A message was sent to the Raven's Night warship later into the day, at precisely 18:00 hours. Colonel McPherson sent a message saying that the Raven's Night was in his radar, and the two ships would dock at 18:30 hours to organize. All hands were on deck, preparing for docking procedure. Halo and Samantha stood side by side, standing in front of her squad, and looked about the large bay. Many marines had shown up to welcome the Colonel, the Captain standing before the doors. There was a loud hiss of gas escaping, and soon the mechanical whine of the doors opening filled the bay. Everyone suddenly saluted, Halo tilting his head and quickly doing the same. Colonel McPherson stopped at the entrance, then saluted the Captain in greeting, both of them returning their hands to their sides.
Sam nudged Halo's side, and the two of them fell in place behind the Captain and the Colonel, as they headed to the bridge. They were promptly accompanied by a few of the Colonel's marines, and briskly walked into the command center of the Raven's Night. The Colonel saluted all of those standing before him, following the Captain into her quarters, while Katrina appeared and surveyed the situation.
"Report, Captain." the Colonel spoke, watching her immediately press a few buttons on her desk, and Katrina took care of the rest.
"Sir. We have determined the best course of action for insertion on the planet Farthern Star. We will land our ships here, and here," she pointed at the map, about 100 miles from the colony, "board the Warthogs and Scorpions, and send our first wave of soldiers via these routes... here. Once close enough to the Military Installation, we will be sending our finest marines to... Katrina, the base layout, please?"
Katrina stared at the Colonel, a look that she had given Halo many times, before snapping back into reality, "Of course, Captain."
Another map appeared on the screen next to the birds eye view of the lands around the base, and soon a more technical map appeared. Captain Anderson cleared her throat and continued.
"These spots here. They are the most armored, but the least guarded, we're assuming. It is both a pain for the Covenant and the Marines to negotiate around these points, but a strategic element for our Marines, because of these high points indicated on the map here," she pointed to the other map, "the mountains here will provide us with excellent cover, and sniping positions here and here, could do an excellent job of protecting our marines.
By the suggestions of Halo here, he had informed us of a necessary point we needed to secure... here, at the most northern part of the facility. Structural blueprints indicate a rise in elevation at this point, possibly a hill, that winds down around to the eastern side of the base here. And that's our targets. The generators. We infiltrate through these drainage ditches, dispatch any Covenant inside, and then deactivate the generators. Halo has told us this will put the Covenant into a confused state, just long enough for our snipers to open fire, and draw attention from the main entrance... here, where the majority of our forces will storm and rid the area of Covenant infestation.
We will be executing the mission as soon as we land, which will be an estimated.... 12 hours and thirty seven minutes. I suggest we let our troops rest for six hours, and for the last six, prepare for battle, unless the Colonel has anything else to add to the mission plan?"
Colonel McPherson was simply rubbing his chin, taking in the plan, though looked to Anderson before he shook his head, "No. The mission plan seems very well prepared. It is also good to let our troops rest before the battle and make final preparations," he spoke, then turned to face Halo, nodding his head slowly, "good work, soldier."
Halo tilted his head slowly as he looked to the Colonel, though bowed his head respectfully, "Thank... you," he growled, then saluted the Captain.
"Have your A.I. send the information to the A.I. aboard the Sword of Damocles. If you excuse me, I should be returning to my ship. I am impressed at the plan we have, and I am confident that we will succeed in ridding the Covenant menace."
He turned, then promptly left with his marines, while Halo noticed that same look on Katrina. She was busy uploading to the second ship, then looked to Halo for a moment, before turning her gaze back to the Captain. She took out one of her thin cigars, then lit it before taking a seat.
"You two should take the next six hours to rest. I have a feeling you both are going to need it," she spoke, then took a glass out of her desk along with the bottle of scotch.
Sam saluted the Captain, and Halo did the same, before exiting, passing through the bridge to the lift. Halo was strangely quiet about this. Samantha knew something was wrong, and turned to him, a look of concern in her eye.
"Something is bothering you." she spoke.
Halo nodded slowly, then looked back to her, "Don't like this...." he spoke, and didn't want to say anything about the Colonel, it couldn't have just been a Human trait, to be a bit more odd than anyone else, and he was a high ranking officer. For the moment, he just put it out of his mind. Samantha just left it alone, and nodded gently before moving closer to Halo. She felt comforted when he put and arm around her. It could very well be the last twelve hours of her knowing Halo, and she wanted to remember him for his kindness, and not what he could do on the battle field.
Samantha and him returned to the Crew's Habitat, stepping back into their overly large room, and started to collect their gear. She insisted on having a few more drinks, and set the alarm to wake her in four hours. She was insistent that Halo join her, but he politely refused, and needed to take a walk. He had something of his own to do. She let it be, and soon curled up into bed, minding the bandage just behind her neck, and soon fell into a slumber. Halo stared at the sky, closing his eyes for a few moments before he promptly left to find some place private.
He was fortunate that no one had stopped him while on his way to the storage bay at the other end of the ship. It was almost deserted, save for a few engineers and mechanics. When he was alone, he knelt in the middle of the floor, closing his eyes as he outstretched his arms, clapping his hands together, saying a silent prayer to his Gods, asking for guidance and protection, and above all else, mercy when he was caught by his fellow Covenants. It was inevitable at this point. They would do anything to see a traitor brought to justice, and jumping into the fray, he was practically giving himself up to them. He knelt for a long time, before he stood, turning around to find a few marines just entering the bay. There were three of them, one of which had accompanied the Colonel, and he frowned. He quickly stiffened, saluting the three of them, as they were higher rank.
"At east, soldier," the leader of the three spoke, walking up to Halo.
Halo was confused by the presence of the three. There was supposed to be no one in here. Before he could figure out what was wrong, he was struck across the face, not the image of the human, but his hidden face. He fell to his knees, lifting his head as he growled, only to get a swift kick across it. He whined, holding his face as the three marines suddenly jumped him. His arms were pulled behind his back, secured in cuffs while the leader quickly held his jaws shut, his partner taking the near by roll of duct tape and started to wrap it around his head. Scared for his life, Halo kicked and bucked, his screams for help silenced and muffled by the tap around his face. He couldn't see nor speak, and felt his feet being treated the same way.
The marine stood, chuckling softly before he started kicking Halo in the gut. The Covenant bucked and cried out with each attack, screaming for anyone to help him as he felt more blows land on his unprotected body.
"String him up, we'll leave him here until he's ready to see the prisoner," the leader of the three marines spoke, while one of his cohorts searched the area for some rope or for some chain.
He came back with rope, tying it around the neck of the Covenant, while the other moved a mobile hoist, lowering down the hook. The Colonel's guard just crossed his arms, watching his colleague's tie the other end of the rope, then press the button to raise the hook. Halo squirmed, his screams once again filling the air as he was steadily pulled to his feet by the hook, choking and trying to kick his legs. His feet were just barely left on the floor, keeping him from strangling himself, while the three marines simply gloated over their capture. Until there was a loud clang.
The Colonel's guard struck the floor, completely unconscious, while the other two Humans turned around, just meeting the end of a long pipe. Halo bucked again, not knowing what was going on, screaming for anyone to release him. He soon got his wish. The hook started to lower, and he fell to his knees, hearing the jingling of keys before he could breathe normally once more. The tape was torn from his ankles, and soon the makeshift noose untied. His hands were freed once again, just as he felt the tape around his head being pulled off of him. He quickly helped, managing to flex his jaws once again.
"Get it off of me!" he cried, squirming wildly before the last bit of tape was pulled from his face.
He opened his eyes in panic, searching around feverishly to find who had released him, but... no one was there. He looked behind him, behind any places of cover, everywhere. He was completely alone. His heart started to beat quicker, seeing the three marines laying on the floor and the lack of his savior. He climbed to his feet, gripping his side tightly as he panted, and gently rubbed. It really hurt there from the beatings, but he had to push the pain out of his mind, and had to tell the Captain of what happened to him, but that question of why he was released, and by who, rang well in his mind. He started moving, stepping over the unconscious, or were they dead, bodies of the marines, seeing the pipe used to strike them before stepping out and rushing to the nearest lift.
The doors opened when the lift reached its desired level, the Covenant stepping out and looking around quickly, seeing many of the lights off, every fourth light on. Thoughts entered his mind, wondering if the Captain was conserving power for the assault. He stepped out of the lift, turning to the right and looking for anyone, until he heard a sort of muffled bang on the floor come from behind him. He spun around, glancing back into the lift, his eyes scanning everywhere within the small box, trying to find something out of place. He frowned a bit, turning away from the lift, then stepped quickly down the hall, but suddenly stopping as he swore he could feel something brush against his hand. He stared into the darkness, looking everywhere. Left, right, up, down. No one was around, and he knew he didn't brush his hand against the wall. A pair of doors suddenly opened down the hall, remaining open for several seconds, and closed before anyone stepped through. He frowned, tilting his head a bit, wondering why the doors would open on their own, until he made a realization. His blood ran cold. He knew what it was. Trying to remain calm, he continued on his way to the next lift. He waited a few moments, hearing what could only be silenced footsteps in a hall that had no people in it. He swallowed a bit, the doors in front of him opening, before he stepped in, pressing the button for the lift.
Again, that feeling. Something was right behind him, though invisible to the naked eye. He just controlled his breathing, and was surprised when the lift stopped at the level before the bridge. The doors opened once again, Halo's eyes looking for the signs of anyone, but again, nothing. He promptly stepped off the lift glad to be off of it, before he turned to the right, padding down the hall. He rounded a corner, spinning as he pressed his back to the wall, and listened for the doors to close. A full three seconds before there was any kind of sound of doors closing. His steps led him around in a large circle, trying to find the one lift dedicated to the bridge. He stopped, staring at the control plate, hanging out by its wires, and an out of order sign on the door. He tilted his head a bit, before turning to his right at the sounds of growling. He moved back, thinking he heard the sound from the left, then quickly ran to the right of the large hallway. He was looking over his shoulder as he rounded the corner, walking straight into someone. He stepped back in fright, his eyes wide as he stared at what he bumped into. He let out a long breath as he spotted a Human engineer.
"Whoa, no need to rush," the engineer spoke, watching Halo calm down.
"Where... is... the Captain?" he asked, trying to be as fluent as possible, and hoping he wasn't failing.
"Oh, Captain Anderson is on the bridge, speaking to the Colonel, making last minute preparations. The lift seems to have been malfunctioning, and I've been sent from engineering to try and fix the problem. If you need to see her, there are the stairs at the end of the hall." he spoke, motioning to either direction.
Halo nodded slowly, walking along with the Human, and watched as he moved to the lift, starting to fiddle with the wires behind the panel. He found himself at the entrance to the stairs, bending down as he went through the port. When he was sure no one was following him, he sprinted up the stairs. Nine levels at full tilt. He was jumping at least seven of the stairs at once, quickly turning around to vault up the next steps. At the bridge level, he padded through the portal, looking around quickly to just see the Captain walk into her quarters, and the Colonel start to follow.
The Colonel tilted his head slightly, then glanced to the doorway, spotting Halo. The two of them made eye contact. Halo fixed his gaze at the Colonel, blinking slowly as he felt his heart rate start to rise. His breathing became a little more needy, the sound of air filling his lungs was soon bombarding his ears. While the two tried to stare each other down, the Colonel halted his walk to turn completely towards Halo. The Captain turned her gaze to the Colonel from within her quarters, watching in curiosity as the older man took a few steps forward, towards Halo. Katrina, watching the Captain and the Colonel, spotted the calm and blank look on the Colonel, then turned her gaze to see what he was looking it. She frowned slightly, staring at Halo, who had his gaze locked on the Colonel, not daring to remove it like his life depended on it. She wondered why an aging Human could stop a Covenant right in his tracks.
Captain Anderson stepped out of her quarters, looking at the Colonel, then looked to Halo. Halo? The three of them remained silent, not knowing what was going on, but Halo knew. He stared at the Human, staring into his eyes, and blinked slowly, wondering what was out of place. His eyelids closed again, as well as the lids on the Human image he was showing, his keen eyes trying to figure out something. Again a blink, and another, and yet another as time passed.
Halo flexed his jaws in secret, working out the dull ache there before tilting his head slowly as he just stared into the Colonel's eyes. Nothing happened for three solid minutes, it was just the two of them, trapped in their own little world. It was then Halo noticed that one single trait, something all Human's needed to do, and within a three minute time span, the Colonel lacked the ability to do one normal, Human trait.
The Colonel, did not blink.
Halo let out a quivering breath, feeling a fear well up inside of him before he drew in some air, "You're not human," his human image mouthed, a barely visible smirk appearing on the Colonel's lips.
"Neither are you." came Halo's mouthed reply.
The Captain watched the two of them, and soon started getting the attention of everyone within the bridge. All remained silent as the two continued to stare each other down, before Captain Anderson raised a hand slowly.
"What is the meaning of this, Halo?" she asked, frowning a bit at the utter lack of disrespect Halo was giving the Colonel.
Katrina looked back to Halo, seeing his demeanor change, noticing a change of temperature inside of him. His heart rate was rising for some reason. She looked back to the Captain, who also had a look of confusion on her face, while the two lifted their heads slightly, just as a Marine was starting to walk by his field of vision. Time seemed to slow down, almost crawling before Halo noticed the marine was past him. In one fluid motion, he gripped the marines pistol out of his holster, then pushed him off to the side before raising the weapon at the Colonel.
"Halo no!!!" the Captain screamed, twisting her body as she quickly moved out of the way.
It was too late. Three bullets pulsed out of the barrel, twirling through the air at a speed no eye could register. The first projectile was on a perfect course towards the Colonel's chest, while the other three were slightly more off. By the time the bullets were even half of the distance, everyone flinched at the sound of the report, already on their way to ducking before the bullets struck their target. With a resounding twang, the suddenly altered course drastically, the pulse of an orange field of energy sending the first one in other directions, while absorbing the impact of the two others. The Captain lifted her head from her cowered position, her hands by her head as she looked in time to see the residual effects of the shield fade back into nothingness, and even Katrina was shocked by this. Halo saw something that she had missed.
"Covenant...." she whispered in shock as Halo slowly lowered his weapon.
Halo growled loudly, pulling his arm back as a wave of blue energy just missed where his wrist was. That was all that Katrina needed before sounding the alarms. Sirens wailed, red lights started to flash about, while the Colonel looked to the left and right of him, a wide smirk on his face, watching the panic as Katrina announced of the intercom that Covenant were on board, and all hands report to battle stations. The crew in the bridge ducked behind their workstations, keeping down before the Colonel grabbed the Captain by the throat, pulling her into the middle of the room.
Halo watched the Colonel take the Captain out of the corner of his eye as he tried to find the source of the light. There was a loud growl, while a loud thump was heard as the grates in the ceiling fell to the floor. Halo saw the source of the light, and was busy watching this blue light dance around, before it waved again, soaring over his head and cutting cleanly through the doors to the lift. Halo hit the ground, watching as a form started waving before him, the image solidifying into the image of an Elite. The sword was trained at his neck, and he lifted his chin up, staring at him with wide eyes. He was still armed, but with something this dangerous at his neck, he wasn't about to make a move.
The Colonel watched as two dozen of his Elites seemingly fell from the ceiling, landing by several Humans, and quickly round them up. It took them a matter of a minute to effectively render the bridge under their control. McPherson gripped Anderson's neck in a very inhuman way, then presented her to the A.I.
"Disable the alert, computer," he spoke, his voice insinuating that he would do something very bad if she didn't.
Katrina quickly did as she was ordered to, the sirens and the lights returning back to their passive state, but from her sensors, she knew it was enough to send a squad of marines up to the bridge to investigate what would happen. The Colonel frowned a bit before holding Anderson tighter moving closer to the middle of the deck, then stared out into space. The sounds of marching boots up the stairs were soon heard, five Marines flooding through the door and opening fire. The Colonel, distracted by the sudden intrusion, watched as two of the marines were quickly dispatched by plasma fire.
The Elite with the sword to Halo's neck turned his gaze to the door way, and in that brief moment of time, Halo swerved out of the way of the searing blade, before planting one firm kick to the foremost joint of digit-grade legs. A crunch filled the air as the Elite howled in pain, such sounds ending shortly after its own blade was used to lop his own head off. The Captain, struggled a bit more as the Colonel was shouting orders in the Covenant language. A small protective cover flitted open upon Katrina's requested, and Anderson kicked her legs out, getting her heel to hit the tiny button inside. A module appeared at the base of Katrina's holographic base.
"Get her out of here!" she screamed at Halo, before the Colonel realized what was happening.
Anderson gasped for air, clutching at the hand around her throat, and out of the corner of her eye saw Halo dashing for the module. His hand clutched around it, and he sprinted towards the Captain's quarters. He dived inside, kicking the door closed as the Colonel growled.
"Elites, capture the traitor! Alive!" he barked, though grinned evilly, "but he no longer requires the use of his limbs. Go now! Retrieve that A.I."
The Captain's eyes went wide as she tried to kick a bit more, feeling herself lifted into the air. She struggled for breath, the blood trapped in her head making her head feel like it was going to explode. She simply stared at the Colonel, her eyes wide with fright, before she was released and hit the floor. She coughed for life, clutching at her throat as she watched six blue armored Elites rush to the door, only to hear it lock. A few bangs later, and they realized the door was sealed shut. Though their plasma weapons would make short work of the metal door.
"Halo...." she gasped weakly, staring at the door.
Halo had his back pinned to the wall, breathing heavily as he stared at the module in his hands. This little module that so many Covenant's had died trying to retrieve, and now he was entrusted with keeping it out of the enemy's hands. Yes, enemy. Whom ever the Colonel was, he knew of his betrayal, and his orders issued, it made him sick to his stomach. He was going to be brought back to the home world, but not in one piece.
"Hey! Quit gawking and get me out of here!" the module came to life, the image of Katrina appearing on one of the screens.
Halo parted his mouth, panting a bit more before he shook his head, "How?"
"I don't know! This is a sealed room!" she said in annoyance.
Halo stared at the pistol. A lot of good this is going to do for me, he thought, then rested it on the floor before he heard very loud banging at the door, and to his dismay, it was starting to get warmer in here.
"The door is reinforced, but I don't know how long it will take for them to melt through it." Katrina warned, sighing softly.
"Weapons... need weapons." Halo growled in frustration, banging his head against the wall as he figured out a way out of here.
"Weapons... we only have.... wait a minute! Wait a minute! Your gear was brought into this very room when you were taken prisoner." she spoke, searching around a bit, and a hidden door opened.
Halo moved from the wall, peering inside, and saw his black armor. He smiled a bit, and noticed his last weapon as a Covenant, his plasma saber. With no time to lose, he quickly donned his armor once again. He slid into the tight membrane, and fitted the poly metallic pieces of the armor in the right places. He took the helmet last, staring at it, then fitted it on his head before looking down at himself. Perfect, the camouflage was still portraying a human, and no Covenant. He took his saber, then quickly examined it. It was damaged, but he could still use it. He was dismayed that there were no other weapons, so he had to make due.
He placed the module inside a metallic pouch on his back, then held the saber before he looked at the door glowing red.
"Come on, Halo. We still need to get out of here!" she warned, thinking of anyway out.
Halo had a better idea. The nearly full bottle of scotch was still on the desk, and he opened it, giving it a firm sniff and shivered a bit, feeling the alcohol burn his lungs. He then poured it all over the walls and the door where it wasn't glowing before breaking the bottle in front of the door, letting the puddle of liquid soak into the carpet.
"What good is that going to do!?" Katrina spoke, getting more and more nervous.
"What is beneath this room?" he growled, moving back to the desk, then started search through the contents of the drawers.
"A hallway of the level below us." she replied, noticing him lift a book of matches and a few of the Captain's cigars before placing them into storage pockets, "what are you going to do?"
"Something," he said, taking his saber and activating it, staring at the blue glow filling the room.
He stabbed the sword into the floor, the carpet starting to burn and the metal beginning to melt rather easily as he moved the weapon through the material like a hot knife through butter. He made a wide circle, and soon the disc of floor fell to the level below, making a perfect escape route. His blade flickered a bit, before it suddenly over heated, which he discarded to the side. He was about to jump, when Katrina came to life.
"Wait. Arm yourself!" she spoke, opening the cabinet for all of the weapons, "I suggest a new pistol and an assault rifle, until you can come across better weaponry."
Halo took a hold of one of the pistols, loading it with a live magazine, then did the same for an assault rifle. He discarded the rest, being sure to have taken a few magazines for each weapon in the process.
"Almost ready," he spoke quietly, looking around the room once more.
He stopped at the Captain's liquor compartment, nodding slowly before Katrina just tilted her head. Halo grabbed the scotch, looking at it closely before he moved to the hole, frowning a bit as he tried to make out the words
The door was starting to have a hole burned into it, while the carpet smoldered violently from the intense heat from the saber. He hoped the metal of the circle wasn't hot enough that it would give him a serious burn.
"Ready," he growled, tossing the bottle at the door.
He swallowed heavily, then jumped. When he landed, he clutched at his face, the ambient heat affecting his eyes, and quickly placed a hand on the wall, guiding himself while Katrina did her best to lead him with very quiet beeps on the intercom speakers. Both she and him didn't know how he did it, but he managed to find a washroom, and quickly cupped water into his hands before splashing it onto his eyes, the feeling of his eyes drying out vanishing slowly, and the bit of rubbing was helping as well.
The Colonel watched in impatience as the door started to yield. Finally, he thought, watching as the bright golden metal dripped down the door. One of them looked down, spotting a liquid leaking from under the door, frowning in confusion about it, before the door erupted in flames when a hot drip of metal landed on the alcohol soaked carpet. The Captain's quarters were in flames, while Anderson simply watched in horror at the scene. Halo would be burned alive, but at least the module would be destroyed as well. She also remembered that the A.I. on the Sword of Damocles had no such information on Earth, but other vessels. The simple reason being, that ship was a short range version of a normal Lancia battle ship, used for transporting important people, and was never required to make trips back to Earth. For safety, it was armed with several Marines, but few external guns, and was usually guarded by an escort of at least six fighters.
She watched as the fires grew bigger, the Covenant Elites, stepping back from the heat, and stared into the inferno. They reported back to the Colonel, who merely growled.
"Kick the door in, I want that Traitor," he spoke, giving the impression that he wouldn't take know for an answer.
One of the Elite's bowed his head, staring at the door before he wound up and planted his foot at the cut handle. The door swung in violently, the bottle of scotch being slid with the door until it impacted the wall with great force. The fire erupted into an inferno once the contents met flame, making the room inaccessible to anyone for the moment. They told him that the fire was too large to give a proper visual, but for the good news, anyone caught in that room would have died from the heat. When the Elite's finished their visual report, the emergency fire systems came on, spraying the room in a type of foam, smothering the flames while the Elites put out the fire in front of the door. When the fire was snuffed, the foam started to disintegrate almost immediately, not even smoke coming out of the room. The closest Elite stepped inside, looking for signs of Halo and the module, but stepped back out, his head tilted.
"The traitor is not in there, Sir." he spoke.
The Colonel stared with his mouth open, eager to hear the news, but when the Elite reported exactly opposite, he frowned.
"What!?" he shouted, stepping forward, "how could he escape!? Find him! Search every place on this ship. I want that Traitor and that A.I.!!"
Captain Anderson just closed her eyes, letting out a held breath, her heart finally deciding to start operating again. Halo made it. She hoped he had enough sense to get off the ship somehow and just run.
"Oh hell...."
Halo was lost.