefly, and the flight leader's voice crackled through. "Alright people, the BHZ is half a minute away. I want a box- formation, with combat 'thopters on the flanks, and the bombing 'thopters in the centre. Gunners, prepare your weapons. Pilots, keep your eyes peeled. We haven't had much experience with these aliens, and by God I hope it remains that way. Good luck."
The 'thopter formation re-arranged, with the lighter-armed 'thopters escorting the more heavier-armed ones. Jamis heard his gunner activate primary weapons, twin-linked machine guns with a 90-degree rotational ability, and secondary weapons, light shell-burst cannons.
Jamis himself deactivated the wing-drive, switching to the slower and more fuel-consuming jet turbines. They may be inefficient, he thought, but they allow a good turning circle. He looked out a side-window, and saw that most of the escort 'thopters were doing the same.
A target indicator popped up on the inside of his windscreen. He watched the distance indicator scroll down alarmingly fast, and saw, out of the sea mist, the BHZ, suspended over a stony beach.
The radio crackled.
"Fire."
&&&&&&
The crew on the destroyer 'Sublime Retribution' were not quite as taxed as any of the other ships in this picket fleet. Yes, they may have been the weaker of all of them, and more likely to be defeated in a battle, but they had dropped down nowhere near any of the human ship-bases.
Their ship commander had distributed a few forces here and there to secure their position, and they had sent supplies to the other vessels more in need of them, but otherwise, they had so far escaped unscathed.
Major Umfraylitt'ltun strolled leisurely through the ships corridors, nodding occasionally at the various crew members. Unlike most Covenant commanders, he was quite lax, knowing there was a time for war, but also a time for peace. As a result, the soldiers he commanded were often more relaxed then the typical Covenant trooper.
He passed through the bridge, nodding at the Elite on duty, and stepping around several of the slumbering Grunts. An urgent chime from the Communications post caught his attention. A brief static burst, and there was the sound of a battle.
"This is the 'Word of the Gods' to all ships in the fleet, we are under attack by human forces. I say again, human forces. We are unable to escape area; they have caught us in a crossfire! Repeat, we are under attack!" The communication link was deactivated.
Umfraylitt'ltun looked at the on-duty Elite pensively and opened a comm-link to the entire ship using the same post. "Brethren! Prepare yourselves! We have just received a distress call fr-"
There was a brief flash of orange-yellow, and an arrangement of light- rings appeared above the centre of the podium. The rings dissipated, and a two-foot high metallic cylinder was left in place. Umfraylitt'ltun drew his side-arm, and pointed it at the new object. The slumbering Grunts had awakened, and were now in a mild state of panic.
There was a sudden inflow of messages from the rest of the ship: "This is the main armoury, we have had an alien obje-" "Engineering here! What's going on? There's som-" "This is the maintenance crew reporting that an unidentified device has just appeared from some sort of phenomena..."
Umfraylitt'ltun heard where all the reports were coming from and his mind raced. Why would the humans be teleporting...
He realised the instant the atomics detonated.
&&&&&&
The twin 'Groundshaker' shells spat out from the Siege tanks' cannon, flying straight at the Covenant ship. Both projectiles smashed home, their high-yield explosives being absorbed by the Covenant shielding. Another two shells collided with the ship, then another, and another.
Kudu covered his ears as the main cannon fired again, the recoil pushing him into his chair. When the ringing finally abated, he peered through the oil-glass scope to see the shells collide, but cause no damage. To his mounting annoyance, weapons fire from the surface of the craft started to pepper the areas where some tanks were, but the ship was entirely surrounded. Their first shots had knocked out the Covenant sensors, making them effectively blind in a navigational sense, but then the aliens had managed to activate the shielding, preventing any further damage from the tanks for now.
There were the sliding and clunking sounds of the new shells loading into the breach, and Kudu aimed the turret at a new point. These shields seemed to make the Covenant invulnerable, but through enough mud at a wall...
He saw through the scope the first of the dropships fly out from the launch bays of the Covenant ship, and swore angrily.
&&&&&&
The first wave of bunker-buster missiles flew ahead of the main 'thopter force, screaming towards the BHZ with a relentless determination. Three managed to smash into the ship, their 'Heavy Tungsten'-tipped warheads penetrating the armour before the payload exploded, widening the gap. The rest of the missiles impacted against the shields, giving a shimmer of green-blue around the ship, but causing no further damage.
The radio crackled. "Listen up, those shields may look tough, but they're not invulnerable. I want all lasgun-armed 'thopters, yes lasgun- armed, to open fire on the ship. When the shields are out, we drop the main payloads on them. The rest of you, keep your eyes open for enemy bandits and avoid that fire!"
Purple-blue flashes from the BHZ's surface flew out to meet the 'thopters advance. Jamis rolled away from it, but a nearby 'thopter detonated in a spectacular fireball, spinning earthwards before slamming into the shallow surf.
The foremost 'thopters fired with their lasguns, purplish beams slicing forward, cutting at the shields of the Covenant, but the shields still held. The flight group split up and around the ship, a river around a stone, twisting at get another run at it.
"Keep your cool, man!" Jamis yelled to his gunner. "Don't waste any ammo on the big sucker just yet, okay?" The gunner nodded.
Jamis turned his head in time to see the first wave of Banshees fly out of the launch bays...
&&&&&&
The orange-yellow light dispersed, and Pardee quickly checked his position. Ingsley had chosen a rather abandoned part of the ship for him to teleport to, and thankfully, no-one was there.
Pardee walked around the corridor, the Covenant armour clanking slightly as he moved. He shifted his shoulders, trying to dislodge a particularly annoying piece of armour which was digging into his neck.
He took the next left, heading towards the bridge, when suddenly, it struck him:
Where was everyone?
This may have been an alien vessel, with unknown ceremonies and suchlike, but it would seem highly unlikely that an entire crew would take a spontaneous break. In fact... Pardee looked around the corridor... nothing seemed to have been here for some time.
He drew the Needler, and advanced slowly, taking the next right, and walking up a ramp, just missing the soft patter of congealing purple blood pooling from a grate.
Pardee paused again, and shook his head. Did he hear water? Some type of a slithering...?
The door in front of him opened, and all hell broke loose.
&&&&&&
Bomoko checked his wrist-strap chronometer. "Pardee should be well within the 'God's Own Wrath', now." He looked back up at the darkening tropical beach. "Once he gives the signal that he's secured the area, we'll teleport the rest of the crew here to the ship, and secure it."
Idaho nodded slightly, his eyes focused on a spot above the sea.
A conscript walked up to them, his rifle slung at a casual angle. He saluted stiffly, then; "Trooper Byrnes, sir. Just to let you know I'm taking this watch now, sir. You can take a rest now."
Bomoko nodded thankfully, and stood up awkwardly, brushing loose sand from the folds in his clothes. Byrnes offered his hand to Idaho, who took it and pulled himself up, but his eyes stayed on that same spot.
"Tell me Byrnes, you've got the better eyes of the two of us, can you see anything just above the water, about thirty feet above a point a kilometre away in that direction?" Idaho pointed out a direction.
Byrnes squinted at the position, and then laughed nervously. "Well, sir, it looks like as if there are a few stars moving slowly about that place." He looked again, harder this time. "I wouldn't worry sir; they look like meteors, small space-born meteors. We used to get them all the time on Ecaz."
"Yes..." Idaho said, his voice distant. "But on Ecaz, you had a horizon. Meteors were in the sky. These lights are against the Halo, see?"
"Excuse my input sir, but I reckon it's nothing to be concerned about."
Silence, then;
"Tell me, Byrnes, just a slight, unnecessary question, but what gives the effect of a few meteors firing off a barrage of plasma?"
Byrnes swallowed. "I think that'd be caused by plasma weaponry, sir."
"Spot on, private." Idaho started to run off in the other direction, heading towards the Silent Cartographer. "Follow me, trooper!"
Byrnes quickly scrambled across the beach, Idaho and Bomoko in front of him, and a veritable hail of plasma fire scorching and melting the sand behind him. There was a drone like a large beetle, and three dropships ponderously flew overhead. A few gun-turrets opened fire, only to be silenced by the purple-blue plasma turrets slung under the ships.
He sprinted up the grassy slope, heading towards the Silent Cartographer. As he reached the stone-hewn building, he looked back at the dropships. All had stopped over the beach in a line, then all three, as one, descended, and opened their side doors.
Byrnes ran deep into the building, swearing every step he took.
Chakosba landed the Banshee on the loose sand and clambered out, drawing out his trusty plasma sword. He gazed at the crack troops arranged in front of him. All of them were loyal, zealous and fanatical. The perfect soldiers. He raised his sword above his head, and then pointed it at the building where the humans were hiding in.
As one, the soldiers advanced, their weapons ready.
&&&&&&
"I got dropships! I got dropships at three o' clock!" Screamed a combat tank commander. Kudu opened the turret hatch, and peered out in the dampening sleet. Sure enough, there were two dropships slowly drawing to a halt, only fifty metres away.
Kudu swung the cupola machine gun around to face the dropships. The turret rocked and a blast of sound nearly toppled him as another two shells continued the relentless bombardment of the Covenant vessel.
The combat tank fired upon one of the dropship, a shell slamming into the rear of the ship, blasting apart the shade gun. The side doors opened in response, and a few blurry shapes fell out. A brief flurry of snow obscured Kudu's vision, but he saw three green objects head towards the combat tank. There was a large explosion as all three fuel rods cracked open the tank and the explosives ignited the fuel and shells.
The tank seemed to explode in slow-motion, its turret blasted clean off the main body, both tracks flailing as they snapped, the hull buckling and shearing outwards, causing pieces of metal to fly outwards accompanied by a rose-red explosion which scorched the snow-swept skies.
Kudu pulled the trigger, the weapon buckling wildly as it unleashed a torrent of metal. There were a few screams, or was it just the wind? Kudu didn't know. The sky was too saturated with snow and sleet to see.
Another blast rocked the tank, and Kudu steadied himself, looking up at the ominous shape of the Covenant cruiser. The shells detonated, but the blue-halo shield still deflected the blast. All of their shots seemed to cause no damage, and more tanks were starting to be destroyed...
&&&&&&
"Enemy ships above and behind us!"
"I know! I know!" Jamis screamed at his gunner. "Stop yelling!" He pulled back on the joystick, sending the 'thopter up into the skies, then he dived suddenly, bracing himself for a possible blackout.
Blue spheres flew past him, a veritable flock of them. He rolled, diving and twisting, heading underneath the BHZ. The Banshees followed him relentlessly, firing non-stop.
He spun the 'thopter around, trying to catch them off. The three pursuing Banshees flew off, one of them heading back towards the dogfight around the main ship, the other two yawing to get him back in their sights.
The 'thopter screamed as it flipped and turned, the forces nearly tearing it apart. One of the Banshees came up in front, its purple armour glinting in the low light. The gunner fired, both machine guns spitting metal death at it.
Orange-red tracer rounds stitched the sky as the bullets flew by and around the Banshee. A sheet of purple metal flew off, followed closely by a trail of smoke, then fire. The Banshee slowly fell, spinning as it did so, slamming against the gritty sea.
The 'thopter jarred as a plasma sphere hit it. Jamis swung up, avoiding the rest of the strafe, but the Banshee was hot on his tail. "Hey! Hey! This 'thopter three calling the rest of the flight group! I got a bandit on my tail! Anybody reading me?" The Banshee fired off a fuel rod, and Jamis swung to the left. "C'mon guys! A little help!"
The Banshee was jolted to the side as a shellburst exploded slightly behind it. Another shell was fired, this time destroying it completely in an orange-yellow explosion. "This is 'thopter seven to 'thopter three, you okay there?" The radio crackled. Jamis sighed then flicked the reply switch. "I'm fine. How're the odds?"
"We've got at least forty enemy fighters up here, and those shields are still holding. Fly close to the BHZ, watch out for the turret fire, and you'll be fine." The radio cut out as the other 'thopter flew up, its cannons spitting at the Covenant Banshees.
Jamis nodded and swung back up, firing off a couple of shells at the belly of the ship, causing the shielding to buckle, but not break.
&&&&&&
Plasma fire and bullet fire burned the air in front of him. Covenant soldiers were screaming in hatred and disgust as wave upon wave of Flood fell upon them. Pardee saw one Grunt scream and cry in pain like a child as the carriers jumped on him, infecting him relentlessly. A comrade threw a plasma grenade at him as he fell to the ground. The blue explosion wiped out the small creatures before they could mutate the Grunt.
One combat-form was staggering about in an almost comical manner with no arms or head. An Elite shoulder-barged it smashing it to the ground, then roasted it's torso with plasma fire.
All the while more and more of the Flood poured out of a corridor, and it was obvious that the Covenant could not hold them for long. Pardee paused. Ingsley and Bomoko had not counted on the Flood attacking this ship, but he could not get to another ship in time, or communicate with them...
A gold-clad Elite fell, his body riddled with bullets. Pardee glanced at the broken corpse, then at the fire-fight.
For the first time, Pardee didn't know what to do.
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They'll be more a-coming soon! Keep those reviews rolling in! Okay I'm lying. Reviews have never 'rolled in' for me, but review anyway, please?
Hate-me17: Thanks for the review, like, hoped you like this little snippet of a dog-fight, more'll be coming soon. If you have any recommendations on how to make the action more readable, please let me know.
W1REF1RE: That's a good term; 'floodified'. Yes, I was wondering if anyone noticed the 'in-joke' with Jenkins, you're very sharp to have noticed it. There a quite a few others as well, see if you can spot them.