Stage 25: Do or Die
The last Age: Fall of the Forerunner Empire
Twenty Minutes after Halo 04 Activation
Expanding outward like a giant bubble, the Halo Wave consumed any sentient life it encountered. On Basis's surface, a great battle continued as the sangheili struggled to hold the flood at bay, fearing their lives. But above their heads a great light flashed and everyone gazed upward.
"It is time!" The Sangheili general shouted into his communicator. Wearing his forerunner war armor he pressed the control codes within his bunker and dropped to his knees. "All warriors evacuate the forerunner temple! Our battle has come to an end!" Thousands of Sangheili warriors raced into the battle field as more and more flood combat forms swelled toward them, but they all tossed their weapons to the ground and lowered themselves to their knees.
The flood had breached their last defensive position but none seemed to care. The creatures gargled and hissed as the raced across the hilly valley toward the unguarded warriors. Explosions cascaded throughout the Forerunner facility reducing it to a husky shell of unusable parts, but as it continued to imploded, the Halo Wave washed into Basis's atmosphere. The elites cheered as it descended upon their heads like a giant reflective pool of water. Even with the flood bearing down on them, some elites through their hands into the air with praises and thanks.
"Our salvation is upon us!" The general cried out, tears overflowing from his eyes. "Our Journey has come!" With that the wave washed over the battle field, erasing the elite warriors just as the flood had begun to attack them. In a flash of light they had vanished. The flood wondered around aimlessly as they gargled unrecognizable words.
Light years away, another battle was unfolding, but it was a battle that the forerunner leaders had no knowledge of. Two mighty ships spiraled side by side, tumbling in a death lock of combat. Energy weapons were firing with precision accuracy, but neither seeming to break through the shields of the other ship. One ship, a massive creation of Forerunner Engineering, was shaped like a pyramid, its command center at the tip and was highly fortified. Inside sat the commander, a young law keeper known to his brethren as Truth. He looked to his fellow law keepers, and scowled at them all.
"Amongst you, I see hundreds of years of knowledge, but your combat abilities are lacking." Truth spat to the aged law keepers as they fumbled about the controls. "Continue firing upon the Ark. We must board it at once before…"
"Truth!" Another law keeper screamed. His elderly form was frail, unlike the young and fit ninety year old Truth. "The Halo Wave is upon us!"
"Damn you reclaimers!" Truth cursed, his mouth filled with saliva and frustration. "They will not get away with this. They will rue this day, forever." Turning to the old law keeper, "How soon before the wave reaches us?"
"Forty cycles."
Truth rubbed the stubble upon his ears, "We still have time to board the Ark, but we must not risk any chances. Navigations set the coordinates for a slip space jump back to our homeland. Delay the count down for fifty units. If we fail, we will have another chance when the Seed revives us. This is not the time for our journey. We law keepers will see the day the gods recognize us, as more then frail and useless."
The two ships continued their duel, and aboard the smaller ship, yet equally as powerful, a tiny group of reclaimers struggled to escape the law keeper's wrath. The ship was simple in design, and even though its size was still monstrous, it was only a third the size of the law keeper's ship. The Ark could only support the life of five reclaimers, but the important thing about the Ark was its cargo. The ship carried all the knowledge of the forerunners, everything about the Installations, the Empire, its leaders and history, and the knowledge of every species within the Forerunner Empire. And it was all entrusted into the hands of the reclaimers.
"We just received the beacon! Triton did it!" Shouted a sturdy reclaimer male. The command deck of the Ark, was erupted into a haze of joy, knowing that there comrades would no longer need to struggle. They were free from life's harsh conflicts. But one reclaimer stood with down cast eyes. She stood nearly seven feet tall, with a white complexion. Her red hair flowed long and untamed as it lay across her shoulders, in stark contrast to her deep black reclaimer armor.
"That should take care of the law keepers." She stated calmly. "How long before the wave reaches us?"
"Forty cycles, give or take."
"That's a long time, and I'm sure Truth knows that it is coming. We can expect them to come at us with everything they have."
"No way they can take down our shields." Replied the male standing at her side. The female commander had been focusing on the battle for so long that she had not noticed his presence, or that he was holding her hand. He always stood at her side, never questioning but always supporting. She squeezed his fingers gingerly, in appreciation for his years of love and support.
"But still, we can't let our guard down. Had I known that they would attack us then I would have brought an escort ship with us, but I figured Triton would need them more than us."
"We just need to hold them off for forty or so units. That shouldn't be so hard…" The ship rocked from a devastating blow. "What the hell?"
One of the crew gazed intently at his instruments, "Sir, they're focusing all their shots at one section of shielding… grid 78. The shield emitter is overloading. Rerouting power to compensate for the strain, but it will only buy us a few more cycles."
The female commander stood tall and glinted at her team of super soldiers, "Found a weak spot. Open a channel to Truth." A video screen appeared before the crew and the alien face of truth gazed back with a wicked smile. "Having fun playing war, law keeper?"
Truth smirked with a soft chuckle, "I must admit that I see why you reclaimers thrive in combat. There is still time. Lower your shields, let us board and we can talk this over."
"Talk? Truth, you know there's no longer anything to talk about. You have betrayed the covenant of the Forerunner Empire. The gods will not find any favor in this action."
"And the gods will not favor a bunch of barbarians, without any knowledge or understanding of their true place in the universe." Truth snarled. "Give us the Ark! You have no place in being favored buy the founders!"
"Soon enough, you'll face the gods on your own terms." She snarled in return. "And you will face the judgment of every one of us you killed, in your feeble rampage of jealousy!" She closed the channel and huffed in anger. The Ark rocked from another wave of energy weapons and alarms began to sound throughout the ship.
A reclaimer at the rear of the command deck shouted, "Aft shields have failed. Several shuttles are in route from the law keeper's ship."
"Weapons, fire on those shuttles. Everyone prepare to repel boarders." She barked to the crew. She stood and grabbed her helmet as the other three reclaimers stood at the rear command deck door. But as she and her mate ran to join them, they quickly turned and nodded respectfully to them.
The woman curiously gazed at them, "What?"
"Litran, your place is at the head of the Ark, with your mate. We have sworn to protect this ship and you."
"We will join you, together we can easily hold of the feeble law keepers until the wave arrives, and then…"
"Litran, we have a hull breach. The wave will expand throughout the ship, the only safe place is the command deck."
"No… there's another option… there has to be." Litran's mate replied. He sternly gazed at the three reclaimers as they motion toward the door.
The last reclaimer, an aging warrior with a thick grey beard added, "I have worked on the Ark for several years, and I know its limitations and designs. We have kept it secret for many years, but if the law keepers board this ship then we must let the wave consume them. They must not be permitted to take it. You two are the last of our Super soldiers, you must continue on with the task the forerunners have assigned us. Protect the Ark, at all costs. Our lives are forfeit." The other two reclaimers placed on their helmets, and with a hiss they sealed the contained environment of their destinies. The younger two reclaimers powered their weapons and sprinted through the heavy door of the command deck, and began racing toward the hull breach and the soon to attack law keeper boarding party. The old warrior smiled as he placed his hands on the two leader's shoulders. "Litran and Bitran, together you have done much but now we must entrust you to carry on the legacy of the Forerunner Empire. You must be sure that the law keeper's actions are passed on to the fallowing generations. Stay on the command deck, keep the door closed and the wave will not consume you. If we can repel the boarders then I will seal the hull breach and save us all." He slipped on his helmet and it hissed as the contained environment pressurized within. "The funny thing is that we didn't think there would be a need to give the Ark stronger weapons." With a laugh he turned and powered his weapons as he ran through the door. "May the Gods find favor in our actions!"
Litran and her mate Bitran, knew that they would never see their team again. As commander of all reclaimer forces, Litran had seen the death of many of her kin. For the past five years she had been fighting against the flood, occasionally pushing them back, but more often she had to surrender her ground and retreat from their overwhelming numbers.
Bitran approached the door as two sentinels joined him. He gave them orders to remain beyond the door to the command deck and let no one other then the reclaimers enter. The door hissed closed as the two sentinels hovered on the opposite side of the door's threshold. The door hissed closed and began to hum as the wave shield powered on.
"They're right." Litran sadly stated. "With that hull breach, all life beyond the command deck will be removed. Their journey will begin prematurely."
"We can only hope that they can resist the keepers advance." Bitran stated as he jogged to the weapons controls. "Three shuttles have been shot down, but two more made it through our targeting angle."
"Two shuttle crafts would mean sixty law keepers. Sixty of them against three reclaimers?"
"Pathetic odds." Bitran laughed. "Those weak law keepers don't stand a chance." They laughed together as Litran descended from the command pedestal and stood by Bitran's side. They rarely had a quite moment together, and Litran rarely showed her softer side beyond his company. She placed her head on his shoulder and wept softly as Bitran held her tightly.
Time passed away as Litran sat in her command chair upon the top of the command deck. She paid close attention to the hull status, praying to the gods of her fathers that it would be repaired. At the weapons counsel, Bitran frantically fired upon the law keeper's ship as it still pursued them throughout the galaxy.
"Time till wave impact?" Litran asked with her hand tightly balled into fist.
"Less then one unit." Bitran sighed. "More shuttles are inbound."
"Reclaimer team Alpha do you copy?" Litran screamed into the communications system.
"Litran we copy." A voice returned. The constant buzz of high powered energy weapons could clearly be heard in the background, and Litran could easily tell that the battle was still being fought on both sides. "We are holding them at bay, but they are using long range weapons similar to our own. They can't get aboard, but we can get to the damaged section."
"A stalemate." Bitran cried.
"We lost Felucia. She tried to seal off the hatch moments ago, but was overwhelmed by their forces."
"Felucia…" Litran sighed. "Get back to the command deck, there is still time…"
"Not by my calculations. It will take us three units at full stride to arrive at the command deck. No Litran, we await our journey. We will see you on the other side." The com quickly died.
"… the wave." Bitran looked up as the view screen displayed what appeared to be a wall of water quickly speeding toward the two ships.
Aboard the law keeper's ship, Truth also saw the wave approaching, "Helm, is everything prepared?"
"Yes Truth, in ten units our ship will return to our world."
"Then so be it. Document these coordinates within the database. Once we rebuild an army strong enough to destroy the reclaimers, we will return and then we will venture into the great beyond and be worthy of the gods approval. We will follow in the footsteps of the founders and they will welcome us into their kingdom… as greater then they ever were." The wave swept across the law keepers hull and erased them all from existence. As the wave flowed across the Ark, it bounced off the hull as if repelled by an unseen force. However, the hole created by the law keepers quickly began to fill with the wave as if it were a drain. The law keepers at its edge were swept away and the two reclaimers fighting the law keepers sighed in relief that their battle was over.
As if they had never existed, the reclaimers vanished as the wave washed over them. The wave continued throughout the Ark, turning down hallways, up ladders, and through unshielded doors. The wave then arrived at the command deck door and was repelled by the shields. Static filled the door as the wave was distorted and then disappeared.
On the view screen Bitran and Litran watched as the wave traveled on, unprovoked like a cleansing wind. They watched in awe as the law keeper's ship ceased firing and continued on a straight course.
Bitran hovered over the counsel, "Scanning. All life sign's are gone; as if they never existed."
"Taken to their journey." Litran sighed. "At least they will no longer need to be concerned with life's ailing struggles." Bitran walked to her side, atop the command platform and sat at the navigation's station. He scanned the system and realized that there was little need to remain there.
"Setting a random jump course." Bitran typed in various commands and the ships engines hummed to life. The Ark vanished in a bright flash as it quietly slipped into the void of subspace. Bitran stood from the station and placed a soft hand on Litran's shoulder. "We should find a remote world to start rebuilding. I'll take a few sentinels and repair the hull breach. Everything will be automatic from here on out. You should rest." Bitran walked off the command deck as Litran gazed silently at the view screen. Everyone was gone, everyone she had served with and protected had been taken by the great wave, but she and her mate were left behind to start again. She felt great comfort when there were four other reclaimers at her side, but now only two of them remained. She was grateful that her mate was with her, but the realization that she was all alone in the galaxy weighed heavily on her shoulders. She leaned forward, her stern will and strength no longer able hide the overwhelming emotions that continued to build inside. Triton, Felucia, Paris, Follon and Mace were gone; her friends and allies no longer able so share in the recreation of the Empire. They were taken on the journey to the other side of existence and left Bitran and herself to do it all alone.
She wept.
- - - - - - - -
The Ancient City
Seed Ship
13:12 October 26, 2552
Slip Space time difference: Minus 8 hours
A cooling wind whisked through the open windows of the stone building as Gridolee continued to listen to the com. "Are you certain?" Gridolee questioned into his personal communicator. With a perplexed gaze he pondered the words he was hearing as he looked to the other Mirratord warriors that were resting around the room. "Yes, I will relay the message to the Second immediately." He removed his helmet and laid it at his feet. He then ran his hand across his head in thought.
"Well?" Simyaldee sat up from his resting cot in the corner of the room, and looked to Gridolee for an update. The tone in Gridolee's voice had alerted him that something had happened.
"Sir, there was an incident on the command deck. It happened a few moments after the battle with the creature was concluded. The honored human, Sergeant Raynord… he threatened high elder Vornaldea." All of the resting Mirratord warriors sat up to this news and began mumbling amongst themselves.
Simyaldee stood up and looked to Gridolee sternly, "Why did he do such a thing?"
"As best I can guess, he was determined to go and assist the other humans in the battle against the Covenant. Supreme Commander Timnaldee has agreed to assist the humans by letting them use this ship's resources and make repairs to their fleet. But I can not understand the human's reason for threatening the elder. It does not seem like something he would do."
"Where is Sergeant Raynord now?" Simyaldee questioned.
"He was last seen with the human Captain, on the command deck."
Simyaldee slipped on his vest armor and arm gauntlets as he began to exit the room, "I will go and speak with him…"
"Not on my watch." Stated the soft voice of an ageing Doctor Catherine Halsey. She entered the room and placed her hands on Simyaldee chest; pushing him backwards. Catherine was dwarfed by the tall elite warrior and Simyaldee could have easily stepped passed her, but he knew why she had come. Following behind her was a female elite nurse. A very rare sight in the Sangheili forces, and her presence gained the favor of all the elites within the room. As Catherine stopped in the center of the room she stated, "I'll need blood samples from all of you. And I'll need to do a thorough skin check. So if you don't mind… strip."
If an elite could smirk then clearly the female nurse assisting Catherine was gloating from ear to ear. Laughing at the tiny human's commanding tone. Compared to the male warriors, the female stood slightly smaller in build, but was still an impressive sight none the less. The female elite wore unique body armor that covered the full expanse of her chest, unlike the open vest style of the male warriors. Her helmet completely covered her eyes and was less decorative with only one spike raised at the top.
Each male within Simyaldee's rank gave her close attention as it was very rare to see a female amongst the soldiers. The female elite kept her distance as Catherine began to draw blood from each of the elite Mirratord and inspected their skin for signs of infection, and she maintained her silence no matter how loudly the males grunted toward her. Females that were permitted into the military were generally infertile, incapable of producing young and the male warriors treated them mostly as objects. They were not permitted into combat, and only used for nursing duties. The younger Mirratord warriors glared their teeth in a ritual display of acquiring her attention, and breathed heavily while letting their chests expand naturally; a show of strength and power.
Simyaldee chuckled at the young warriors. He himself found it enticing to see a trained female warrior, but he made no advance toward her. But even still, his warriors were well disciplined and kept their gestures to a minimum while she was working with the human doctor. They avoided interfering with her work, and behaved themselves as well as any Mirratord warrior should.
"There we go." Catherine sighed after nearly ten minutes of inspecting the group. "You all seem to be fine, but I want another check up in six hours. Better safe then sorry."
"Of course doctor." Simyaldee spoke on behalf of his team. "Did the humans and grunts check ups go as well?"
"Yes." Catherine's words were simple as she turned the elite female and nodded for her to follow. The two walked from the room and the Mirratord elites raced to the door to watch the female walk away.
"It has been a long time since I have seen a female with such a firm structure." Shouted one of the younger members of the Mirratord. "Sad, however, I did not smell the sweet essence of fertility on her."
Another elite chuckled, "Yet I would still give her a fair night of excitement." The group burst into laughter, but Simyaldee paid it no mind. They had earned a moment to relax. He swiftly dressed back into his armor and motioned toward the door.
Simyaldee brushed past the warriors and spoke only to Gridolee. "Assume command until I return. I'm going to the command deck. Notify me when it is nearly time for our second check up."
- - - - - - - -
Eric stood motionless and gazed at the hologram before him. It was a perfect image of Kim, just as he had always remembered her. His eyes grew heavy as memories began to flood back into him; romantic times, happy times, and sad times. He looked away, forcing back the strong feelings that wanted him to reach out and touch her. The lights in the room dimmed and caught him off guard. Kim's image now appeared brighter and more detailed before him.
She silently walked across the room, as if a hologram needed to move its legs. She then sat at a table and glared at Eric with a nervous gaze. Kim rested her hands under her chin and propped her head up with her arms. She continued to stare at Eric, waiting for him to say something.
With a sigh Kim finally addressed Eric, "nothing to say?"
"Siren, why are you doing this?" Eric calmly asked; he didn't want to say Kim's name. He folded his arms across his chest and huffed at her strongly.
"Three days after I died, they woke me up inside some medical facility. I was clinically dead but I still had some brain functions. Doctor Smith asked me if I wanted a second chance. I agreed. She illegally extracted my memories and placed them inside of me. I am a part of Siren and Siren is a part of me." Kim smiled, but her smile quickly left her when she saw the scowl on Eric's face. She looked away. "My memories were locked away until you, and only you, said the keyword to activate them."
"Keyword?"
"Oddly enough I chose the one word that I always hated to hear you say…"
Eric chuckled sadistically and cut off Kim's explanation, "Let me guess. 'Rose'."
"Imagine my surprise when you screamed her name on board the Life and Sacrifice." Kim laughed. "She was being held hostage and you were with Melanie, racing to help Red Squad. It was as if a door had been opened. I remembered everything about you, Melanie, the Black Ops; so many memories came rushing back to me. I didn't want to tell you."
Eric unfolded his arms and walked toward the door, "I wish you hadn't." His words were scornful, and painful to Kim's ears. She knew he was upset and torn about what to think of the whole thing. Eric left the room and the door sealed behind him. Kim turned off her hologram image and scanned the command deck for his presence. She found him leaving the deck and heading for the central corridor. After realizing that Eric was alone, Kim accessed the hologram emitter nearest to his location and appeared at his side.
"You will deal with this right now!" She demanded. "You can't run from me Eric, I'm everywhere, remember?"
Eric dared not to look at her, "You may have Kim's memories, but you are not her."
Kim sulked slightly. She knew it was going to be difficult to break through Eric's shell. He was always a stubborn man when it concerned his emotions, but she wasn't going to let him walk away.
"You never could face me when you were upset." Kim snapped with a dark laugh. "Even dead I can't get you to face me. I never said I 'was' Kim! I said she is a part of me and I am a part of her. Damn it." Kim huffed as she walked ahead of Eric and peered into his eyes. "Melanie was able to understand, Roy and Mathew as well… but you can't seem to understand that I'm …"
"That you what?" Eric rebuked. "That you're dead or that you're alive? The woman I loved is gone. They killed her. I had to watch Kim die. I dealt with that pain… so why are you making me deal with it again?"
"Because it's affecting Rose." Kim softly added. "Melanie hates her, and won't give her a chance. I convinced her to at least talk to her today, but no telling how that will go. You won't let Rose get near you anymore, as soon as we arrived on the elite home world you dumped her onto Wesley. Eric, has it dawned on you that she's out here all alone?"
"I've known her a lot longer then you have. She's a tough girl, she'll be alright. Besides, she and Wesley have a past. They'll work it out."
"Really, so that's why she's trying so hard to prove herself to you. I don't see her racing to Wesley's side whenever she has a spare moment, or curling up on a cot next to him when he's injured. She's trying, Eric, but you don't seem to care. And you haven't known her as long as I have."
"What the hell are you doing?" Eric questioned with an irritated sigh. He ran his hand across his face in confusion as he looked to Kim's hologram for an answer. "You're filling my head with all of this now! You hated her. You know how hard I chased after her in school, so why are you on her side now?"
"Because she's here. I have an opportunity to correct a mistake, and possibly make two people happy. You brought her out here, so I'm taking advantage of this situation."
"I had to do something. The Covenant found Earth. She had a better chance of surviving with me than on Earth."
"You brought her because you wanted to protect her. But now you're pushing her away."
"I have Red Squad and four platoons under my command, and I'm always at the head of combat. If she stays with me everywhere I go…"
"I died because that was my place; at your side in combat." Kim quickly blurted, cutting off Eric statement. "We fought side by side, but she isn't a soldier, Eric. She doesn't know what to do out here. If you want her to stay out of combat then you have to tell her that, but don't push her away."
"I'm not going to make the same mistake twice." Eric sulked.
"You didn't make a mistake, Eric. You couldn't help me. I made that call, but this isn't about keeping Rose safe. This is about what I did to her." The door across from Kim and Eric, parted and Simyaldee stepped through. Before the elite could see who Eric was talking too, Kim quickly changed her appearance back into the image of the Greek Goddess known as Siren.
"We'll speak more of it later." Siren acknowledged. "I'm not done with you yet, mister."
Eric was taken back by the sudden transformation and then noticed Simyaldee approaching. He was even more curious about the last thing she said.
"You never could drop an argument, could you?" Eric whispered as Simyaldee stopped in front of him.
"That's why you love me so much." Kim whispered.
"Sergeant, I have heard some most dreadful news." Simyaldee stated, ignoring the words that he had easily heard.
"The thing with elder Vornaldea?" Eric questioned back.
"Yes. Did you really threaten him?" Simyaldee stood firm and looked at the face of the construct standing at Eric's side. He wondered why humans relied so heavily on the constructs, but passed the thought as he listened to Eric.
"Listen, I'm not going to hold back my words…"
"Oh lord." Siren balked as she placed her hand to her temple.
"… I hate all of you. Yet, as warriors fighting for a cause, I respect you. We have an alliance and I'll honor that, just as you have honored me. But I can not let our alliance hinder my mission."
"I see." Simyaldee nodded, agreeing to his words. He rubbed his right lower mandible in thought. "It is no different than any of us. If we have a task, we will fulfill it at all means. That is what it means to be a Mirratord warrior. We handle the tasks that must be done, regardless of whom it may affect." Simyaldee thought more, and noticed that Siren appeared shocked at his response. He then looked to Eric, "However…" With a lightning quick reaction Simyaldee reached out and grabbed Eric's collar and pulled him close; lifting him off the ground. "There are limitations to all actions." Simyaldee snarled.
The elite Second was two feet taller then Eric and easily lifted him off the floor with one arm. The two gazed into each others eyes, judging the strength of the other. A mental battle was happening, a struggle to see who was the strongest; it was a battle to see who held the upper hand.
Simyaldee was the first to yield, but only in respect. "You are fast, human. You are indeed worthy of your honor. You drew your weapon faster then I had predicted." As Simyaldee lowered him, it was clear that Eric was holding his sidearm firmly against the elite's chest, just beneath his heart. At point-blank range the wound from the Magnum could have been fatal, as his shields would have been useless at that range.
Eric smirked and slipped the weapon back into his hip holster. Siren was without words. Terrified and shocked at what she had just witnessed. She stared at them with tight lips and holding her breath; if she could actually breathe.
Simyaldee nodded his head in respect of Eric, "There are two things you must know, Sergeant. Never threaten the High Elder. He gives us, the Mirratord, our orders."
"What's the second thing?" Eric smirked.
Simyaldee smiled and folded his arms, "Kill or be killed."
"I like the second one." Eric and Simyaldee shared a soft laugh while Siren gazed at them oddly.
She then rolled her eyes, "I will never understand men. Are you two friends now?"
"In an alliance there are no friends, simply an understanding that we will not kill each other." Simyaldee stated. "If we were to become enemies, there would be no hesitation in his death."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Come on, I need to talk to Elder Vornaldea and Commander Timnaldee."."
Eric and Simyaldee began to walk back toward the command deck while Siren faded away, "This doesn't mean that I'm done talking to you Eric."
- - - - - - - -
A soft wind blew across the lake as civilians began to freely roam about the town. The tall untamed grass at the edge of the city quickly became a resting spot for hundreds of grunts that were not on patrol, and Methane tents provided them with an adequate escape from their armor. Just south of the grunt camp were the last of the hunter pairs that had survived the battle on Dorenth. Most had been split up amongst the seventy six ships within the Sangheili fleet, and the last twelve remained within the Ancient City. To the west of the grunts, closer to the lake, rested the humans. A small group of pelicans made excellent shelter and temporary bunks, while the humans finally found a moment to relax.
Rose lifted the plate on Kelly's back and probed inside with a small flashlight. Kelly sat on a tree stump while Rose worked on making small adjustments to her MJOLNIR armor. Beside them rested the bulk unit that made up Eric's unit. The surviving ten members were all asleep, resting for the battle they knew would be coming. Wesley was sitting off to the side of the group discussing the fastest route to the Rouge Fantasy with Juggernaut. He had ordered enough pelicans to land in the massive field in the event that they needed to get to the ship in a hurry.
Melanie was propped against a pelican tire and was looking at Rose sternly; Mathew 08 and Roy 02 slept at her side. She didn't really want to get to know Rose but Kim had briefly scolded her after the Gravemind battle and she was right, Rose had done nothing wrong; she was a victim of an uncontrollable situation.
"How's that?" Rose sighed as she stepped away from Kelly's back pack.
"Very nice." Kelly stood up and rotated her arms loosely. "You even gave me back my fool range of motion."
"This suit is pretty shot, ma'am. Once we get back to Earth, we need to get you the Mark VI. There's only so much I can do anymore. It'll hold, but no telling how long that motivator will last under heavy fire. Your gel layers are nearly spent, and the coolant supply is running hot. I tried to fix it last time, but I still can't do anything with it."
"Trust me, Rose, you've done a ton." Kelly slipped her helmet back on and continued to check the settings while Rose closed the plating on her back pack.
"You sure you don't want to take it off? It'll be a while before we get to Earth."
"No. I'm more comfortable with it on. It's like a second layer of skin." Kelly looked around the camp and spotted the fire where the elites and were burning the remains of the Gravemind. She then noticed a specter speeding toward the bonfire, and riding on that specter was Doctor Halsey. "Thanks Rose." Kelly stated as she began to walk away from the camp, and toward the Catherine Halsey. Rose whipped her hands with an oily cloth and picked up the toolkit she had taken from a nearby warthog. As she secured the kit back in its resting spot she heard the grass ruffling behind her.
"Care to take a walk, Santos?" Melanie softly questioned. Rose looked at her nervously, but felt somewhat relieved seeing Melanie not in her Black Ops armor. She wore simple Marine fatigues and had a blade of grass in her mouth.
"Is that an order?" Rose cautiously returned.
"No." Melanie smiled. "It's a request." Rose nodded her head softly and they quietly walked toward the lake.
- - - - - - - -
Mars Orbit
12:32 October 26, 2552
Slip Space time difference - minus 2 days 8 hours
"It's about time." Captain Haden barked as alarms rang across the bridge of his ship, the Inner Power. Colonel Ackerson huffed as he entered the command deck, ignoring the Captain's rebuke.
"Is it them?" Ackerson questioned.
One of the command crewmen shouted back, "We're still awaiting confirmation from the slip space whisper, but what ever it is, it's huge."
"Show me." Ackerson barked. The video appeared and a distorted pink and red image was displayed. A diamond shaped objected sat upon the screen, distorted and fuzzy, but the shape was clearly visible upon the pink-red image of slip space. "Is that it? It's so simple in design, nothing like the other forerunner artifacts we've found. But still, the shape is oddly familiar."
The command deck door parted and the click of heels echoed across the bridge, "The crystal." Doctor Smith calmly whispered.
"The crystal is pointless now; useless." Ackerson acknowledged. "And that is too big to a crystal."
"I know that it isn't a crystal. It's clearly a ship, but what I was suggesting is that it is shaped the same." Doctor Smith sighed. She walked to Captain Haden's side and gazed into the monitor. "What do you think, Captain?"
Haden looked back at her and loosely rubbed his chin in thought, "I don't care what it is so long as it's friendly." His eyes motioned back to the image and the realization that it might be hostile quickly crossed his mind. "All hands, yellow alert. This is not a drill."
The bridge quickly exploded with activity as Ackerson turned his attention back toward the Captain, "Is that really necessary, Captain? We know that it is them. For goodness sake, who else would have these exact coordinates?"
"When it comes to the safety of my ship, Colonel, you have no place. You can tell me where to go, but you can't tell me how to protect my crew. If that thing is hostile, then I want my crew to be prepared."
"Then why not sound red alert and be done with it?" Ackerson huffed.
A crewman shouted across the deck, "Slip space rupture on the port side. Distance… damn it, three thousand!"
Captain Haden gasped and glared at the officer, "Kilometers?"
"Feet, captain!" The crewman nervously shouted back as the ship began to shake and moan from the gravitational affect of the slip space rupture.
Captain Haden staggered to his command chair and wrapped his arm around Doctor Smith, pushing her into the seat, "All hands brace for impact! Sound collision alarms!"
Everyone quickly turned to the window as a blinding light drowned the command deck. Everyone closed their eyes and shielded them with their hands, but even that wasn't enough. The flash of light appearing from the slip space event horizon burned through their eyelids and appeared to be coming from everywhere. When the glow faded, everyone quickly began to blink away the spots that were clouding their vision, and to their amazement they were dwarfed by a ship which was so large that space could not be seen around it. Giant metal arms began to extend toward all four of the ships in the 501, as other covenant cruisers and capital ships could be seen along the docking bay.
The bridge speaker of all the ships buzzed to life with a soft female voice, "This is Captain Monroe of the Rogue Fantasy, to the ships of the 501. Stand down your weapons."
The metal arms clamped onto the Inner Power and three other arms gripped the other ships. The Inner Power was pulled into the central docking ring of the Seed Ship and then the other ships softly docked.
Colonel Ackerson happily smiled, "All hands stand down. That was damned close, Captain Monroe."
Siren then spoke over the com channel, "Sorry sir, we didn't factor in the ships size when I calculated the jump." However, Siren knew exactly what she was doing. She was sure that her entrance was grand, and hopefully it scared the Colonel; a little.
Ackerson then smirked toward Haden and began to gloat. "All we need now are my Spartans, and we'll end this war."
- - - - - - - -
13:45 October 26, 2552
Conference room aboard the Inner Power
Three video images hovered at one end of the long table behind Colonel James Ackerson. Sweat beads filled Ackerson's brow, knowing full well that his actions would be held accountable. But for now he focused his attention to the mater at hand. At his side were the images of the most powerful leaders reaming.
Lord Hood sat in the center screen. The screen to his left was of a female ONI Official, Major Elizabeth Rawlings. To the right of Lord Hood's image was the Arbiter, however he seemed somewhat distracted and the sound of gun and plasma fire was constant behind him. The door parted and Captain Haden walked in, followed by Captain Monroe, Sergeant Raynord of the Black Ops, and two elites; Supreme Commander Timnaldee and Lieutenant Simyaldee. Ackerson was somewhat taken back by the elite's presence but kept silent. They all circled the table and sat down.
"Arbiter." Timnaldee stated with a kind nod to the screen.
The arbiter easily recognized the helmet and colors that Timnaldee wore and addressed him accordingly, "Supreme Commander. Did the brutes attack our home?"
"Yes, but we shall discuss it in due time." Timnaldee replied softly. He felt that now was not the time to inform him of their home world's fate.
"Alright everyone, lets make this quick." Hood sharply stated from his screen. "The Covenant are regrouping and the flood numbers have been drastically reduced, thanks in part to the Arbiters forces. But that forerunner ship in orbit is still a threat. The Master Chief successfully disabled the ship's engines before he escaped from it, but they'll eventually make repairs and then attack." Lord Hood glared at Ackerson, somewhat angry that it took him so long to bring the battle group back to Earth. "I will ignore your actions up to this point, Colonel, but it will not be forgotten. You will be formally held accountable for everything. Now, give me your report."
Ackerson nodded, "Yes. Five days ago, Major Elizabeth Rawlings and I, agreed that we needed another option for saving humanity. We reactivated my Black Ops program and commissioned a plan to find a forerunner ship that was believed to have recreated life after the Halo's fired the first time. The ship you see on your monitor is that ship."
"It is certainly interesting, Colonel." Major Rawlings stated with a curt smile. "Nearly one third the size of our moon. But does it function?"
Hood cut in, "We don't have time to worry about your plans, Major. For now, we need defensive options against the Covenant fleet and that Forerunner ship of theirs. It's immobile and we've been taking shots at it with our MAC rounds, but they are useless against its shields. We have also lost a dozen ships to its weapons. And now, long range scanners just detected High Charity moving into Sol space." Everyone gasped at this news, shocked to know that High Charity was still functioning. Colonel Ackerson began to sweat even more but nervously kept his composure.
The Arbiter replied with a shocked tone, "Are you certain? The construct, Cortana, and I destroyed it."
"It's true, Arbiter. Recon probes confirmed it. It somehow survived the explosion, or the flood repaired it enough to get it this far. It is beat up and falling apart, but it is mobile and slowly headed our way."
Timnaldee sighed as he replied, "If that is the case, then every ship that we left in High Charity's orbit will be under flood control. The parasite is crafty, to think that they could have found a new power source for High Charity and configured it to work within its systems."
"I agree, Commander." The Arbiter nodded. "But I believe it was that Gravemind creature that found a way to repair High Charity. I had a brief encounter with it when I rescued the Construct." An explosion happened behind the Arbiter and he turned away yelling to a group of humans and elites at his side, "Forgive me, but my containment teams need assistance. The parasites have found a way through our second line. I must go."
"Arbiter do you need assistance?" Lord Hood questioned sternly. "I can relocate a few more platoons to your region…"
"No, they will only add confusion to my line. I will be in touch." The video faded and the group all exhaled as they pondered the Arbiter's situation.
Timnaldee felt a dire amount of apprehension for the Arbiter situation, but even more at the knowledge that another Gravemind was aboard High Charity. "Another of the Gravemind creatures?"
Simyaldee then voiced, "It appears that we are not the first to encounter this form of the parasite."
"What is this Gravemind, that the Arbiter speaks of?" Hood questioned as an off screen crewman passed him a small datapad.
Captain Monroe addressed everyone, "From what we know, it is the evolution of the flood and a unique gene found within select individuals of all species. We call it …"
"The super soldier gene." Hood quickly replied, to everyone's amazement. "Major Rawlings, you have any more information on this?"
"No sir. I uploaded everything just now." Rawlings was doing something off screen and then looked back to the group. "It is quite hard to kill and just one of these creatures can spread flood spores across the face of an entire world. Beyond that, we don't know of anything more."
Timnaldee extended his hand in a questioning gesture. "Wait, you know of this?"
"Only recently, Commander." Rawlings replied. "I can't say more then that over this airwave. The flood are listening."
Hood quickly cut into the lull in the conversation, knowing that time was crucial. "Colonel, the rest of your report and make it quick."
Shocked out of his daze, Ackerson continued his report. "The elite fleet has agreed to let any ships use their docking ring to make repairs. They have enough forerunner constructors on board that we can repair minor damage in a matter of minutes. The facilities aboard this ship are quite useful."
"That's wonderful news. Supreme Commander, do what you can to slow down High Charity. Reports say that it will arrive in two days. I can't spare any ships to aid you against High Charity when it arrives. It is going to take everything we have just to keep that forerunner ship away from the Earth's surface when it starts moving again. When that ship tries to land, I doubt we can stop it. The chief did what he could to try and destroy it from the inside, but he was hopelessly outnumbered."
"We will not be engaging High Charity." Timnaldee stated to the group. "This Seed ship is filled with civilians, the last of our race. We will not risk putting them in danger."
The room fell silent but Ackerson could no longer hold his peace, "You told me you have seventy six ships in your fleet, but you won't fight?"
"Colonel, hold your tongue." Hood ordered. "The last of your race? I see, then things must have been far worse then we expected. We have no right to ask you to leave your civilians unguarded, Commander. And we thank you for allowing us to use your ship for repairs. A small group of frigates are now in route to your position, and we will rotate accordingly. Colonel, bring the 501 back to Earth and station them around the battle cluster. We can use the assistance. Supreme Commander, any assistance is better then none."
"I will lend the Arbiter twenty five of our ships, but that is all I can spare. I will be in contact with the Arbiter at his soonest availability. I will refer any additional information to him." Timnaldee stated to the screen.
"Admiral, we can't let them …" Ackerson began, but Hood's gaze gave him all the reason to cut his statement short.
"Major, Colonel; I will be in touch. I will do what we can to put a few MAC rounds through High Charity once it enters our kill zone, but that also depends on what those Prophets are planning aboard the forerunner ship. I'm sure they know High Charity is coming." Hood's image faded leaving Major Rawlings the only image gazing at the group.
With Hood's absence Ackerson quickly began to shove his weight around, "What in the hell happened out there, Monroe?" His fist slammed on the table and his face turned blood red in frustration. "This ship was to be used for our purposes, now we have it crowded with elites that won't allow us to use it!" Timnaldee and Simyaldee scuffed at the human's words as they glared at him sternly.
Monroe sighed, "Please excuse the Colonel. He has not been fully debriefed until now."
Major Rawlings turned her attention to Eric, "Still unable to complete a mission successfully, Sergeant? This is twice that you've disappointed me. Are you going to let someone else take the blame this time?"
Eric maintained his calm, "Ma'am, when in the field situations change. Considering everything that happened out there, be thankful we came back at all."
"We can save everyone, Sergeant! You have no idea of what that ship is capable of." The Major added.
Eric softly grinned, "You planned on firing Halo." The Major glared at Eric harshly, but her harsh stare quickly turned into a smile.
"I see, so Siren told you the plan."
"You discovered the Ark's remote firing ability, and that the Ark could protect you. You wanted the Seed ship so that you could use the cloning facilities to recreate everyon; but you didn't count on the Seed ship having protocols."
"What Protocols?" Major Rawlings asked.
Captain Monroe commented, "In the event of the Ark going into Remote Activation, the Seed Ship can not be activated. The cloning facility is shut down and will not activate until after Halo has fired, or Remote Activation is discontinued. According to the keeper, this was a fail safe protocol used to prevent lower class species from trying to save themselves without permission."
"Colonel, have you verified any of this?" Major Rawlings seemed uneasy at this current news, and panic consumed her.
"No. But I will." Ackerson stood from the table and began to leave the room. "Captain Haden and Black Op 19, come with me."
"Colonel?" Eric asked in confusion.
Ackerson paused and glared at Eric. "I want to see this for myself."
"You'll do anything to keep yourself out of combat, won't you Colonel?" Captain Haden scuffed. He pulled a cigar from his breast pocket and lit it with a small laser flame. He took a long drag on the cigar, and exhaled its thick artificial smoke. "Sergeant, disobey that order."
"What the hell are you talking about, Captain? I gave both of you an order!"
"Yes, and Lord Hood gave me the order to report to the front line. The 501 is needed, and at this moment Sergeant Raynord is under my command. His Black Ops have finished their assignment, and are no longer running Black Ops missions, meaning they are under the command of the 501. That includes the Rogue Fantasy and her crew."
"The 501 is my battle group, Captain." Ackerson huffed. "You have no authority…"
"You have disobeyed a direct order from Lord Hood on several occasions. This time, I heard the order to report to the front, and I will take this battle group to defend Earth." Haden turned to Eric and Captain Monroe. "Any objections?"
"No Sir." Eric answered happily.
"None." Monroe added. "I would also like to add that the elites have not given you permission to board their ship. Am I wrong, Supreme Commander?"
Timnaldee nodded in agreement, "There is much that needs to be done to protect your world, and we do not have time to give this human Colonel a tour. High Charity draws near and repairs must be done to as many of your ships as we can."
"James." Major Rawlings sighed. "Get the battle group to Earth. We must fight this war. It's our only option now."
"What good can my ships do against the covenant fleet and that Forerunner ship?" Ackerson nervously stuttered as he looked to Major Rawlings image. "We… we need the elites to fight with us."
"And so your true colors shine." Captain Haden smirked. He took a long drag on his cigar and sternly looked at the colonel. "You aren't worthy of you're uniform." Captain Haden stood from his seat and looked to Major Rawlings image. "The 501 will be reporting to our assigned location, Major. Captain Monroe, you said you had important intel for the brass on Earth?"
"Correct. A possible means for curing, and preventing the spread of the flood." Captain Monroe knew not to mention Dr. Halsey in the presence of Colonel Ackerson. Rumor of their hatred for one another had spread rapidly over the past few years.
Major Rawlings looked toward Captain Monroe and added, "Bring that information to Camp Eden. Well look it over thoroughly."
"Yes ma'am." Monroe sharply replied.
Simyaldee and Commander Timnaldee stood from the table as well. Timnaldee brushed past Ackerson, as he still stood in the doorway, and the two shared a brief glance, but spoke no words. Ackerson held his spot and lowered his eyes as they passed. Eric followed close behind and he stopped in front of his cowardly superior officer.
"Was it worth it, Colonel?" Eric questioned. "You lied to all of us that day, when you promised that we would be Spartans. Was it worth the sacrifice to my men?" Monroe walked behind Eric and gently placed her tiny hand into the small of Eric's back, pushing him softly out of the room. Eric wanted to hit him, and put the man under his boot. Despite the anger and frustration that Eric had toward him, he held his peace and didn't step beyond his place; Colonel Ackerson was still his commanding officer. Monroe simply nodded as she walked past Ackerson. The door hissed shut as they exited, and Ackerson crossed his arms and sulked. He scornfully clasped his fist and gazed at Captain Haden. Haden was still puffing his cigar, and ignored Ackerson's soul burning stare.
Pulling the cigar from his mouth, "You know I had to do it."
"You have been waiting for the past two months to pull that stunt!" Ackerson barked. "You made me look like a coward."
"No sir, you did that yourself."
"Colonel, have a seat." Rawlings stated through the video feed. "You as well, Captain Haden. Let's talk of an alternative to saving humanity. There are still more options to winning this war. And news of this 'cure' is rather alarming."
- - - - - - - -
The Rogue Fantasy's landing deck was bustling with human activity as marines, ODST and crewmen hustled about to prepare their pelicans for combat. Of the Rogue Fantasy's compliment of forty birds, only thirty eight were available, and Juggernaut was making sure that they were all ready to take the troops to battle. Ammo lockers and weapons mounts were being loaded, additional warthogs and scorpion battle tanks were being shipped in from the Inner Power and upgraded weapons were being added to the Rogue Fantasy's arsenal. The four platoons aboard the Rogue Fantasy would be going to Earth with a full refit.
As Eric walked onto the deck, he quickly spotted Melanie barking orders with Wesley handing out assignments to the fifteen Marines that now made up Red Squad. Eric walked down the small incline and found himself quickly becoming the focal point of every squad nearby. The roughly eight hundred soldiers turned and dropped everything that they were doing, as their squad leaders all called out attention on deck.
Eric couldn't help but grin, "That's what I like to see. A bunch of rock hard, bad-ass and mean sons-of-bitches. Get back to work!" His voice carried across the expansive deck and everyone returned to their duties. Eric was the most respected Sergeant on the ship, and to some of the other Sergeants he was still considered a Lieutenant; demotion be damned. Half of the officers aboard the Rogue Fantasy remembered his actions at Troy and how his plans and leadership saved their lives, and the Marines and ODST that were aboard the Life and Sacrifice regarded him as their leader based on skill and guidance. Everyone respected him, regardless of their personal feelings.
Eric stepped closer to Wesley and the young man turned with a quick solute. Eric returned the gesture loosely and looked around the deck, as if he were looking for something or someone. He then eyeballed Wesley in a questioning manor.
Wesley cursed under his voice because he was sure that he knew what Eric was pondering. "Sorry sir. I lost her when we were ordered back aboard the Rogue Fantasy. You said we were going to be facing combat soon, so I was eager to start prepping the Marines."
"Nobody can keep up with her." Eric laughed to himself. He began to walk away but realized that he had to ease some of the tension between him and the young man. "Wesley, do you still care about her?"
Wesley didn't know how to respond, "Permission to speak freely, sir?" Eric nodded his approval. "I was just a toy she had to play with while she was in Australia. It was a fling, nothing more. I got attached and burned. Then you showed up at New Mombasa and I … I knew how she felt about you." Wesley paused and forced a smile toward his leader. "I apologize for my behavior as of late, and I promise that it will not happen again."
"It's okay she has that effect on men. But I didn't realize it until today." Eric turned and began to walk away. "You shouldn't have to worry about her anymore. Carry on."
Eric walked away from Wesley and didn't notice the athletically toned female marine loading ammo into the pelican's munitions mount. Had he known that she was standing there he would have quickly called her out, but Rose blended in well with the other marines nearby. Her hat was pulled down across her brow and her hair was tucked beneath it. She overheard the conversation but ignored responding. She simply focused on her task with a clear determination to find her place in the coming battle. Rose knew that Eric wouldn't approve of her sneaking into Red Squad's ranks, but she had to go with them. She had to go into battle. She had to be by Eric's side, even if it meant that she might die.
As Eric stepped clear of Red Squad he brushed past Melanie and she quickly tracked him with her eyes. She then flagged for Wesley to continue her discussion to Red Squad as she ran to catch up with Eric.
As Eric neared the ramp leading back off the landing deck, Melanie called out to him. "Sergeant, can I have a word with you?" Eric paused and waited for his long time friend to catch up with him. "I spoke with Doctor Smith. She wants to meet with us. She was just reassigned to our crew manifest and she's on the command deck with the Spartan and Doctor Halsey now."
"Tell 02 and 08 to come along, I'll meet you up there in a moment."
"Actually, Roy and Mathew are already on their way up there." Melanie countered. "I was actually hoping that we could go up together. There's something I wanted to talk about."
"Rose and Siren?" Eric grinned.
"Mostly Rose. I don't really want to talk much about Siren." They began to make their way off the landing deck and Melanie nervously slipped her hands into her pockets. "Siren scolded me a few days back, telling me to take it easy on Rose. She wanted me to talk to her, and get to know her. It was the funniest thing, cause I know how much Kim hated Rose, but now Siren is her biggest fan."
Eric chuckled softly, "I got the same treatment."
"Want to know what's really funny? I actually enjoyed my talk with Rose. We are different, but she has a lot of good qualities. I've been so busy trying to hate her that I never took the time to see who she was. All I saw was the woman that took you away from the Black Ops, and the woman that tried to replace my sister."
"Rose can never replace Kim." Eric rested his head against the back of the elevator as the door closed. Melanie leaned backward and let her head land against Eric's shoulder.
"No one can replace Kim. She was my sister, but Rose is certainly the love of your life. Siren told me something that made me think, and I will never forget it. She told me to read my flask, the one she gave me when we made it out of boot camp."
"Do or die." Eric whispered. "She engraved it for you."
"She wanted me to remember why she engraved those words. It wasn't for battle, it was for life. She told me when she gave it to me what it meant, but I never really understood. Basically it meant to not die miserable. To do the things you want to do in order to be happy." Melanie stepped away from Eric and looked at him. "She told me why she hated Rose, but did she tell you?"
Eric looked at Melanie with a confused glare, "No."
The elevator stopped suddenly and the speaker buzzed to life, "I think I should." Siren stated through the speaker. Melanie lowered her head and leaned against the side wall. "Despite her affection towards men, Rose never took advantage of your friendship back in school, despite her obvious attraction towards you. Have you ever wondered why?"
"I thought it was because we were different…"
"Partially, but it was mostly because she was my roommate. She knew how I felt about you, and respected my feelings. I hated her because you wanted her. It wasn't until we left school and joined the UNSC that you finally began to look at me."
Melanie sighed, "Despite your advances on her, Eric, Rose never made the first move. She respected Kim's feelings. Rose pushed you away because of Kim." Melanie cast her eyes downward as she felt a slight since of shame. "I never knew. Kim had never told me about Rose. I didn't even know that they were roommates in school. After all this time, Rose never dared to cross Kim's memory. Reason enough to forgive her, I think."
The elevator resumed its course and Eric thought intently on what he was hearing, "Wait, stop the elevator."
The elevator speaker buzzed again. "Sorry Eric, there's no time left. I've fully updated myself and rejoined the Rogue Fantasy's mainframe. Captain Monroe is ready to head out, as well is the 501. The Keeper seems most unhappy with the idea of not going closer to the Ark but I convinced him to understand the elites… just a moment. Two phantoms are on approach and requesting permission to land."
Eric was frustrated about not finishing the discussion, but all things considered he had to do his duty, "Granted. Tell Private Williams to greet them." The elevator door parted. Melanie stepped onto the command deck and Eric followed closely behind. Ahead of them, sitting at a small conference room table, was Captain Monroe, Doctor Carolyn Smith, Doctor Halsey and standing against the wall was the towering Spartan, still wearing her full armor. At her side stood Mathew 08 and Roy 02.
"… so what you're saying is that the Black Ops are Spartans?" Doctor Smith questioned as she sternly conversed with Catherine Hasley.
"Yes. Armor alone does not make the Spartan." Catherine replied. "My blood samples have clearly marked an incredible amount of change within them since I injected them with the cure. It awoken the super soldier gene within the clones muscle tissue you used within them, and aside from the bone treatments, the Black Ops show the same muscle strength as any of the Spartan II. With their muscle enhancements, but lack of bone treatments, I would have to compare them to Spartan I."
"Well, that is…" Doctor Smith suddenly looked up and into Eric's eyes with a warm smile. "Hello 19. It's been a while."
"Yes ma'am. It has."
"05, you're looking as fit as ever. Still causing problems with the brass?"
"No ma'am, I haven't had the opportunity." Melanie smiled in return. Doctor Smith walked closer to Melanie and shook her hand.
"Have you … spoken with Siren?" She asked nervously. Melanie's smile slowly faded and she simply nodded her answer. "Good, it was all I could do for her at that moment."
Captain Monroe stood from the table, cutting the conversation short and began to take charge of the meeting, "Glad we are all finally together. A holo screen appeared in the center of the circular table that they were sitting at and it showed the location of the covenant fleet, the forerunner ship and the flood controlled ships that had landed on earth. "Cairo station just uploaded this to us ten minutes ago. The flood have ninety-three ships planet side, and the Arbiter is sternly leading his forces to advance on them, but he is mainly focusing his attack wave on the ships closest to the Ark. The majority of the flood controlled fleet appears to be focusing on landing in or around Africa. For reasons of security, the exact location of the Ark will not be disclosed by ONI; they have locked it down."
Eric paid close attention to the positioning of the forerunner ship, "It's in a stationary orbit, over the north pole. That gives it quick access to any location on Earth."
"Correct. " Monroe added. "As Lord Hood informed us, the ship's engines are down, but its shields and weapons are still fully operational. It's only a matter of time before the Covenant repairs its engines. However our problem will be slipping past the Covenant's defense net around Camp Eden." Monroe nodded toward Doctor Halsey.
"I know the Major ordered you to bring the information to Camp Eden, but I have a better idea. We need to link up with Cortana, and hopefully John, Spartan 117. If we can get the information I have to them, hopefully Cortana can access the Ark's mainframe. I believe we can reconfigure the Halo's remote firing sequence and target only the flood."
Eric turned to the Spartan standing against the wall, "Siren can upload the data into Kelly, and then we just have to find the Master Chief."
Monroe smiled, "Once again, you're reading my mind Sergeant. Your orders are simple. Once we enter orbit, find Cortana and the Master Chief and break through the Covenant defensive net around Camp Eden. 19, prep your teams, you have the full resources of this ship at your disposal. Good luck."
Eric, Melanie, Mathew, Roy and Kelly saluted sternly. "Yes sir."
"Dismissed." Captain Monroe watched as the group of warriors turned and walked from the room. She then pressed the com button on the desk. "Commander Timnaldee, it has been an honor to serve with you. The Rogue Fantasy is ready to disembark."
"Has my gift arrived?" Timnaldee questioned.
"Yes, they landed in the hanger bay moments ago. Are you certain that you want to part with them?"
"Hopefully we will not be engaging in combat, and if that is the case, they will not be needed with us. They are all volunteers"
"Thank you Supreme Commander. And good luck to you."
"Fight well, Captain." The com silenced and Monroe sighed heavily as her eyes wondered to Catherine and Carolyn.
"Are you two sure you want to remain on board? Once we enter Earth's atmosphere, I can't guarantee your safety."
"Where else would we go?" Catherine smiled.
Carolyn added, "I've escaped death more times then I'd like to count. This will simply be one more notch in my belt." Captain Monroe sat at the table and smiled in response as Carolyn and Catherine continued their discussion. She was concerned about this mission, and at the fact that the Covenant had completely surrounded Camp Eden. She chose to not share the additional intel that she had received about other UNSC ground forces that were heading into Camp Eden. They had all been shot down miles before they broke through. The Covenant new that something important was in Camp Eden's base, and they were determined to get it. Captain Monroe knew that she had best find a way to break through, or else this mission would end before it began. She continued to scan the dossier of frigates that was inbound for repairs and one of the ships had an attachment note on it. She pressed the icon and the memo opened. Amongst the Cargo was Mark VI battle armor requested by Doctor Roselyn Santos. "Rose?" Monroe mumbled to herself. "She must have ordered it for the Spartan, but how did she…"
"It was me, ma'am." Siren softly stated over the com. "I felt that we would need it for the Spartan, and since there was a frigate being dispatched from Songnim, I put in the order under Rose's name. They won't question it if it comes from her."
"Excellent planning, Siren. We'll rendezvous with that frigate on our way to Earth."
- - - - - - - -
The two phantoms descended toward the deck of the Rogue Fantasy and hovered more then twenty feet above the ground before it came to a stop. Inside one of the phantoms stood ten hardened elite warriors. They one by one descended out of the ship via the purple light of the gravity lift, and each one formed a line beneath the ship. Simyaldee stepped forward from the ten and looked at his warriors with a hardened glare. He knew them all by name, family history and fighting style. He had watched over them all with the exception being the tallest of the nine. He walked to the end of the line and approached the tall and massively strong looking elite Lieutenant.
Simyaldee spoke in their native tongue to the warrior that stood a full foot taller. "Gridolee now is the time to make amends for all you have done."
"Second, with honor and sacrifice, I will fight my enemies and show them no mercy."
"At my side, you will fight, you will show no hesitation and you will know no fear."
"My enemies blood shall stain my blades, and my roar will drive fear into the souls."
From the second Phantom descended ten grunts, led by Palab. His newest disciple, Migpap, followed closely behind. They lined up in front of the elites and formed two rows of nine. Palab stood at full attention at Simyaldee's side and barked orders to the grunts in front of him. Obeying his orders, the grunts stood five feet high and at perfect attention. Palab nodded to Simyaldee and awaited the Second to take over. Simyaldee turned to the eighteen Mirratord warriors in front of him. They were the right hand of the High Council and destined to take on this task.
He began to speak in basic covenant tongue so that they all could understand. "We are the Mirratord. We strike with speed and stealth."
Each of the nine elites and nine grunts replied in unison, "Our enemies will not see their deaths. They will not know their fate."
"In darkness, we will see light. In light, we will see darkness."
"No matter the location, we will see victory."
"If we fail, no one will know."
"Like a ghost, our presence is a mystery. For the honor of the Mirratord."
Simyaldee glared at the eighteen warriors, happy to have served with such fine elites. He was still growing accustomed to Palab's newest trainees, but happy to see that he had found nine worthy replacements to his original team. He looked to them and began with his orders.
"We will work together with the honored human and his team. But our primary goal is to find the Arbiter and join into his ranks as his personal bodyguards during this campaign. The Arbiter must be protected and guarded. The High Council deems it necessary." Simyaldee heard footsteps behind him; the loud rubber knocking of human combat boots. He turned and looked down to Private Wesley Williams.
"Welcome aboard. It's going to take us forty minutes to reach Earth. Your squad is free to move about the ship." Wesley's eyes couldn't help but migrate toward Gridolee, but he ignored him.
"Thank you human." Simyaldee returned. "We will rest here until combat is upon us. And I wish to speak to Sergeant Raynord, to discuss our plan of action."
"He'll be here soon, for battle prep." Wesley remarked. Simyaldee nodded toward Palab and the grunt dismissed the warriors. They parted and each began to check their weapon packs and supplies.
Simyaldee then turned back to Wesley, "I see the glint in your eyes, and I recall that you and Gridolee had a… encounter. Death is in the air, and battle lingers in our future. We were once enemies, but now we are allies, united to defeat a common foe. Put the past matters behind you."
"That's good for you to look forward to battle, but we humans aren't too eager to die. As for Gridolee, I really don't want to talk about."
"Do you fear death?" Simyaldee questioned to the tiny human before him. "Is it not expected within your species?"
"It is expected, but we don't really look forward to dieing." Wesley remarked.
Simyaldee felt the sense of fear in Wesley about the coming battle. "Then let me be the one to warn you now. Many of us will die in the coming battle. All you can do now is prepare for it."
To be continued…