Chapter II: Assault
The Pelican bay was a flurry of motion as Spartans broke open munitions crates and leaded weapons. Each Spartan selected his or her weapons based on what their individual needs in combat would be. John had never been very picky about what weapons his team used, so long as they used them proficiently to support each other.
Linda and her four person sniper detail carried an assortment of modified sniper rifles and battle rifles. Ammunition packs had been attached to their armor wherever possible and John knew that the assault force could depend upon the pinpoint accuracy and fire support of the Spartan snipers.
The rest of the other Spartans selected a devastating and varied arsenal of weapons for combat. John saw assault rifles and shotguns, battle rifles and submachine guns, along with the full loads of grenades and ammunition. The weight of weapons that each Spartan could carry was staggering and they had pulled out all the stops. Once it looked like everyone was overloaded and could carry no more, many slung their primary weapons next to their secondary weapons and shouldered Jackhammer rocket launchers.
When John asked Jason what the idea was he replied, "We figured if we were to teleport into a fortified position, say from above, we'd be able to let loose a hell of a barrage of fire with these before jumping out again."
John nodded with approval then noted with amusement that both Kelly and Boxer carried Havoc nuclear mines on their backs. He shook his head but did not try to speculate what they planned to do with them.
Minutes later all the Spartans were ready and fully garbed for war. They split into their two designated groups as the Master Chief stood before them.
"Listen up Spartans. Alpha team and Bravo team will ride down to the surface in two Pelicans each. I will command Alpha, and Jason will command Bravo. Our initial flight path will take us over the temple entrance area, where we will teleport on my signal to the coordinates Cortana will upload to your suits. Our Pelicans will continue on with the first wave of Marine transports until we secure the entrance. Upon Marine forces securing a beachhead in the temple, Alpha and Bravo teams will split into Gold, Green, Red, Blue, Black, and Phantom teams. Phantom being the sniper detail, and the rest of the teams being under command of the designated team leaders. Black team will safeguard the Marine beachhead against Covenant counterattack and respond to any Marine sighting of Brute forces. Gold, Greed, Red, and Blue will enter the temple and actively search and destroy Brute forces in advance of Marine forces securing the temple. Phantom team will provide sniper support for all actions. Understood?"
Every Spartan winked their acknowledgement light at John and he knew they were ready to wage ultimate war.
"Remember one thing Spartans, we are playing for keeps here and there is no prize for second place. When it comes to the Covenant, second place means you're dead. So let's show them we mean business and that Spartans are winners, no matter what the odds. Cover each other and complete the mission. And don't worry about any sort of collateral damage, we're on the Covenant homeworld, and if I had my way, the whole thing would be up in flames. Board your Pelicans."
The large group of Spartans instantly and fluidly split into four smaller groups and entered the ramps of idling Pelicans just as the inner bay doors opened and the bay was flooded with howling Marines all searching for a transport to bring them to the fight.
The shipwide PA came on and a neutral AI voice announced, "Battlestations, battlestations. All combat personnel, to your stations. Security teams, lock down all sectors. Marine invasion forces, prepare to debark the ship. All Longsword and Fury pilots to your ships. Squadrons four through eight and twelve through sixteen are clear to launch at t- minus ten minutes. All non essential personnel, secure for jump."
Master Chief strapped in as the Pelican's door slowly shut, closing him off from the disciplined columns of Marines lining up in front of their own Pelicans. He turned from the blank hatch and looked at his team, strapped in along the interior of the heavy bird. Spartan-324, Jill, was slowly bobbing her head as she clenched and unclenched her fists. John opened a private com to her and asked, "Is there something wrong Jill?"
She turned her head towards him and John saw his own ghostly reflection in her visor. She stopped flexing her hands and swiped a finger across her faceplate, the signal for a smile.
"No sir Master Chief. I was just humming an old nursery rhyme to myself, one my mother used to sing to me before they let me go to the training."
John nodded and wondered to himself. He and his original Spartans had been taken away from their family, literally kidnapped, but apparently it seemed the new generation had been procured in a different manner. It seemed as if the parents had volunteered them. But John pushed these thoughts aside as the dropship pilot came onto his com.
"Good morning Spartans. I am Ensign Frankiewicz, but most people call me Cowboy. I'll be your Pelican puke for today, and I'll try to make sure your ride down to Hell is as comfortable and enjoyable as any first class flight. Estimated flight time is six minutes from ship to shore as we will be debarking the Hornet will in Covenant airspace. Uh, inside the atmosphere that is. There will be no refreshments served on this flight, and for those of you who care, the in flight movie will be 'The End of the Covenant Race'. Thank you for you time and I hope you have a pleasant flight."
The thirteen Spartans in the troop hold sat motionless, the pilot's humor lost on them. In the cockpit, Frankiewicz shrugged and look at his instruments, noting with amazement that the thirteen Spartans weighed more than thirty Marines would have. He shook his head and whistled.
"It'll be a miracle we even fly with all that weight aboard."
His copilot chuckled as they made their preflight check and readied the ship for flight. Pelicans throughout the Hornet idled and prepared for launch as elsewhere in the fleet, the invasion began.
The entire UNSC fleet had jumped into Covenant space behind the shadow of Desolation. So named because it was the smallest moon, farthest away from the middle of the system, and the Covenant home world. The Covenant planet, the High Charity, was the only other planet in the system besides the small planetoid that Desolation orbited. The millions of kilometers distance between the two was filled with the bulk of the Covenant fleet. Thousands of warships drifted in the void.
As of yet, the UNSC fleet remained undetected, but it was only a matter of time before they were discovered and the Covenant forces would turn to engage. Admiral Cole surveyed the data that his station provided him and was deeply grateful that they at least had the advantage of surprise. He was not about to waste the initiative and sent the order to begin the invasion.
The eight automated troop carriers at the center of the fleet powered up. Shields and weapons came online, along with the Planetbuster nukes and enhancement fields. The capacitors for the newly improved slipspace generators powered up, and at a predetermined time, discharged, launching the eight ships into the void.
They reappeared a moment later, in a vague circumference around the High Charity. Covenant warships responded with angry vexes on the com and thousands came to bear on the eight human ships. Plasma turrets glowed a dull red, but before a single Covenant ship could fire a shot, the eight troop carriers vanished in the bright blinding flash.
In the chaos that followed, the Covenant High Command would be completely bewildered as half of their fleet simply disappeared. And before any response could be formulated, or any sort of regrouping and damage control could take place, a small fleet of human ships jumped into a newly cleared orbit around the High Charity. Cruisers and destroyers appeared in a high orbit, screening the ships below from attack. A supercarrier and her escorts actually jumped into the atmosphere of the planet, a feat never before witnessed by Covenant eyes.
And as if the sudden, inexplicable appearance of the human ships, and the loss of half of their fleet instantaneously weren't enough to completely baffle the Covenant High Command, the human ships began destroying their remaining warships with ease!
Onboard the space station Hubris, the High Command watched in terror as a human frigate gutted a Covenant carrier and two destroyers with plasma weapons unlike any in the Covenant arsenal. And when a cruiser finally managed to fire at the human ship, the plasma torpedoes where dispersed by some sort of shield! Human ships with shields and plasma lances!
Shocked captains turned their ships and ran from the devastating firepower of the human fleet. For the first time, Covenant ships had been bested. The survivors of the Covenant fleet accelerated away from the High Charity and these deadly new human ships, to regroup at the edge of the system and launch a counterattack to remove the human scum from their world.
The Hornet and her four destroyer escorts jumped directly into the High Charity atmosphere. Flights of Longswords and Furies streamed out of her launch bays, followed by wings of Skyhawk bombers to strafe ground targets. The Hornet and her escorts fired their plasma weapons at ground side targets, completely scouring Covenant bases and troop positions from the planet's surface.
Isolated groups of Seraph fighters were able to launch from their bases, but were immediately set upon by vengeful Furies and Longswords and most were destroyed. Covenant AAA defenses fired futile barrages of fire at the capital ships above, but merely pecked away at the interlocking shields.
Elsewhere on the planet, the high orbiting human fleet launched devastating salvoes of plasma fire, completely annihilating the Covenant troop presence. Finally the Covenant troops understood what it meant to fear death from above.
The Hornet and her escorts settled into a high geo synchronous orbit above the temple, and her entire complement of Pelicans launched for the surface. The four Pelicans bearing the Spartans were among the first to reach the temple, and as the entire formation passed over the entrance, the Spartans appeared groundside in front of the massive door.
The Spartans had appeared inside of a defense point and were among the Covenant soldiers manning the post. A gold elite was still barking orders to a bewildered grunt when a Spartan pistol whipped him from behind, killing him instantly. The fight lasted for about ten seconds and in that time the Spartans killed every Covenant at the post. A grunt fell from a shade, a bullet hole neatly placed in its forehead.
John wiped blue blood from the gauntlet of his armor as Cortana chimed in, "Impressive Chief, you Spartans are really up to par now. I hope you didn't break a sweat, because I'm reading a massive Covenant signal on the other side of this door. Battalion sized at least."
"I copy Cortana. Spartans, high jump maneuver. Anything that explodes. Alpha team first, followed by Bravo two seconds later. Immediately after you fire your ordinance, jump back out to here. Understood?"
Acknowledgement light winked in his HUD. Master Chief pulled two HE grenades from a ring holder on his thigh.
"Cortana, I need some coordinates, twenty meters up, ten meters inside that door for the first team, and same height, thirty meters in for the second team."
"Understood Master Chief. I'm sending everyone their coordinates now."
John saw the numbers scroll and lock in his visor. He pulled the pins on both grenades and said, "JUMP!"
Immediately half the Spartans disappeared, with the other half following two seconds after. Alpha team materialized twenty meters in the air above a horde of Covenant soldiers. Cortana had been right, John guessed about a battalion of mixed Covenant troops. He dropped both grenades, their spoons flying clear and their fuses lighting.
Spartans in Alpha team fired rocket launchers and dropped grenades, annihilating whole swathes of Grunts, Jackals, and Elites. As Alpha team fired, Bravo team appeared farther into the tunnel, also launching salvoes of rockets and dropping dozens of grenades. A second later, both teams had jumped back to safety on the other side of the door before any of the Covenant soldiers could even fire a shot.
Explosive death and shrapnel rained down on the aliens and they all died, screaming and bellowing in pain. On the other side of the door Cortana reported, "Covenant contact eliminated. Opening the door."
She hacked into the Covenant net and overrode the locking mechanisms for the door. The four segments of the hatch split apart and slid to the sides, revealing a smoke filled room and a floor that was slippery with blood and covered in body parts. The Spartans noted with grim satisfaction the effectiveness of their new tactics and advanced warily into the gore slicked tunnel.
"Chief... I am impressed. Normally it would have taken a group of Spartans this size about twenty minutes to kill or disable a battalion of Covenant troops by my best estimates. Your team has done it in as many seconds."
"Save the praise for later Cortana. Call in the Marines and give me coordinates on likely defense positions within the temple."
"Afirmative Chief. Marines are inbound, ETA two minutes. Accessing Covenant network, accessing temple schematic. Ah, here we go. At the end of this tunnel, it opens up into a large antechamber. I read Covenant forces massing there. But no Brutes. I do have readings on them elsewhere in the temple. Would you like to know where they're likely to be, or where they are?"
"Where they are, if you'd please Cortana."
"Affirmative Chief, I read several groups. Two are at the access tunnels leading to the core of the temple, and three more are in defensive positions around the core of the temple. Would you like jump coordinates to them?"
"Only the first two for now. And not directly among them. Put us in front of them, behind cover."
"Affirmative, uploading coordinates now."
John turned to his Spartans as the first elements of Marines arrived at the door. A Warthog with three Marines and a Jackhammer launcher squealed to a stop at the entrance and squads of Marines deployed to secure the tunnel.
"All teams, we're proceeding as planned. Black team stay here, the rest follow my jump, and we'll take our first look at the Brutes."
Forty four Spartans vanished into thin air and nearby Marines expressed their amazement with choice curses and swears. A Gunnery Sergeant turned to the nearest Spartan and said, "I always knew you weepy mutha fuckas fought like ghosts but damn! You really mean it!"
Blue, Gold, Red, and Green teams reappeared behind several large boxes, that seemed to be made to block the entrance to the tunnel the Brutes were in. The Spartans crouched silently as John snaked a fiber optic probe around the corner of the box. Six Brutes stood at the ready in the tunnel. Two carried the high velocity grenade launchers that had killed Grace, and the other four sported odd looking rifles that were attached to packs on their backs by means of long cables.
"Master Chief, I've analyzed the images of those weapons, and I believe them to be flamethrowers. They should be virtually ineffective against your shields, but they will still raise the suit temperatures to dangerous levels after prolonged exposure."
"Thank you Cortana, but I don't plan on being exposed for any amount of time while they still have those grenade launchers."
Kelly and Boxer edged up to the Chief. They pulled the batons from their hips and snapped them out but John shook his head.
"Wait, I want to give the snipers a shot at them first. If the first shots don't drop them, then teleport to them and take them out. Linda, I want the ones with the launchers down first. No matter what. Do we have any Jackhammers left?"
"Two Master Chief."
"Then I want those sighted on them now, only fire on my mark."
Linda and her snipers sighted on their targets and fired. Linda dropped one of the grenadiers with a shot to the head, and the other fell with two rounds through its heart. Two other Brutes suffered shots to the chest, but didn't fall, and the last dropped with a round in its eye.
Boxer and Kelly jumped right as the surviving Brutes roared in anger and began to charge the Spartans' position. Kelly appeared to the side of the Brutes and swept her plasma baton low, through the legs of the one nearest her. Boxer appeared on the other side and took the head off another Brute. The two remaining Brutes raised their flamethrowers and launched tongues of fire at the hidden Spartans before being attacked from behind by Boxer and Kelly. A moment later and it was done, the six Brutes dead with no Spartan casualties.
At the entrance to the temple, Sgt. Johnson stood watching his Marines progress into the tunnel. Squads of Marines stood guard as hundreds of others proceeded further and further into the interior. Scorpion tanks and Warthogs mounting a plethora of weapons accompanied the assault inwards as several stood guard outside the entrance, protecting the newly arrived Marines as they entered the temple.
There was little need for the guard Warthogs as UNSC ships and fighters controlled the atmosphere. Covenant hulks littered the ground, all that remained of the Banshee and Seraph forces that had been on planet at the time of the invasion. The earth that had been dark and foreboding before, was now pocked with craters and bodies of the slain.
The advance elements of the 3rd Marine division were approaching the antechamber in the middle of the temple, and warning signals went off inside Johnson's head. On the other side of the inner doors, legions of Covenant sat waiting behind fortifications, shields, Wraith tanks, and Shade plasma turrets. Every Covenant weapon that could be brought to bear was aimed at the doors cutting the tunnel entry. With no other entrance to the inner temple, the door was a sure death trap for any Marine or vehicle that tried to enter through it.
"Hold up! Everyone freeze!"
The procession of Marines immediately froze in their tracks, many looking at the Sergeant as he stood atop a Warthog. Johnson opened a com line to his CO Captain Gregory he hopped off the vehicle and strode toward the doors.
"Captain, I have a bad feeling about these doors. There's no way the Covies are going to just let us walk in and take this place down. My gut tells me they got every sort of heavy artillery pointed at this door just waitin to take us out when we go through."
"I read you Sergeant. I was about to say the same thing. What kind of intel do we have on what is inside that chamber?"
"Cortana told us that it was most likely the most defensible position in the entire temple, there's only one way in. If there are any Covies in there, and there sure as hell are, they'll pot shoot whatever we can fit in that door without us even getting to fire back."
"I understand Sergeant. I'll talk to Black team leader and see if we can get some assistance in here."
The Captain used him com again and opened a channel to Petty Officer Lee.
"Petty Officer, this is Captain Gregory. We're stuck in a bottleneck here, and we need a little distraction so we can breach these doors and have an icecube's chance in hell of storming the chamber. I've got a feeling that the other side of these doors is hell waiting to happen, and we won't be able to open them without getting smoked. Can you help us out?"
"I copy you Captain. We will jump into the chamber to catch the Covenant off guard and hopefully turn their attention away from the doors. Mass your armor here and prepare to storm the chamber once I give you the signal to blow the doors."
"Outstanding Spartan. You there! Get those Scorpions up here now! I want four abreast and rocket Warthogs behind them. We're going to blow the doors and form a defensive circle on the inside."
"What's the situation Captain?"
"Black team Spartans are going to jump inside to give us a chance to blow the doors and enter. Form the breaching team now, I want our armor massed here, with A company to support them."
"Aye sir. Alpha company! You're the tip of the spear. Spread your platoons through the gap and secure the perimeter of the circle. All other companies will follow."
Captain Gregory watched the Sergeant order the troops then reported to General Davis, commander of the Marine assault force. The entirety of the 3rd Marine division was groundside now, either at the entrance to the temple or inside the long entry tunnel. The 8th division was securing a perimeter around the temple, so no Covenant could escape, and no counterattack would threaten the invasion.
Elsewhere on the planet, the 57th ODST division was busy scouring the planet's surface for secret installations and troop concentrations. They performed hunter killer missions throughout the geography of the planet, ensuring that no viable ground force remained on the planet that could throw the Marines off the surface.
And the 32nd division remained onboard the Hornet as a floating reserve. The High Charity seemed to be firmly in control of the human assault force, but the Covenant High Command had other plans in mind.
Aboard the Hubris, Covenant commanders regrouped their fleets and planned a counterattack to dislodge the human invaders from their planet. The eight hundred remaining Covenant ships formed a screen between the Hubris and the High Charity, hoping to discourage any human ships from engaging the station.
The Covenant had learned from their previous assaults and had spread their ships wide to avoid being bunched, easy targets. Dropships and carriers loaded with Covenant soldiers in the effort to retake the High Charity. Angry Elites bellowed orders at Grunts and Jackals to get moving.
In a busy bay on the Hubris Covenant troops ran left and right to get to where they needed to go. Weapons were distributed and groups of Elites stood together, checking armor and inciting each other into fits of beserker rage.
Suddenly a set of doors that had been given a wide berth by the Covenant soldiers opened, and bright iridescent light poured out. Indistinct shadows stood within and every soldier in the bay froze.
The shadows within stepped forward and out of the blinding glow. They materialized into hard, armored forms, the forms of Brutes. The group numbered around twenty, and their armor seemed reminiscent of the Elites', but was much more advanced. Some carried the grenade launchers and flamethrowers of their planetary counterparts, but most carried some other type of rifle.
The armored Brutes strode forward into the mass of soldiers and began batting unfortunate troopers aside. A gold armored Elite was slow to move from the path of the group, and an angry Brute smashed it's head, tossing the limp body to the side. The scene repeated itself several more times as the Brutes made their way to a slim, needle like shuttle.
The Covenant troops finished loading their ships and once the bay was cleared, the docking doors opened, venting the bay to space. The needle shuttle was the first to exit the bay and move into space. Once the shuttle cleared the station, a cloaking device enveloped it, and it disappeared from view.
Shuttles and ships streamed from the Hubris and joined the waiting fleet, all oriented toward the planet. The Covenant had learned from their previous mistakes and had spread their ships out, not wanting to be caught in a bunch. But they had failed to take to heart the full advancements of the human ships. Just as the Covenant ships had begun to get underway towards the High Charity, the human fleet appeared in their midst.
The Battlecruisers Atlantis, Titan, and Impervious jumped into normal space around the Hubris, and the instant they came out of Slipspace, their plasma lances discharged at the station. A hundred beams of plasma blasted through the station's shielding and ripped through its hull with ease.
Holed in dozens of places, the Hubris began to vent explosive gases and list to the side amidst massive sheets of armor that had been cut away by the fearsome weapons of the human fleet. The rest of the Covenant fleet fared no better as scores were instantly destroyed by the initial volley of fire.
And before the Covenant ships could even charge their weapons to fire a first salvo, the human ships unleashed a second volley of fire into the Covenant fleet. Scores more of Covenant ships dissolved under the torrent of plasma lances and the Covenant counterattack faltered.
The UNSC fleet persisted in destroying the Covenant ships, the advantage clearly in their favor. Already the Covenant space station began coming apart under its own rotation and hundreds of Covenant ships floated uselessly through deep space.
Onboard the UNSC Frigate Guadalcanal, Captain David Richards watched intently through his bridge screens as the battle took place. His crew operated with efficiency and prowess, most were veterans of combat against the Covenant, which was extremely rare in the UNSC fleet.
"Helm, come about fifty six degrees. Bring out bow to bear on that carrier there. Weapons, I want forward lance batteries to target her power core."
"Aye aye sir, forward batteries acquiring target."
"Captain, I have a destroyer bearing down on us on the port side. She's warming plasma turrets, preparing to fire."
"Weapons, port broadside batteries acquire target. Hole her from stem to stern. Bring up dispersion shields on the port side. Helm, to flank speed."
"Aye aye sir, portside broadside batteries have acquired target. Forward batteries have acquired target, waiting for order to fire."
"Thank you Mr. Makota. You may fire."
"Captain! The destroyer is firing! Two plasma torpedoes inbound on the port side, impact in twenty seconds!"
"Helm, after we fire, fire our underside emergency thrusters. See if we can't avoid being hit."
"Aye sir, waiting for firing."
"All targeted batteries firing now Captain."
The unbearably bright lances of plasma shot forward from the prow and broadside batteries of the frigate. The prow lances impacted amidships on the Covenant carrier and instantly pierced the shields and hull. An instant after, the ships engines died and it's plasma turrets lost their red glow. It drifted dead in space and became a helpless victim to the swarms of fighters and bombers launching from the nearby Eisenhower II.
The broadside lances of the Guadalcanal smashed through destroyers shields and completely cored the Covenant ship. A neat hole was punched through the center of the ship and it was an empty hull that continued through space on it's inertia. It would have collided with the Guadalcanal had the frigate not accelerated out of the way.
"Captain! Five seconds to impact!"
"Fire thrusters now Ms. Ramirez!"
Midshipman First Class Tracy Ramirez triggered the thruster control on her station, launching the Guadalcanal out of the path of the torpedoes. But the moment the Covenant ship was destroyed, the plasma lost its form and quickly dispersed into space.
The Captain smiled and brought up information on his console. He called up his ship's AI and queried her about more potential targets.
"Sylvia, what is the nearest Covenant ship to us now?"
"Captain, the nearest Covenant ship is the Righteous Victory, approximately sixty kilometers off our starboard side."
"What is her class and displacement?"
"The Righteous Victory is a heavy cruiser. She displaces a hundred thousand tons."
"Helm, bring us about. I want the prow batteries to bear on that cruiser."
"Aye aye sir. Coming about to one oh eight degrees."
The AI began to have bright data figures stream over her form and she turned to face the Captain.
"Captain, I'm receiving a call for assistance from the Lexington. It seems she is tracking some sort of a phantom signal moving away from the battle. They can't get a fix on the signal, so they want us to help triangulate with the Henderson to help lock it down."
"Thank you Sylvia. Helm bring us about again. Coordinate with the Lexington and Henderson so we can get into position. Weapons, I want all batteries prepared to fire, and make sure all shields are operating at one hundred percent."
The Guadalcanal turned away from the battle and joined her sister ships in the search for the phantom contact. The three frigates headed toward the planet in a triangular formation searching the void with their sensors, vainly trying to pinpoint the location of the Covenant stealth shuttle.
On the Covenant shuttle, the armored Brutes watched with anticipation as they neared the High Charity. The human supercarrier and her escorts remained in high orbit above the planet, but were easily avoided by the shuttle. And the three searching frigates were too far behind to pose a threat.
Captain Richards looked on passively as his ship continued in formation with her sister ships. They had been moving steadily closer to the planet, but had been unable to locate the Covenant ghost.
"Radar, any new contacts?"
A young red headed female answered from her station without looking up.
"No Captain. Neither the Lexington nor the Henderson report any contacts either. And we are nearing the planets atmosphere."
"Very well. Thank you Ms. Murphy. Communications, open me a link to the Hornet. Get my Admiral Cole."
"Aye sir, com link opened to Admiral Cole sir."
"Yes Richards, what is it?"
"Sir, we have been tracking a Covenant signal to the planet with the Lexington and Henderson. We haven't been able to pinpoint it and believe it may be planetside now, or in the process of making planetfall."
"Very well, thanks for the update. You may return to the battle, we'll take care of it from here."
"Aye sir."
"Communications, contact the Lexington and Henderson, tell their captains that we are disengaging from the search and returning to the battle. Weapons, give me a max range lock on the nearest enemy ship in range. Make sure our line of fire is clear and that we wont hit another UNSC vessel."
"Aye sir. Max range affirmative."
The three frigates wheeled and sped back to the battle, but there was little need. The last of the Covenant warships were being disabled and boarded by UNSC Marines, they crews imprisoned and systems analyzed.
Onboard the Hornet Admiral Cole ordered flights of Furies launched to locate and destroy the Covenant stealth ship.
"Send the Furies to lockdown the airspace around the temple. That's where this ship must be going."
"Aye sir, directing the Furies now."
Lieutenant John Dunbar rolled his Fury fighter to starboard as his com crackled to life.
"Devil One Niner, bring your flight to sector thirty two. Keep your eyes peeled for a phantom contact. Your orders are to seek out and destroy the contact upon discovery."
"Affirmative flight, Devil flight to sector thirty two."
Dunbar flipped switches and toggles on his console. Targeting systems and munitions rosters came online his HUD and he began scanning for a phantom. Several minutes passed before his radar briefly bleeped and the contact was gone.
"Devil Two Zero, I just got a reading on the ghost. Did you see anything?"
"One Niner, I copy your reading. It disappeared again, but it was about three o'clock off the starboard side."
"Affirmative, let's go hunting."
Dunbar flipped the Master Arm switch and armed his Tiger medium range Air to Air missiles. He looked up just in time to see lasers blast out from nowhere to shear his wingman's Fury in half. He rolled his Fury to port to avoid the sweeping lasers and immediately locked on the source.
Once the Fury righted itself, Dunbar pickled off two missiles in rapid succession, hoping to catch the Covenant ship off guard. The missiles streaked ahead towards the still invisible ship, and exploded, disabling the cloaking system.
The shuttle reappeared two kilometers in front of the Fury and was streaking towards the temple. Dunbar pushed his Fury's engines out in pursuit while simultaneously opening a com to the Hornet.
"Flight, this is Devil One Niner, I've got your phantom contact. It's some bizarre Covie shuttle, like a needle. Devil Two Zero is down, I never saw him punch out, don't think he got the chance, but I suggest launching rescue immediately. I'm in pursuit of the shuttle and will engage to destroy."
"Copy One Niner, dispatching rescue Pelicans to Two Zero's coordinates."
Dunbar continued his pursuit of the shuttle, but could not seem to catch up to it. In fact, the Covenant ship seemed to be pulling away. He was shocked, the Fury was the fastest single ship in the UNSC fleet. But he continued his pursuit anyway and locked his remaining missiles onto the shuttle. But it was clear enough to Dunbar that the shuttle would get to the temple before he could destroy it.
Onboard the Covenant shuttle, the armored Brutes attached jetpacks and prepared to jump. The bay doors opened as the shuttle neared the temple. It continued at flank speed, never intending to stop. Seconds passed and a green light went on in the cargo bay. The Brutes immediately moved to the bay doors and jumped, freefalling above the temple.
Dunbar finally closed the distance and was coming in from above the shuttle, a perfect kill shot. He never noticed the dark forms falling from the shuttle as he launched his missiles.
"Goodbye..."
The missiles streaked forward as the shuttle pulled up from its descent. They exploded above the ship and the explosion tore through the hull. The ship's pilots were immediately killed and the entire shuttle came apart a moment later. Flaming debris rained down from above, distracting the Marines below, and camouflaging the falling Brutes.
"For you Two Zero. Flight, splash one bandit. Devil One Niner returning to ship."
The Fury banked and accelerated through the clouds. Below, bewildered Marines watched the falling debris for a moment longer before returning to their duties. Unbeknownst to them, armored Brutes were among the debris, and closing the distance with every passing second.
Zyryal, the Brute commander, grunted in satisfaction as he saw the Marines below remain ignorant of their approach. The insertion had worked better than he had hoped, the humans' own fightercraft providing a perfect cover for his force. One hundred meters above the humans, he briefly fired his thruster pack to slow his descent as his team followed suit.
Again, at fifty meters the Brutes fired their thrusters again to further slow their descent. By then they were traveling at a mere thirty meters a second, well within the survivability limits of Brutes in armor. Two seconds later, they smashed into unaware Marines, killing them instantly.
Corporal Chris Wier was standing over watch with his squad and a couple of Warthogs on the side of the temple. They were about to be relieved when all hell broke loose. A dark armored form dropped onto Private Delson's head. His shield flashed for a brief second, before disappearing and the form crushed Delson beneath its weight.
Four other Marines died the same way before the Brutes were suddenly among them. Wier had time to fire three rounds and give a shout of alarm before a Brute smashed a rifle butt into his face, crushing his skull. In seconds, the ten Marines of the squad were all dead, pools of blood forming around their broken bodies.
The relief squad approached in a troop carrier Warthog, and before they knew any better, the transport was annihilated by a score of high velocity grenades. Once the immediate perimeter was secure, Zyryal nodded his satisfaction to his team.
The Brutes immediately engaged their thruster packs again began jumping around the side of the temple. They encountered limited resistance by isolated Marine squads, which proved to be mediocre at best. Zyryal shivered in anticipation of facing the legendary super soldiers the humans employed. The Brutes continued on their way, slaughtering Marines whenever they came across them.
Sergeant Johnson received a report of some landing force of Covenant soldiers, ones nobody had ever seen before and were tearing Marines apart. His Marines. He immediately shouldered his rifle and pulled a shotgun from the back of a Warthog.
"Captain! Something wicked this way comes, and while we wait for Black team, I'd say I'm your man to deal with it."
Captain Gregory looked up from a schematic he had been analyzing and nodded. He glanced at his watch before motioning to a Lieutenant next to him.
"Sergeant, take 1st platoon. Lieutenant Downy will stay with me, and hurry Sergeant, the breach will occur anytime now."
"Yes sir, I'm on it.1st platoon! With me, we're gonna go get some!"
Zyryal stood atop a Scorpion tank, the crew of which he had just slaughtered. His team stood scattered around the entrance, waiting for the elite warriors who were sure to come, and the battle that would ensue.
Surely enough, Black team responded to the desperate calls for help, knowing that it had been Brutes that were inflicting such casualties. Jason did not know that the Brutes outnumbered him almost three to one, but he did know that whatever the scenario, his team would hold the advantage.
Zyryal was growing impatient and about to order an advance into the entrance when suddenly Black team Spartans were among his team. The black armored warriors suddenly materialized amidst his team, lashing out with hand and foot, striking Brutes with ease. Two Spartans had jumped to flank Zyryal, not knowing he was the commander of the Brutes, and dislodged him from the tank with vicious kicks to his back.
He sprawled on the ground, growling with intense anger at being caught off guard. He whirled and aimed his rifle where the Spartans had been, only to find them gone, the space empty. The Brute quickly stood up and took stock of his team.
Two Brutes lay motionless on the ground, bizarre plasma wounds crossing critical parts of their anatomy. But the rest of his team remained upright and no more scarred that some dents in their armor. He knew instantly from the brief contact that his team outnumbered the Spartans by more than two to one, and so he pressed the engagement. His team had barely reengaged their thrusters when the Spartans were amongst them again.
The Spartans reappeared as before, lashing out with hand and foot, as well as glowing batons, hitting Brutes left and right. But this time, the Brutes were prepared and fought back. A Spartan was smashed into the ground as three Brutes grabbed a hold of him when he jumped and threw him down. His shields flashed and disappeared as he was momentarily stunned by the impact.
That moment was more than the Brutes needed and three laser beams lanced down and cut the Spartan in half. Mark's vital signs flatlined in Jason's visor and he briefly glanced over and saw the body on the ground. Another of his team's vitals went flat as a Brute grabbed a hold of Jill's helmet from behind and twisted sharply, snapping her unbreakable bones and nearly tearing her head off her shoulders.
Zyryal let the limp form of the Spartan drop to the ground and searched for more targets. All over his team was destroying the Spartan force, their numbers already dwindling. Without warning a black armored form appeared directly in front of Zyryal and smashed his chin with a thunderous uppercut.
He stumbled back, recoiling from the blow but noting with satisfaction that this Spartan did not disappear again, but rather pressed the attack. A glowing baton snapped out from the Spartan's hand and he went after Zyryal with whirling attacks and blows, most of which Zyryal barely avoided or countered.
Jason attacked the Brute who had killed Jill with a ferocity he had never felt before. His anger burned within him, growing hotter and hotter with every passing second. His peripheral vision blurred and he only saw his target, the Brute before him. In his fury he failed to notice that half of his team's vitals were flat and the monotonous tone in his helmet.
Zyryal jetted backwards, desperately trying to put space between this berserk Spartan and himself, but was thwarted by the Spartan's ability to jump through space faster than he could jet. Every instant he thought he might get a moments respite, the Spartan was there, with the deadly plasma baton whirling, a constant dervish of doom.
Five Spartans remained fighting, and the Brutes put forth their best efforts to eliminate the survivors. The Spartans remained alive only because of their proficiency with teleporting, avoiding the attacks and reach of the Brutes as they chased after them. But it was only a matter of time before the Brutes would catch up to the Spartans and put an end to Black team.
Sergeant Johnson and 1st platoon ran urgently against the flow of Marines in the tunnel. It had taken them close to fifteen minutes to cover the four hundred meter distance in the cramped conditions, but they were finally at the entrance to the temple. Johnson stopped and faced his on loan platoon and barked out.
"Awright Marines! Those supersoldiers need a hand for a change, and it's about damned time the Marines repayed the favor! I want these damned Covies smashed! Leave nothing alive!"
1st platoon roared a fierce battlecry and charged out of the tunnel. The Brutes were vainly attempting to corral the Spartans when a large force of Marines suddenly rushed out of the temple. A sabot round from a sniper rifle tore through Zyryal's shoulder, spinning him from his feet. His sudden incapacitation was all Jason needed to drive his baton through the Brute's helmet, destroying his brain.
Sergeant Johnson racked the slide on his shotgun, pumping a round into the chamber before blasting a Brute off it's feet. He and three other Marines fired on the downed warrior until it was a pulpy, blue and purple mass on the stone floor. Another Marine peppered a Brute with his assault rifle, distracting it enough to allow a Spartan to empty his submachine gun into the back of the Brute's head.
The sudden arrival of the Marines tipped the favor of the battle in the human's favor, and now the Brutes were on the defense. Lasers crisscrossed the battle, cutting Marines in half, while grenades blew shields and armor away. But the Marines held the numerical advantage and were pressing the Brutes back, farther away from the entrance.
Johnson's shotgun locked empty and he dropped it and shouldered his rifle. The Spartan he had seen on the bridge with the Master Chief was wrestling with a Brute and looked to be dangerously close being overwhelmed. The Brute had managed to wrestle away the Spartan's plasma baton and was pressing it closer and closer to his neck.
Johnson jammed the muzzle of his rifle into the hip joint of the Brute's armor and fired a burst, severing the spinal cord. The Brute threw it's head up in pain and Jason slammed its neck with his fist. The Covenant warrior fell backwards, a gurgling sound issuing from its broken throat. As it hit the ground, the body began to spasm. Johnson leveled his rifle and spattered the Brute's brain matter all over the stone.
"I told you to count on the Marines, and I live by my word Petty Officer."
Johnson offered the Spartan a hand up which he graciously accepted.
"Thank you Sergeant, the Marines have indeed saved my team and I am grateful."
Five Brutes remained standing in a defensive circle, completely surrounded by the Marines and Spartans when sniper fire issued from the pinnacle of the temple. Sabot rounds tore through the air, leaving ion trails in the atmosphere as they impacted on their targets. Brutes spun and recoiled, smashed back from the rounds. And seconds later it was over, all the Brutes lying dead on the ground.
"Thank you Phantom team, you're intervention is much appreciated."
"Affirmative Black leader, any time."
Jason looked sadly at the bodies of the fallen around him. Fully half of his team had been wiped out by the Brutes, and that was a price he had not been prepared to pay. Feelings and emotions he had never felt before welled up within him. His life had been spent as the best of the best, and he was ill equipped to deal with a situation in which he and his team had come out second best.
Questions about his judgment and leadership formed in his mind, repeating over and over again, hounding his conscience. He brewed as he knelt by Jill's motionless form, her hand in his own gauntleted palm. His self admonishments grew to the bursting point when a com patched through.
"Petty Officer, we're going to assault the antechamber. Get your team up and ready to go and report to the entrance. I'll brief you from there."
"Master Chief, I... I don't think I should be in charge of Black team right now, I... I made a mistake..."
"Spartan, get your hat on right. I need everyone of my team operation at one hundred and ten percent right now, and you're my second in command. We all make mistakes, but it's how we deal with them that counts. Now get Black team to the entrance."
"Aye aye Master Chief."
Jason stood and squared his shoulders. Covenant warriors were calling for the company of death, and he was not going to keep them waiting any longer.
The Pelican bay was a flurry of motion as Spartans broke open munitions crates and leaded weapons. Each Spartan selected his or her weapons based on what their individual needs in combat would be. John had never been very picky about what weapons his team used, so long as they used them proficiently to support each other.
Linda and her four person sniper detail carried an assortment of modified sniper rifles and battle rifles. Ammunition packs had been attached to their armor wherever possible and John knew that the assault force could depend upon the pinpoint accuracy and fire support of the Spartan snipers.
The rest of the other Spartans selected a devastating and varied arsenal of weapons for combat. John saw assault rifles and shotguns, battle rifles and submachine guns, along with the full loads of grenades and ammunition. The weight of weapons that each Spartan could carry was staggering and they had pulled out all the stops. Once it looked like everyone was overloaded and could carry no more, many slung their primary weapons next to their secondary weapons and shouldered Jackhammer rocket launchers.
When John asked Jason what the idea was he replied, "We figured if we were to teleport into a fortified position, say from above, we'd be able to let loose a hell of a barrage of fire with these before jumping out again."
John nodded with approval then noted with amusement that both Kelly and Boxer carried Havoc nuclear mines on their backs. He shook his head but did not try to speculate what they planned to do with them.
Minutes later all the Spartans were ready and fully garbed for war. They split into their two designated groups as the Master Chief stood before them.
"Listen up Spartans. Alpha team and Bravo team will ride down to the surface in two Pelicans each. I will command Alpha, and Jason will command Bravo. Our initial flight path will take us over the temple entrance area, where we will teleport on my signal to the coordinates Cortana will upload to your suits. Our Pelicans will continue on with the first wave of Marine transports until we secure the entrance. Upon Marine forces securing a beachhead in the temple, Alpha and Bravo teams will split into Gold, Green, Red, Blue, Black, and Phantom teams. Phantom being the sniper detail, and the rest of the teams being under command of the designated team leaders. Black team will safeguard the Marine beachhead against Covenant counterattack and respond to any Marine sighting of Brute forces. Gold, Greed, Red, and Blue will enter the temple and actively search and destroy Brute forces in advance of Marine forces securing the temple. Phantom team will provide sniper support for all actions. Understood?"
Every Spartan winked their acknowledgement light at John and he knew they were ready to wage ultimate war.
"Remember one thing Spartans, we are playing for keeps here and there is no prize for second place. When it comes to the Covenant, second place means you're dead. So let's show them we mean business and that Spartans are winners, no matter what the odds. Cover each other and complete the mission. And don't worry about any sort of collateral damage, we're on the Covenant homeworld, and if I had my way, the whole thing would be up in flames. Board your Pelicans."
The large group of Spartans instantly and fluidly split into four smaller groups and entered the ramps of idling Pelicans just as the inner bay doors opened and the bay was flooded with howling Marines all searching for a transport to bring them to the fight.
The shipwide PA came on and a neutral AI voice announced, "Battlestations, battlestations. All combat personnel, to your stations. Security teams, lock down all sectors. Marine invasion forces, prepare to debark the ship. All Longsword and Fury pilots to your ships. Squadrons four through eight and twelve through sixteen are clear to launch at t- minus ten minutes. All non essential personnel, secure for jump."
Master Chief strapped in as the Pelican's door slowly shut, closing him off from the disciplined columns of Marines lining up in front of their own Pelicans. He turned from the blank hatch and looked at his team, strapped in along the interior of the heavy bird. Spartan-324, Jill, was slowly bobbing her head as she clenched and unclenched her fists. John opened a private com to her and asked, "Is there something wrong Jill?"
She turned her head towards him and John saw his own ghostly reflection in her visor. She stopped flexing her hands and swiped a finger across her faceplate, the signal for a smile.
"No sir Master Chief. I was just humming an old nursery rhyme to myself, one my mother used to sing to me before they let me go to the training."
John nodded and wondered to himself. He and his original Spartans had been taken away from their family, literally kidnapped, but apparently it seemed the new generation had been procured in a different manner. It seemed as if the parents had volunteered them. But John pushed these thoughts aside as the dropship pilot came onto his com.
"Good morning Spartans. I am Ensign Frankiewicz, but most people call me Cowboy. I'll be your Pelican puke for today, and I'll try to make sure your ride down to Hell is as comfortable and enjoyable as any first class flight. Estimated flight time is six minutes from ship to shore as we will be debarking the Hornet will in Covenant airspace. Uh, inside the atmosphere that is. There will be no refreshments served on this flight, and for those of you who care, the in flight movie will be 'The End of the Covenant Race'. Thank you for you time and I hope you have a pleasant flight."
The thirteen Spartans in the troop hold sat motionless, the pilot's humor lost on them. In the cockpit, Frankiewicz shrugged and look at his instruments, noting with amazement that the thirteen Spartans weighed more than thirty Marines would have. He shook his head and whistled.
"It'll be a miracle we even fly with all that weight aboard."
His copilot chuckled as they made their preflight check and readied the ship for flight. Pelicans throughout the Hornet idled and prepared for launch as elsewhere in the fleet, the invasion began.
The entire UNSC fleet had jumped into Covenant space behind the shadow of Desolation. So named because it was the smallest moon, farthest away from the middle of the system, and the Covenant home world. The Covenant planet, the High Charity, was the only other planet in the system besides the small planetoid that Desolation orbited. The millions of kilometers distance between the two was filled with the bulk of the Covenant fleet. Thousands of warships drifted in the void.
As of yet, the UNSC fleet remained undetected, but it was only a matter of time before they were discovered and the Covenant forces would turn to engage. Admiral Cole surveyed the data that his station provided him and was deeply grateful that they at least had the advantage of surprise. He was not about to waste the initiative and sent the order to begin the invasion.
The eight automated troop carriers at the center of the fleet powered up. Shields and weapons came online, along with the Planetbuster nukes and enhancement fields. The capacitors for the newly improved slipspace generators powered up, and at a predetermined time, discharged, launching the eight ships into the void.
They reappeared a moment later, in a vague circumference around the High Charity. Covenant warships responded with angry vexes on the com and thousands came to bear on the eight human ships. Plasma turrets glowed a dull red, but before a single Covenant ship could fire a shot, the eight troop carriers vanished in the bright blinding flash.
In the chaos that followed, the Covenant High Command would be completely bewildered as half of their fleet simply disappeared. And before any response could be formulated, or any sort of regrouping and damage control could take place, a small fleet of human ships jumped into a newly cleared orbit around the High Charity. Cruisers and destroyers appeared in a high orbit, screening the ships below from attack. A supercarrier and her escorts actually jumped into the atmosphere of the planet, a feat never before witnessed by Covenant eyes.
And as if the sudden, inexplicable appearance of the human ships, and the loss of half of their fleet instantaneously weren't enough to completely baffle the Covenant High Command, the human ships began destroying their remaining warships with ease!
Onboard the space station Hubris, the High Command watched in terror as a human frigate gutted a Covenant carrier and two destroyers with plasma weapons unlike any in the Covenant arsenal. And when a cruiser finally managed to fire at the human ship, the plasma torpedoes where dispersed by some sort of shield! Human ships with shields and plasma lances!
Shocked captains turned their ships and ran from the devastating firepower of the human fleet. For the first time, Covenant ships had been bested. The survivors of the Covenant fleet accelerated away from the High Charity and these deadly new human ships, to regroup at the edge of the system and launch a counterattack to remove the human scum from their world.
The Hornet and her four destroyer escorts jumped directly into the High Charity atmosphere. Flights of Longswords and Furies streamed out of her launch bays, followed by wings of Skyhawk bombers to strafe ground targets. The Hornet and her escorts fired their plasma weapons at ground side targets, completely scouring Covenant bases and troop positions from the planet's surface.
Isolated groups of Seraph fighters were able to launch from their bases, but were immediately set upon by vengeful Furies and Longswords and most were destroyed. Covenant AAA defenses fired futile barrages of fire at the capital ships above, but merely pecked away at the interlocking shields.
Elsewhere on the planet, the high orbiting human fleet launched devastating salvoes of plasma fire, completely annihilating the Covenant troop presence. Finally the Covenant troops understood what it meant to fear death from above.
The Hornet and her escorts settled into a high geo synchronous orbit above the temple, and her entire complement of Pelicans launched for the surface. The four Pelicans bearing the Spartans were among the first to reach the temple, and as the entire formation passed over the entrance, the Spartans appeared groundside in front of the massive door.
The Spartans had appeared inside of a defense point and were among the Covenant soldiers manning the post. A gold elite was still barking orders to a bewildered grunt when a Spartan pistol whipped him from behind, killing him instantly. The fight lasted for about ten seconds and in that time the Spartans killed every Covenant at the post. A grunt fell from a shade, a bullet hole neatly placed in its forehead.
John wiped blue blood from the gauntlet of his armor as Cortana chimed in, "Impressive Chief, you Spartans are really up to par now. I hope you didn't break a sweat, because I'm reading a massive Covenant signal on the other side of this door. Battalion sized at least."
"I copy Cortana. Spartans, high jump maneuver. Anything that explodes. Alpha team first, followed by Bravo two seconds later. Immediately after you fire your ordinance, jump back out to here. Understood?"
Acknowledgement light winked in his HUD. Master Chief pulled two HE grenades from a ring holder on his thigh.
"Cortana, I need some coordinates, twenty meters up, ten meters inside that door for the first team, and same height, thirty meters in for the second team."
"Understood Master Chief. I'm sending everyone their coordinates now."
John saw the numbers scroll and lock in his visor. He pulled the pins on both grenades and said, "JUMP!"
Immediately half the Spartans disappeared, with the other half following two seconds after. Alpha team materialized twenty meters in the air above a horde of Covenant soldiers. Cortana had been right, John guessed about a battalion of mixed Covenant troops. He dropped both grenades, their spoons flying clear and their fuses lighting.
Spartans in Alpha team fired rocket launchers and dropped grenades, annihilating whole swathes of Grunts, Jackals, and Elites. As Alpha team fired, Bravo team appeared farther into the tunnel, also launching salvoes of rockets and dropping dozens of grenades. A second later, both teams had jumped back to safety on the other side of the door before any of the Covenant soldiers could even fire a shot.
Explosive death and shrapnel rained down on the aliens and they all died, screaming and bellowing in pain. On the other side of the door Cortana reported, "Covenant contact eliminated. Opening the door."
She hacked into the Covenant net and overrode the locking mechanisms for the door. The four segments of the hatch split apart and slid to the sides, revealing a smoke filled room and a floor that was slippery with blood and covered in body parts. The Spartans noted with grim satisfaction the effectiveness of their new tactics and advanced warily into the gore slicked tunnel.
"Chief... I am impressed. Normally it would have taken a group of Spartans this size about twenty minutes to kill or disable a battalion of Covenant troops by my best estimates. Your team has done it in as many seconds."
"Save the praise for later Cortana. Call in the Marines and give me coordinates on likely defense positions within the temple."
"Afirmative Chief. Marines are inbound, ETA two minutes. Accessing Covenant network, accessing temple schematic. Ah, here we go. At the end of this tunnel, it opens up into a large antechamber. I read Covenant forces massing there. But no Brutes. I do have readings on them elsewhere in the temple. Would you like to know where they're likely to be, or where they are?"
"Where they are, if you'd please Cortana."
"Affirmative Chief, I read several groups. Two are at the access tunnels leading to the core of the temple, and three more are in defensive positions around the core of the temple. Would you like jump coordinates to them?"
"Only the first two for now. And not directly among them. Put us in front of them, behind cover."
"Affirmative, uploading coordinates now."
John turned to his Spartans as the first elements of Marines arrived at the door. A Warthog with three Marines and a Jackhammer launcher squealed to a stop at the entrance and squads of Marines deployed to secure the tunnel.
"All teams, we're proceeding as planned. Black team stay here, the rest follow my jump, and we'll take our first look at the Brutes."
Forty four Spartans vanished into thin air and nearby Marines expressed their amazement with choice curses and swears. A Gunnery Sergeant turned to the nearest Spartan and said, "I always knew you weepy mutha fuckas fought like ghosts but damn! You really mean it!"
Blue, Gold, Red, and Green teams reappeared behind several large boxes, that seemed to be made to block the entrance to the tunnel the Brutes were in. The Spartans crouched silently as John snaked a fiber optic probe around the corner of the box. Six Brutes stood at the ready in the tunnel. Two carried the high velocity grenade launchers that had killed Grace, and the other four sported odd looking rifles that were attached to packs on their backs by means of long cables.
"Master Chief, I've analyzed the images of those weapons, and I believe them to be flamethrowers. They should be virtually ineffective against your shields, but they will still raise the suit temperatures to dangerous levels after prolonged exposure."
"Thank you Cortana, but I don't plan on being exposed for any amount of time while they still have those grenade launchers."
Kelly and Boxer edged up to the Chief. They pulled the batons from their hips and snapped them out but John shook his head.
"Wait, I want to give the snipers a shot at them first. If the first shots don't drop them, then teleport to them and take them out. Linda, I want the ones with the launchers down first. No matter what. Do we have any Jackhammers left?"
"Two Master Chief."
"Then I want those sighted on them now, only fire on my mark."
Linda and her snipers sighted on their targets and fired. Linda dropped one of the grenadiers with a shot to the head, and the other fell with two rounds through its heart. Two other Brutes suffered shots to the chest, but didn't fall, and the last dropped with a round in its eye.
Boxer and Kelly jumped right as the surviving Brutes roared in anger and began to charge the Spartans' position. Kelly appeared to the side of the Brutes and swept her plasma baton low, through the legs of the one nearest her. Boxer appeared on the other side and took the head off another Brute. The two remaining Brutes raised their flamethrowers and launched tongues of fire at the hidden Spartans before being attacked from behind by Boxer and Kelly. A moment later and it was done, the six Brutes dead with no Spartan casualties.
At the entrance to the temple, Sgt. Johnson stood watching his Marines progress into the tunnel. Squads of Marines stood guard as hundreds of others proceeded further and further into the interior. Scorpion tanks and Warthogs mounting a plethora of weapons accompanied the assault inwards as several stood guard outside the entrance, protecting the newly arrived Marines as they entered the temple.
There was little need for the guard Warthogs as UNSC ships and fighters controlled the atmosphere. Covenant hulks littered the ground, all that remained of the Banshee and Seraph forces that had been on planet at the time of the invasion. The earth that had been dark and foreboding before, was now pocked with craters and bodies of the slain.
The advance elements of the 3rd Marine division were approaching the antechamber in the middle of the temple, and warning signals went off inside Johnson's head. On the other side of the inner doors, legions of Covenant sat waiting behind fortifications, shields, Wraith tanks, and Shade plasma turrets. Every Covenant weapon that could be brought to bear was aimed at the doors cutting the tunnel entry. With no other entrance to the inner temple, the door was a sure death trap for any Marine or vehicle that tried to enter through it.
"Hold up! Everyone freeze!"
The procession of Marines immediately froze in their tracks, many looking at the Sergeant as he stood atop a Warthog. Johnson opened a com line to his CO Captain Gregory he hopped off the vehicle and strode toward the doors.
"Captain, I have a bad feeling about these doors. There's no way the Covies are going to just let us walk in and take this place down. My gut tells me they got every sort of heavy artillery pointed at this door just waitin to take us out when we go through."
"I read you Sergeant. I was about to say the same thing. What kind of intel do we have on what is inside that chamber?"
"Cortana told us that it was most likely the most defensible position in the entire temple, there's only one way in. If there are any Covies in there, and there sure as hell are, they'll pot shoot whatever we can fit in that door without us even getting to fire back."
"I understand Sergeant. I'll talk to Black team leader and see if we can get some assistance in here."
The Captain used him com again and opened a channel to Petty Officer Lee.
"Petty Officer, this is Captain Gregory. We're stuck in a bottleneck here, and we need a little distraction so we can breach these doors and have an icecube's chance in hell of storming the chamber. I've got a feeling that the other side of these doors is hell waiting to happen, and we won't be able to open them without getting smoked. Can you help us out?"
"I copy you Captain. We will jump into the chamber to catch the Covenant off guard and hopefully turn their attention away from the doors. Mass your armor here and prepare to storm the chamber once I give you the signal to blow the doors."
"Outstanding Spartan. You there! Get those Scorpions up here now! I want four abreast and rocket Warthogs behind them. We're going to blow the doors and form a defensive circle on the inside."
"What's the situation Captain?"
"Black team Spartans are going to jump inside to give us a chance to blow the doors and enter. Form the breaching team now, I want our armor massed here, with A company to support them."
"Aye sir. Alpha company! You're the tip of the spear. Spread your platoons through the gap and secure the perimeter of the circle. All other companies will follow."
Captain Gregory watched the Sergeant order the troops then reported to General Davis, commander of the Marine assault force. The entirety of the 3rd Marine division was groundside now, either at the entrance to the temple or inside the long entry tunnel. The 8th division was securing a perimeter around the temple, so no Covenant could escape, and no counterattack would threaten the invasion.
Elsewhere on the planet, the 57th ODST division was busy scouring the planet's surface for secret installations and troop concentrations. They performed hunter killer missions throughout the geography of the planet, ensuring that no viable ground force remained on the planet that could throw the Marines off the surface.
And the 32nd division remained onboard the Hornet as a floating reserve. The High Charity seemed to be firmly in control of the human assault force, but the Covenant High Command had other plans in mind.
Aboard the Hubris, Covenant commanders regrouped their fleets and planned a counterattack to dislodge the human invaders from their planet. The eight hundred remaining Covenant ships formed a screen between the Hubris and the High Charity, hoping to discourage any human ships from engaging the station.
The Covenant had learned from their previous assaults and had spread their ships wide to avoid being bunched, easy targets. Dropships and carriers loaded with Covenant soldiers in the effort to retake the High Charity. Angry Elites bellowed orders at Grunts and Jackals to get moving.
In a busy bay on the Hubris Covenant troops ran left and right to get to where they needed to go. Weapons were distributed and groups of Elites stood together, checking armor and inciting each other into fits of beserker rage.
Suddenly a set of doors that had been given a wide berth by the Covenant soldiers opened, and bright iridescent light poured out. Indistinct shadows stood within and every soldier in the bay froze.
The shadows within stepped forward and out of the blinding glow. They materialized into hard, armored forms, the forms of Brutes. The group numbered around twenty, and their armor seemed reminiscent of the Elites', but was much more advanced. Some carried the grenade launchers and flamethrowers of their planetary counterparts, but most carried some other type of rifle.
The armored Brutes strode forward into the mass of soldiers and began batting unfortunate troopers aside. A gold armored Elite was slow to move from the path of the group, and an angry Brute smashed it's head, tossing the limp body to the side. The scene repeated itself several more times as the Brutes made their way to a slim, needle like shuttle.
The Covenant troops finished loading their ships and once the bay was cleared, the docking doors opened, venting the bay to space. The needle shuttle was the first to exit the bay and move into space. Once the shuttle cleared the station, a cloaking device enveloped it, and it disappeared from view.
Shuttles and ships streamed from the Hubris and joined the waiting fleet, all oriented toward the planet. The Covenant had learned from their previous mistakes and had spread their ships out, not wanting to be caught in a bunch. But they had failed to take to heart the full advancements of the human ships. Just as the Covenant ships had begun to get underway towards the High Charity, the human fleet appeared in their midst.
The Battlecruisers Atlantis, Titan, and Impervious jumped into normal space around the Hubris, and the instant they came out of Slipspace, their plasma lances discharged at the station. A hundred beams of plasma blasted through the station's shielding and ripped through its hull with ease.
Holed in dozens of places, the Hubris began to vent explosive gases and list to the side amidst massive sheets of armor that had been cut away by the fearsome weapons of the human fleet. The rest of the Covenant fleet fared no better as scores were instantly destroyed by the initial volley of fire.
And before the Covenant ships could even charge their weapons to fire a first salvo, the human ships unleashed a second volley of fire into the Covenant fleet. Scores more of Covenant ships dissolved under the torrent of plasma lances and the Covenant counterattack faltered.
The UNSC fleet persisted in destroying the Covenant ships, the advantage clearly in their favor. Already the Covenant space station began coming apart under its own rotation and hundreds of Covenant ships floated uselessly through deep space.
Onboard the UNSC Frigate Guadalcanal, Captain David Richards watched intently through his bridge screens as the battle took place. His crew operated with efficiency and prowess, most were veterans of combat against the Covenant, which was extremely rare in the UNSC fleet.
"Helm, come about fifty six degrees. Bring out bow to bear on that carrier there. Weapons, I want forward lance batteries to target her power core."
"Aye aye sir, forward batteries acquiring target."
"Captain, I have a destroyer bearing down on us on the port side. She's warming plasma turrets, preparing to fire."
"Weapons, port broadside batteries acquire target. Hole her from stem to stern. Bring up dispersion shields on the port side. Helm, to flank speed."
"Aye aye sir, portside broadside batteries have acquired target. Forward batteries have acquired target, waiting for order to fire."
"Thank you Mr. Makota. You may fire."
"Captain! The destroyer is firing! Two plasma torpedoes inbound on the port side, impact in twenty seconds!"
"Helm, after we fire, fire our underside emergency thrusters. See if we can't avoid being hit."
"Aye sir, waiting for firing."
"All targeted batteries firing now Captain."
The unbearably bright lances of plasma shot forward from the prow and broadside batteries of the frigate. The prow lances impacted amidships on the Covenant carrier and instantly pierced the shields and hull. An instant after, the ships engines died and it's plasma turrets lost their red glow. It drifted dead in space and became a helpless victim to the swarms of fighters and bombers launching from the nearby Eisenhower II.
The broadside lances of the Guadalcanal smashed through destroyers shields and completely cored the Covenant ship. A neat hole was punched through the center of the ship and it was an empty hull that continued through space on it's inertia. It would have collided with the Guadalcanal had the frigate not accelerated out of the way.
"Captain! Five seconds to impact!"
"Fire thrusters now Ms. Ramirez!"
Midshipman First Class Tracy Ramirez triggered the thruster control on her station, launching the Guadalcanal out of the path of the torpedoes. But the moment the Covenant ship was destroyed, the plasma lost its form and quickly dispersed into space.
The Captain smiled and brought up information on his console. He called up his ship's AI and queried her about more potential targets.
"Sylvia, what is the nearest Covenant ship to us now?"
"Captain, the nearest Covenant ship is the Righteous Victory, approximately sixty kilometers off our starboard side."
"What is her class and displacement?"
"The Righteous Victory is a heavy cruiser. She displaces a hundred thousand tons."
"Helm, bring us about. I want the prow batteries to bear on that cruiser."
"Aye aye sir. Coming about to one oh eight degrees."
The AI began to have bright data figures stream over her form and she turned to face the Captain.
"Captain, I'm receiving a call for assistance from the Lexington. It seems she is tracking some sort of a phantom signal moving away from the battle. They can't get a fix on the signal, so they want us to help triangulate with the Henderson to help lock it down."
"Thank you Sylvia. Helm bring us about again. Coordinate with the Lexington and Henderson so we can get into position. Weapons, I want all batteries prepared to fire, and make sure all shields are operating at one hundred percent."
The Guadalcanal turned away from the battle and joined her sister ships in the search for the phantom contact. The three frigates headed toward the planet in a triangular formation searching the void with their sensors, vainly trying to pinpoint the location of the Covenant stealth shuttle.
On the Covenant shuttle, the armored Brutes watched with anticipation as they neared the High Charity. The human supercarrier and her escorts remained in high orbit above the planet, but were easily avoided by the shuttle. And the three searching frigates were too far behind to pose a threat.
Captain Richards looked on passively as his ship continued in formation with her sister ships. They had been moving steadily closer to the planet, but had been unable to locate the Covenant ghost.
"Radar, any new contacts?"
A young red headed female answered from her station without looking up.
"No Captain. Neither the Lexington nor the Henderson report any contacts either. And we are nearing the planets atmosphere."
"Very well. Thank you Ms. Murphy. Communications, open me a link to the Hornet. Get my Admiral Cole."
"Aye sir, com link opened to Admiral Cole sir."
"Yes Richards, what is it?"
"Sir, we have been tracking a Covenant signal to the planet with the Lexington and Henderson. We haven't been able to pinpoint it and believe it may be planetside now, or in the process of making planetfall."
"Very well, thanks for the update. You may return to the battle, we'll take care of it from here."
"Aye sir."
"Communications, contact the Lexington and Henderson, tell their captains that we are disengaging from the search and returning to the battle. Weapons, give me a max range lock on the nearest enemy ship in range. Make sure our line of fire is clear and that we wont hit another UNSC vessel."
"Aye sir. Max range affirmative."
The three frigates wheeled and sped back to the battle, but there was little need. The last of the Covenant warships were being disabled and boarded by UNSC Marines, they crews imprisoned and systems analyzed.
Onboard the Hornet Admiral Cole ordered flights of Furies launched to locate and destroy the Covenant stealth ship.
"Send the Furies to lockdown the airspace around the temple. That's where this ship must be going."
"Aye sir, directing the Furies now."
Lieutenant John Dunbar rolled his Fury fighter to starboard as his com crackled to life.
"Devil One Niner, bring your flight to sector thirty two. Keep your eyes peeled for a phantom contact. Your orders are to seek out and destroy the contact upon discovery."
"Affirmative flight, Devil flight to sector thirty two."
Dunbar flipped switches and toggles on his console. Targeting systems and munitions rosters came online his HUD and he began scanning for a phantom. Several minutes passed before his radar briefly bleeped and the contact was gone.
"Devil Two Zero, I just got a reading on the ghost. Did you see anything?"
"One Niner, I copy your reading. It disappeared again, but it was about three o'clock off the starboard side."
"Affirmative, let's go hunting."
Dunbar flipped the Master Arm switch and armed his Tiger medium range Air to Air missiles. He looked up just in time to see lasers blast out from nowhere to shear his wingman's Fury in half. He rolled his Fury to port to avoid the sweeping lasers and immediately locked on the source.
Once the Fury righted itself, Dunbar pickled off two missiles in rapid succession, hoping to catch the Covenant ship off guard. The missiles streaked ahead towards the still invisible ship, and exploded, disabling the cloaking system.
The shuttle reappeared two kilometers in front of the Fury and was streaking towards the temple. Dunbar pushed his Fury's engines out in pursuit while simultaneously opening a com to the Hornet.
"Flight, this is Devil One Niner, I've got your phantom contact. It's some bizarre Covie shuttle, like a needle. Devil Two Zero is down, I never saw him punch out, don't think he got the chance, but I suggest launching rescue immediately. I'm in pursuit of the shuttle and will engage to destroy."
"Copy One Niner, dispatching rescue Pelicans to Two Zero's coordinates."
Dunbar continued his pursuit of the shuttle, but could not seem to catch up to it. In fact, the Covenant ship seemed to be pulling away. He was shocked, the Fury was the fastest single ship in the UNSC fleet. But he continued his pursuit anyway and locked his remaining missiles onto the shuttle. But it was clear enough to Dunbar that the shuttle would get to the temple before he could destroy it.
Onboard the Covenant shuttle, the armored Brutes attached jetpacks and prepared to jump. The bay doors opened as the shuttle neared the temple. It continued at flank speed, never intending to stop. Seconds passed and a green light went on in the cargo bay. The Brutes immediately moved to the bay doors and jumped, freefalling above the temple.
Dunbar finally closed the distance and was coming in from above the shuttle, a perfect kill shot. He never noticed the dark forms falling from the shuttle as he launched his missiles.
"Goodbye..."
The missiles streaked forward as the shuttle pulled up from its descent. They exploded above the ship and the explosion tore through the hull. The ship's pilots were immediately killed and the entire shuttle came apart a moment later. Flaming debris rained down from above, distracting the Marines below, and camouflaging the falling Brutes.
"For you Two Zero. Flight, splash one bandit. Devil One Niner returning to ship."
The Fury banked and accelerated through the clouds. Below, bewildered Marines watched the falling debris for a moment longer before returning to their duties. Unbeknownst to them, armored Brutes were among the debris, and closing the distance with every passing second.
Zyryal, the Brute commander, grunted in satisfaction as he saw the Marines below remain ignorant of their approach. The insertion had worked better than he had hoped, the humans' own fightercraft providing a perfect cover for his force. One hundred meters above the humans, he briefly fired his thruster pack to slow his descent as his team followed suit.
Again, at fifty meters the Brutes fired their thrusters again to further slow their descent. By then they were traveling at a mere thirty meters a second, well within the survivability limits of Brutes in armor. Two seconds later, they smashed into unaware Marines, killing them instantly.
Corporal Chris Wier was standing over watch with his squad and a couple of Warthogs on the side of the temple. They were about to be relieved when all hell broke loose. A dark armored form dropped onto Private Delson's head. His shield flashed for a brief second, before disappearing and the form crushed Delson beneath its weight.
Four other Marines died the same way before the Brutes were suddenly among them. Wier had time to fire three rounds and give a shout of alarm before a Brute smashed a rifle butt into his face, crushing his skull. In seconds, the ten Marines of the squad were all dead, pools of blood forming around their broken bodies.
The relief squad approached in a troop carrier Warthog, and before they knew any better, the transport was annihilated by a score of high velocity grenades. Once the immediate perimeter was secure, Zyryal nodded his satisfaction to his team.
The Brutes immediately engaged their thruster packs again began jumping around the side of the temple. They encountered limited resistance by isolated Marine squads, which proved to be mediocre at best. Zyryal shivered in anticipation of facing the legendary super soldiers the humans employed. The Brutes continued on their way, slaughtering Marines whenever they came across them.
Sergeant Johnson received a report of some landing force of Covenant soldiers, ones nobody had ever seen before and were tearing Marines apart. His Marines. He immediately shouldered his rifle and pulled a shotgun from the back of a Warthog.
"Captain! Something wicked this way comes, and while we wait for Black team, I'd say I'm your man to deal with it."
Captain Gregory looked up from a schematic he had been analyzing and nodded. He glanced at his watch before motioning to a Lieutenant next to him.
"Sergeant, take 1st platoon. Lieutenant Downy will stay with me, and hurry Sergeant, the breach will occur anytime now."
"Yes sir, I'm on it.1st platoon! With me, we're gonna go get some!"
Zyryal stood atop a Scorpion tank, the crew of which he had just slaughtered. His team stood scattered around the entrance, waiting for the elite warriors who were sure to come, and the battle that would ensue.
Surely enough, Black team responded to the desperate calls for help, knowing that it had been Brutes that were inflicting such casualties. Jason did not know that the Brutes outnumbered him almost three to one, but he did know that whatever the scenario, his team would hold the advantage.
Zyryal was growing impatient and about to order an advance into the entrance when suddenly Black team Spartans were among his team. The black armored warriors suddenly materialized amidst his team, lashing out with hand and foot, striking Brutes with ease. Two Spartans had jumped to flank Zyryal, not knowing he was the commander of the Brutes, and dislodged him from the tank with vicious kicks to his back.
He sprawled on the ground, growling with intense anger at being caught off guard. He whirled and aimed his rifle where the Spartans had been, only to find them gone, the space empty. The Brute quickly stood up and took stock of his team.
Two Brutes lay motionless on the ground, bizarre plasma wounds crossing critical parts of their anatomy. But the rest of his team remained upright and no more scarred that some dents in their armor. He knew instantly from the brief contact that his team outnumbered the Spartans by more than two to one, and so he pressed the engagement. His team had barely reengaged their thrusters when the Spartans were amongst them again.
The Spartans reappeared as before, lashing out with hand and foot, as well as glowing batons, hitting Brutes left and right. But this time, the Brutes were prepared and fought back. A Spartan was smashed into the ground as three Brutes grabbed a hold of him when he jumped and threw him down. His shields flashed and disappeared as he was momentarily stunned by the impact.
That moment was more than the Brutes needed and three laser beams lanced down and cut the Spartan in half. Mark's vital signs flatlined in Jason's visor and he briefly glanced over and saw the body on the ground. Another of his team's vitals went flat as a Brute grabbed a hold of Jill's helmet from behind and twisted sharply, snapping her unbreakable bones and nearly tearing her head off her shoulders.
Zyryal let the limp form of the Spartan drop to the ground and searched for more targets. All over his team was destroying the Spartan force, their numbers already dwindling. Without warning a black armored form appeared directly in front of Zyryal and smashed his chin with a thunderous uppercut.
He stumbled back, recoiling from the blow but noting with satisfaction that this Spartan did not disappear again, but rather pressed the attack. A glowing baton snapped out from the Spartan's hand and he went after Zyryal with whirling attacks and blows, most of which Zyryal barely avoided or countered.
Jason attacked the Brute who had killed Jill with a ferocity he had never felt before. His anger burned within him, growing hotter and hotter with every passing second. His peripheral vision blurred and he only saw his target, the Brute before him. In his fury he failed to notice that half of his team's vitals were flat and the monotonous tone in his helmet.
Zyryal jetted backwards, desperately trying to put space between this berserk Spartan and himself, but was thwarted by the Spartan's ability to jump through space faster than he could jet. Every instant he thought he might get a moments respite, the Spartan was there, with the deadly plasma baton whirling, a constant dervish of doom.
Five Spartans remained fighting, and the Brutes put forth their best efforts to eliminate the survivors. The Spartans remained alive only because of their proficiency with teleporting, avoiding the attacks and reach of the Brutes as they chased after them. But it was only a matter of time before the Brutes would catch up to the Spartans and put an end to Black team.
Sergeant Johnson and 1st platoon ran urgently against the flow of Marines in the tunnel. It had taken them close to fifteen minutes to cover the four hundred meter distance in the cramped conditions, but they were finally at the entrance to the temple. Johnson stopped and faced his on loan platoon and barked out.
"Awright Marines! Those supersoldiers need a hand for a change, and it's about damned time the Marines repayed the favor! I want these damned Covies smashed! Leave nothing alive!"
1st platoon roared a fierce battlecry and charged out of the tunnel. The Brutes were vainly attempting to corral the Spartans when a large force of Marines suddenly rushed out of the temple. A sabot round from a sniper rifle tore through Zyryal's shoulder, spinning him from his feet. His sudden incapacitation was all Jason needed to drive his baton through the Brute's helmet, destroying his brain.
Sergeant Johnson racked the slide on his shotgun, pumping a round into the chamber before blasting a Brute off it's feet. He and three other Marines fired on the downed warrior until it was a pulpy, blue and purple mass on the stone floor. Another Marine peppered a Brute with his assault rifle, distracting it enough to allow a Spartan to empty his submachine gun into the back of the Brute's head.
The sudden arrival of the Marines tipped the favor of the battle in the human's favor, and now the Brutes were on the defense. Lasers crisscrossed the battle, cutting Marines in half, while grenades blew shields and armor away. But the Marines held the numerical advantage and were pressing the Brutes back, farther away from the entrance.
Johnson's shotgun locked empty and he dropped it and shouldered his rifle. The Spartan he had seen on the bridge with the Master Chief was wrestling with a Brute and looked to be dangerously close being overwhelmed. The Brute had managed to wrestle away the Spartan's plasma baton and was pressing it closer and closer to his neck.
Johnson jammed the muzzle of his rifle into the hip joint of the Brute's armor and fired a burst, severing the spinal cord. The Brute threw it's head up in pain and Jason slammed its neck with his fist. The Covenant warrior fell backwards, a gurgling sound issuing from its broken throat. As it hit the ground, the body began to spasm. Johnson leveled his rifle and spattered the Brute's brain matter all over the stone.
"I told you to count on the Marines, and I live by my word Petty Officer."
Johnson offered the Spartan a hand up which he graciously accepted.
"Thank you Sergeant, the Marines have indeed saved my team and I am grateful."
Five Brutes remained standing in a defensive circle, completely surrounded by the Marines and Spartans when sniper fire issued from the pinnacle of the temple. Sabot rounds tore through the air, leaving ion trails in the atmosphere as they impacted on their targets. Brutes spun and recoiled, smashed back from the rounds. And seconds later it was over, all the Brutes lying dead on the ground.
"Thank you Phantom team, you're intervention is much appreciated."
"Affirmative Black leader, any time."
Jason looked sadly at the bodies of the fallen around him. Fully half of his team had been wiped out by the Brutes, and that was a price he had not been prepared to pay. Feelings and emotions he had never felt before welled up within him. His life had been spent as the best of the best, and he was ill equipped to deal with a situation in which he and his team had come out second best.
Questions about his judgment and leadership formed in his mind, repeating over and over again, hounding his conscience. He brewed as he knelt by Jill's motionless form, her hand in his own gauntleted palm. His self admonishments grew to the bursting point when a com patched through.
"Petty Officer, we're going to assault the antechamber. Get your team up and ready to go and report to the entrance. I'll brief you from there."
"Master Chief, I... I don't think I should be in charge of Black team right now, I... I made a mistake..."
"Spartan, get your hat on right. I need everyone of my team operation at one hundred and ten percent right now, and you're my second in command. We all make mistakes, but it's how we deal with them that counts. Now get Black team to the entrance."
"Aye aye Master Chief."
Jason stood and squared his shoulders. Covenant warriors were calling for the company of death, and he was not going to keep them waiting any longer.