**Six POV**
The marines in the gym watch in awe and envy as Noble 4 easily bench five hundred pounds. The Spartan was enjoying the attention. He always like being the center of things, even if it was "unprofessional." He lifted the weights for a few more minutes before getting up and looks towards Six to see his reaction.
Six however wasn't paying any attention, part of his mind was still yelling at him for being an idiot, the other part was wondering what should he say when he meets Shress, while his common sense was screaming at him to tell Carter, but he was too confused and somewhat still in shock from setting a meeting up with the alien in the first place to make any decision. No doubt this could be a trap, but the Elite was obviously striving to be as honorable as she could be, so does that mean it's not a trap?
Six suddenly came to when Emile snap his fingers in front of the Lieutenant's face plate.
"Reach to Six." Emile said sarcastically. "What was my time?"
"Your time?" Six ask as his mind began to clear.
Emile sigh heavily. "How much time did it take me to bench weights two hundred times?"
"Oh! Right." Six quickly enter his HUD and stop his stopwatch. He subtracted the time he spent talking to Emile before answering. "About three minutes and two seconds."
While in the time setting, Six glance at the clock and realized he was running late.
"Shoot." he muttered under his breath before standing up, "Sorry, I got to go Emile." as he picks up a duffle bag full of equipment and supplies.
"Go?" Emile asked. "Go where? We've haven't even been given our next assignment yet."
Six silently cursed himself. In his jittery state he has completely forgotten to inform Noble team he was leaving.
"Oh, um, nowhere," Six finally spoke, "I'm just going to go for a quick hike up the mountain and train there."
"Train on the mountain. Why not here?" Emile asks while gesturing to the massive training room they were in.
"I just don't like training with others, you know, all those years of being a loner are hard to shake off, besides nothing like a touch of nature to get a person going." Six said in the most earnest voice he could produce.
Six checks his bag to ensure he has everything, gets up and walks to the door when Emile calls after him. "Want me to come with you? You know the rules; no one is allowed to go out on their own."
Six groans. 'I am an idiot.' He thought to himself. He forgotten the rules and informing his team mates. Maybe this was a bad idea, but a promise was a promise, and maybe it could do him some good to talk to the enemy.
Six's mind was going a hundred miles an hour as he quickly reply. "I'm already going up there to meet someone." Which was partially true.
"Who? Kat, Jorge? Carter?" Emile asks.
"Um a soldier I met," was his reply.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold the shuttle. A soldier? Not a Spartan?" Emile asks dumbstruck.
During their up bringing's the Spartans were isolated from the rest of the galaxy, they didn't know the lingo aside from the ones they picked up from their instructors, nor do they know the latest music, style or gossip. Years of being cut off from the rest of society had turn interactions with anyone outside of their program as being taboo. True they know some soldiers who they can trust, but not far enough to actually call a friend.
Six sighs before saying, "Yes, a soldier, a fellow warrior, an ally, now can I please go commander?" he asks adding the joke at the end to lighten the mood.
Emile hesitated before asking. "Still got your rifle?" he asks.
In response, Six grabs the butt of his rifle on his back and raises it to show Emile, who nods and said. "Well get back before it gets dark."
"Yes mother." Six said as he left, thinking he heard Emile chuckling to himself.
Six began to wonder if he shouldn't go. He was armed, but if Shress was setting up a trap, he doubts even a Spartan could survive an alien ambush. Worst, he hasn't told anyone where exactly he was going, if he got into trouble, no one would know where to find him, least they did a mountain wide scan, which could take days to complete.
Six was approaching the gate, deciding to go along with the plan when the last person he expected to meet steps onto his path. Doctor Halsey.
'Oh great.' He thought to himself as he halted before her. The six foot nine Spartan towered over the grey haired woman but she seems unafraid of him.
"S-B312." she said in a stern voice. "Where are you going?"
"I have a name madam." Six said.
"Where are you going?" she said in a commanding voice.
"I'm going for a hike up the mountain and I'm going to train up there for a bit, nature can work miracles on a person you know."
"Nature wasn't what made you a soldier Lieutenant."
"What do you want madam?" Six asks in an agitated tone.
"I want to know why you are really going up there lieutenant, and that's an order."
Six couldn't help but chuckle. "An order? You're a civilian ma'am, not an admiral.
He could see she too was getting tired of their conversation and said. "No one is allowed to leave the base alone, even if you are a Spartan." Six swore he saw a vain pulse in her forehead before she said Spartan, as if it went against her very nature to acknowledge him for what he was.
"I won't be alone doctor, I'm going to meet up with somebody up there."
"Who?" She demanded
"Classified, madam," Six said calmly and smirks behind his helmet as he said it.
"Spartan, tell me who you are meeting or I'll throw you in the brig," Halsey said in a menacing voice.
"What!" Six exclaim, "Under what charge?"
"For attempting to break into secure classified files," she said rather victoriously.
"That was Kat! I can barely even find the on switch on a data pad," Six defended.
"None of that will matter. Now tell me, who you are meeting." she demanded once more.
Finally out of patience, Six said, "An officer, an officer who wishes to speak to me about important lone wolf stuff okay? Can I leave now, I'm already late."
"What's the name of the officer?" Halsey quickly countered.
"Classified. Ask Admiral Hood about it. I'm sorry madam but I must go, NOW." he voiced loudly as he walked around her and out the gate.
**Shress La' Vdamee POV **
Shress glance at the sun and let out a low growl, the demon was now an hour late.
She has been waiting by the knoll that slightly branches out from the mountain on one of its elevated platforms since early dawn, patiently waiting to see if the demon Michael would arrive. She was starting to have doubts that the creature would come. Perhaps he was leading humans to the spot so they can ambush her. She growled challengingly at the thought, but knew fully well even a Zealot couldn't last long against a small army of humans and a demon.
'If he isn't here soon, I'll just head back' she thought, no doubt Ruan, her commander was wondering where she was. Even though she was a Zealot, she had to sneak, bribe, and lie through gritted teeth to get here.
And all so she could speak to a demon.
This was an insane idea. She doesn't even know why she wants to speak to Michael. Her best conclusion was because she wanted, no; She 'needed' to know why he is showing her mercy over and over again, to know why the gods keep having her meet with the demon.
'Besides.' She thought. 'Maybe I can learn something useful like the human language or where it is that demons come from.' The Covenant had Unggoy who could translate the human language, but she wasn't going to stoop as low as to actually ask a lowly worker how to speak in her enemy's tongue, her pride won't allow it.
If the demon is as open as he has been every time they meet, then surely she could glean some insight on the demons. No one in the Covenant knows what they are, how they look, or why they are allies with the humans. If she could learn some of those answers then maybe this lunatic scheme may bode well for her.
She became alert to something that sounded like the snapping of a twig. The sudden noise cause her to activate her camouflage, making her invisible. She didn't have to wait long before Michael came into view.
Like all the times she had seen him, he had a weapon on his back, his blue armor was still dirty and his azure glassed face was as bright as ever. He had a strange human bag hanging off his shoulder and for the first time since she had met him. He bent over and supported himself on his knees. He was actually tired.
When he recovered, the demon looks up and scans the area before letting out an explosive sigh.
"I know you're there Shress, now please show yourself." He said in an out of breath voice.
Shress remain hidden for a few more moments to confirm he was alone before deactivating her camouflage. Whenever she shimmers back into view, it would startle most people, yet when she does it in front of Michael, he didn't even seem faze that a seven foot alien just appeared before him.
They stood in front of each other in complete silence, neither sure how to break the silence until Shress asks. "Why are you tired?"
Michael gave another heave of breath before saying, "I got held up back at my base, I was afraid I would miss you so I sprinted most of the way up here."
Shress step back partially in confusion and partially in revulsion. "You were afraid you would miss me?"
The demon spoke quickly. "No! No! Not like that, no. What I meant was that I was afraid you left because I was running late."
Shress was relieved to have heard this. For a moment she truly thought that demons were indeed insane.
The silence return only now there was a touch of awkwardness in the air, and Shress truly feels like a fool for thinking that the demon thought of her in such a way.
Finally Michael spoke. "So... um, what was it you wanted to talk about?"
Glad to have the conversation started again Shress asks. "Why do you not believe in fate? Why do you think us meeting was an accident?"
The demon ponders for a while before saying. "Alright, say that fate does exist-"
"Fate does exist." Shress said confidently.
"No. I meant, oh never mind, if fate does exist, why is it we keep running to each other?" he asks.
"I don't know." Shress said. "That's why I wanted to speak to you." she slowly move forward and began encircling him, like an officer inspecting a soldier. "Why would the gods want us to meet, a female Zealot and a merciful demon. Such things have never been heard of before." She finish as she came to a halt in front of the demon.
Michael was silent before speaking. "Look, to be truthful when I met you, honor and mercy wasn't the first things to come to mind." he sighs, "I was just like that to thank you after you allowed me to fight for my life."
Shress felt fury burn within her at the deception. The demon must have notice for his whole body became tense as she spoke. "So you do not believe in honor or fate?"
Michael sighs and said. "I do believe in honor, and fate sometimes I suppose, but I just find this whole situation strange. My honor system doesn't cover what we do when our opponent is from another planet."
Shress's honor doesn't say what to do when dealing with another species either, so his argument was valid she supposed.
"Perhaps fate and the gods have a special plan for us, maybe that is why we keep meeting, and why you don't kill me." Shress express.
"Wait." Michael said, and for some reason raises his right arm and holds up a single finger, "How come you don't believe me when I tell you the reason why I didn't kill you, and why is it you are always saying 'why didn't I kill you.' Don't you ever try and kill 'me' every once in a while?"
Shress thought for a while, should she tell him of her blood lust and how close she came to killing him? He was truthful about his belief in honor even though it made her angry, but he's revealing more than she was willing to give, the least she could do is be equally courteous.
"I do not know why I do not believe your story, but I believe there's more to it then you are letting on." Michael didn't move, giving no sign of what he was feeling. "and yes, I have considered killing you and your comrades." She started feeling shame build in her as she revealed. "I am sorry I did not keep any of the promises you had me swore, I just felt angry, at you, your comrades, and the humans." Her voice started to build to the point of shouting as she finishes. "How is it you expect me to keep my word on not harming you or your allies while they are the ones trying to kill me and my friends. You might as well have ask me to stop existing." She finishes bitterly.
There was another lull now. Feeling her anger withdrawing and realizing how she acted she started to apologize when Michael interrupted.
"I'm sorry you feel that way Shress," In a modest tone. "I knew you couldn't keep your word, I had no idea how honorable you are." She thought she heard admiration in his voice as he continues. "I release you from your vows, and can I ask you something? Why is it you said, 'I might as well have asked you to stop existing'"?
It didn't take long for Shress to answer. "Because I am a warrior, what good is a warrior if they cannot fight?"
Michael nodded and asks. "But don't you, cant you do some other things?"
Shress growls. "Like staying home and taking care of my children like I'm suppose to?" She asks in a challenging voice.
"Well they're your kids, so yeah you should go and take care of them."
Shress eyes widen before correcting. "That's not what I meant, I am not a mother, it's just that's what a female is supposed to do."
Now the demon asks in a confused voice. "But if you don't have children, then doesn't that mean there's other things you could do?"
Shress sighs as she remembers the fate she was almost certain to inherit. "no, even those with no children still have to stay home, take care of the house, deal with the politics and make sure the male." Here her voice turns into a tone of disgust. "Is comfortable."
The demon made a strange cracking noise, similar to the one she heard when they first met. After a moment she felt herself become enraged again, the demon was laughing, laughing at her!
"You think it's funny being treated as a tool? As nothing more than furniture by someone who thinks they're superior to you?" She asks coldly.
The demon raises both his arms and hands, slightly lowering them, probably a human gesture for calm. "No, of course not." Here his glass face met her's. "It's just after knowing you for a while, I can't imagine a good fighter like yourself living a life like that." As he finishes he starts laughing again.
The strange sound was like nothing she has ever heard before, and it sounded so abnormal Shress started laughing with him. For some reason when he heard her laugh, his chuckles became more hysterical; the strange noise he made sounded so funny to Shress it cause her to laugh harder as well. They laugh for what felt like ages before becoming serious once more.
'That was the first time I laughed, actually laughed in a long time.' She thought to herself as she smiles.
She looks to Michael and was puzzled when he lay down on his belly. She was starting to feel concern when he starts pushing himself up but falls back down on the ground. She watches him continue the pattern for a unit before asking. "What are you doing?"
"Training." he said between each breath. "Exercising building my muscles."
"Why?" she asks, actually curious.
"So I can be stronger," he pauses while in the air and asks. "Don't the Covenant troops exercise or the Sangheili's?"
Shress shook her head. "No, we choose our warriors by how strong they're naturally are. I'm lucky to be one of the few females to have strength to match a male."
"Huh." Michael said. "the only way I was able to get up here was by telling my CO's I was coming up here to exercise." he finishes as he started doing the strange push up and fall down motions again.
"What's a CO?" She asks.
"My commanding officer." The demon practically gasps out each word. Realizing how exhausting this 'exercising' was, she decided to wait for him to finish before talking again. But when he got done doing push-ups, he flips on his back and started lifting his upper body up to his knees before lowering himself back down. Then he found a strong tree and starts lifting himself up and down. He ran around the mountain top next before coming to an end. It didn't stop there though, he reach into the bag and brought out two strange objects, twin hexagonal shaped steel that was connected by a pipe, he started lifting the objects up and down with his hands. Shress was feeling glad the Covenant didn't have its troops perform these exercises; she judges from the demon's grunts that it was quite a demanding activity.
Realizing the sun was going down she spoke, "Michael." but he was too involved lifting the objects to hear her causing her to yell. "Michael!"
He pauses and looks to her, she gestures to the setting sun. "I think we need to go now." she said, slightly regretting not getting to know any important information from the demon.
Somehow the demon seems to be able to hear what she was thinking before saying, "If you want, we can try and meet each other again tomorrow, um, if you want."
Shress nods before saying. "That sounds good to me." As she prepares to hike back into the mountains. Noticing the direction she was facing, Michael asks. "Do you have a ship back there?"
Shress didn't want to lie, nor tell the demon, the enemy, of the existence of Holy Retribution so she said. "Yes, my ship is waiting for me up there," which was partially true, there were Phantoms and Banshees at her base, those counted as ships she reason.
Michael nods before pulling some sort of container out of the bag. Before Shress could see what he was doing, she checks her belt to make sure her weapons and other supplies was still on when she looks up. She felt her mandibles widen in astonishment at what she was looking at.
The demon has removed his helmet and was drinking from the container, but what got her attention was his head. He was human. She, as well as the other species in the Covenant never, ever considered the possibility that the demons were human too, how was Michael different from the others of his race. An even more chilling thought enter her mind, what could have happen if the whole of his race had the same abilities as the demons?
The demon, no, she reminded herself, the human, notice she was staring and asks. "What?"
She didn't answer right away as her lingering gaze began absorbing details on the human's face. His skin was a light brown, but it seems to be a tad pale, it must have been due to the lack of sun rays. He had fur on his head, like the other humans Shress had encountered. His was the color black, it was cut short, outlining the shape of his round head. He had the strange ears and nose that accompanies the average human, yet what she found most interesting was his dark green eyes. The Sangheilians eyes only came in dark color slits; his was a round emerald colored orb, nothing like she has ever seen before.
'I wonder what it would be like looking through eyes like those, to have such distinguishing features.' she thought to herself. She realize she never seen a human, well a live human, this close to her before. The eyes were almost unnerving, as she stares into them, like an animal in a trap.
"Um, Shress?" She heard the human, Michael said, snapping her back into reality. "Is there something wrong?"
"You're you're human." She said in a mystified voice as she looks into his eyes again.
"Yeah." He said. "I've kind of notice I'm human." He said rather jokingly, not realize how big of a revelation it was to her.
Suddenly feeling embarrass at how she responded she asks. "Should we meet here again?"
"Sure." Michael said as he got up and replaces his helmet back on his head, hiding his humanity. "I guess we better get back, Farewell Shress." He said and turn and started a light trot down the mountain.
"Farewell Michael." she said and begins walking down, wondering if she could ever see the human as a demon again, yet out of all she had just learn, what stuck to her mind was the color of his eyes. A dark, almost bright green she had never seen before.
A green color that, for some reason, she hopes to see again.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Sorry for the long wait. I had gotten sick with a high fever and a really bad cough. Then my asthma flared which drained the rest of my energy. I had spent a week of nothing but sleeping.
Then I had family come in and then my work was having a HUGE sale for black friday that I had to prepare for. All in all it was a very busy two weeks. I will be back to my scheduled uploading of a chapter of this story a week.
I usually update this story every Wednesday or Thursday.
To those who have fav.'ed me I thank you. You are the ones who keep me going . To those who are giving be grammor advice it also thank you. Grammar is not my strong suit in any capacity. I also do not have a betta reader or anyone else to check the things I have changed so if you see anything that is spelled wrong or grammar is incorrect do not be afraid to pm me.
