Eve of Fate
Chapter 5: Trust
The Master Chief sighed as he walked through the barren hallways of the underground base.
Having been there for the past week, the Master Chief helped the resistance as best he could by training the soldiers. He was teaching them basic marksmanship and weapon maintenance, and they were slowly catching on. While a certain few became better soldiers, the majority was still substandard – the best they would probably be able to do would be to point their weapons in a general direction and fire.
Other than the soldiers, the Master Chief felt the recent attacks done in the past week too, were substandard. They were nothing more than minor assaults, against only small Covenant squads wandering down the street.
The Master Chief resented this, and the fact that he had yet to take another step back up to the surface and fight.
Walking along, the Master Chief then noticed how empty the base was. Where were all the soldiers? The Spartan got to the command centre, which was filled with the usual chaos. He approached Hawkins, who was bent over the city map as usual. Foley was a short distance away at a desk, adjusting a radio. Looking up, Hawkins didn't seem all too pleased that the Master Chief was here.
"I guess it wasn't long before you'd get here anyways" he said.
"What's going on?" the Spartan asked. "Where is everybody?"
Hawkins pointed at certain parts of the map, areas relatively close by.
"Ammo raid. We've confirmed the locations of several arms caches, and we sent some guys out to get them."
"Why was I not informed?" the Master Chief asked.
Hawkins shrugged.
"It isn't important. Besides, it's a milk run. In and out so quick they'll be back in minutes."
The Master Chief frowned silently. Communication was essential, and in the past, there were times where entire military operations would be lost due to a lack of it.
"Hey, Hawkins, incoming transmission from Elias and his team" Foley reported.
"Play it."
Foley turned the radio on, and through it came static and garbled gunfire.
"Base, we're under attack! We're pinned down at one of the ammo caches by a lot of Covenant! They've got lots of guys, and some tanks! We need help! Dammit, watch the windows! Hold the entrance, hol-"
The radio then cut out. The Master Chief realized how bad this was.
"I can't get 'em back Hawkins" Foley said, in disbelief.
"What about the reinforcements we sent out earlier? What about them?"
"Can't get 'em either."
"You sent out another squad before all this?" the Master Chief asked, curious about the new development.
Hawkins sighed, rubbing his temples.
"Yes, I did," he replied. "I thought Elias and the rest of his guys needed some more help with brining back the ammo, so I sent those guys out."
"Did you tell the first team about it?"
"No."
The Master Chief's stomach churned at the thought of how many people would die because of this. His stomach churned more when he realized how lax Hawkins appeared to be feeling about it. What was he even thinking when he send the second squad out? Did he realize that by doing so, he had put the lives of several inexperienced soldiers in unnecessary risk?
"What do we do now, Hawkins?" Foley asked.
"Do we have anymore guys to send out?"
Being unable to take much more, the Master Chief stepped in.
"I'll go. It isn't worth sending more guys up to the street to die."
Foley then got up from the radio.
"I'll go too. The Chief will need the location of the building. It'll help if I go with him."
"Both of you stay put – I'm not sending anybody out until we know what's going on."
The Master Chief was resisting the urge to raise his voice at Hawkins's near inability to command. He controlled his voice the best he could.
"We already know what's going on – you have one squad pinned down by a large Covenant force, possibly consisting of infantry and vehicles, and you have another squad unaccounted for. If I go, I can track down the whereabouts of the unaccounted squad, link up with them, and help the pinned down squad."
Hawkins remained silent, unsure of how to respond. The Master Chief wondered what went through his mind, and how he hesitated to even as his own soldiers were at risk.
"Alright," Hawkins finally replied. "Chief, Foley, you guys can go, but bring them back alive."
The Master Chief nodded, and walked out of the command centre with Foley. They stopped by the armoury, where Foley picked up several clips of ammunition for his SMG, as well as half a dozen grenades. The Master Chief took that moment to load up with ammunition for his Battle Rifle and SMG, as well as another half dozen grenades.
"Where's the arms cache?" the Master Chief asked Foley.
"Here" he responded, by taking out a small map and pointing to a building several blocks away from their current position.
"The other teams used an entrance nearby, and we will too. That should allow us to come out where they did, and from there, we can track down the reinforcing team, and aid the guys at the cache as best as possible."
"Alright then," the Master Chief said, loading a fresh clip into his Battle Rifle. "Let's go."
Ouna 'Ortomee grunted as he listened to the repetitive, steady beating of rain splattering against the roof of his Wraith.
The Red Veteran Elite hated everything having to do with the humans, and in particular, he hated how varied their planet's climate was.
After their fleets bombed most of the planet into oblivion, it affected the climate somewhat, but it still allowed for the occasional rain. What annoyed 'Ortomee even more was how this amount of rain was only considered light by human standards. The thought of an even heavier torrent discouraged the Elite greatly.
Besides it being wet, the Elite hated how when the rain fell there were often clouds of heavy fog to accompany it. The fog reduced visibility greatly, only allowing for him and his troops to see the muzzle flashes of the human weapons, while the humans themselves were protected from sight.
Ignoring the rain, 'Ortomee continued to drive down the road, following the three Ghosts in front of him, and leading the way for the troop transport traveling behind him. The humans had attempted a risky operation, but it had ultimately failed. They were now pinned down at a building, and it was a matter of time before they would be destroyed.
The humans were amusing creatures – they sought personal opportunity first rather than for their race. This information regarding a human task force in operation was previously unknown, but an informant kindly described where they were. 'Ortomee sent a small group consisting of a Wraith mortar tank, two Spectres, and about two dozen infantry to confirm on the information not long ago, and it turned out to be true. Now, it was up to him to get there with his larger force and finish the humans.
His communication device activated, and a hologram generated before the Red Elite. Much to 'Ortomee's surprise, the hologram was of 'Yuteryi, the field commander. Normally, 'Ortomee would bow in respect to his superior, but due to the rather constraining cockpit of the Wraith, he did not.
"Ouna 'Ortomee, I have reports of several of our units engaged at the street level. What is going on? Where are you bringing those vehicles?"
"Commander, I am confirmed reports of human activity, and I have sent some of our warriors to engage. I am now on route to their location to aid them against the human infidels."
'Ortomee hid the fear in his voice. Would 'Yuteryi approve of this maneuver? How much fault was there in this attack? Would it be worth their attention?
"'Ortomee, I give you my blessings to continue your offensive. Destroy the enemy, but take heed – the humans are a deceitful few. Do not allow your troops to fall victim to that."
The hologram disappeared, and the communication link ended. 'Ortomee felt better relieved inside knowing that 'Yuteryi spoke to him before the attack.
'Yuteryi was a great commander – not just due to his tenacity in combat or his tactical prowess, but because of how he cared for his soldiers. It did not matter whether the soldier in question was a lowly Grunt to even a common Elite – 'Yuteryi gave them the respect they deserved, and they too gave that to 'Yuteryi.
'Ortomee was now more confident than ever, even in spite of the horrid rain that poured above him. He was ready to meet the enemy face to face in battle.
"What do you see?"
Looking nervously back up at his friend, Kevin Pearson reported what he saw.
"I can see a tank, and lots of guys."
Kevin hated this. He and five others were told to move out and assist another team that went out earlier. They knew the location and would probably be able to get there easily, but it was currently under attack by the Covenant, and they were hitting it with heavy firepower.
They, on the other hand, were stuck behind a wall that was next to the street leading down to the arms cache with no weapons heavy enough to take the tank down, let alone enough training to fight at all. There was no roof above them, so the rain pounded upon them mercilessly. The rain was bad enough – the radio already broke down due to the rain and was now unusable.
"What do we do?" one of the soldiers asked.
"Well, we've got to get there and help them," Kevin replied. "They're getting killed out there, and we're supposed to help them."
"Screw you; I'm not going out there" another soldier replied.
Taking another look outside, Kevin watched as the tank fired yet another ball of plasma. How many men were already dead? How many more would die today? Kevin wanted to do something, but he felt there was little he was able to do, let alone sit back and watch his fellow resistance fighters get slaughtered.
"Hey, there's somebody coming!"
Kevin turned around in shock and readied his SMG. The others kept their weapons pointed down at the street, in the event there was something hostile coming at them from the rear.
Seconds passed, and Kevin was able to make out the shape of two figures running towards them. As he focused, he realized they weren't Covenant. One of them was a familiar soldier, some guy from command, Foley, if Kevin was correct, but the other…
"What the-? Hey, it's the Chief!"
As they got closer, Kevin instantly recognized the trademark MJOLNIR battle armour the Spartan was wearing. Kevin thought he was dreaming, but as the giant super soldier got closer, close enough for Kevin to notice the numerous dents and scars, a testament to the years of endless war the Master Chief had seen and fought, he realized this was far too close to reality than he could possibly imagine.
"How did you find us?" one of the soldiers asked.
"The Chief spotted you guys on his thermal" Foley replied, noting how the Master Chief's various integrated vision modes were able to do so.
"How does it look?" the Master Chief asked, his voice cold and monotonous.
Kevin explained the situation as best he could, in particular, how screwed they were if they were to attack. The Master Chief nodded, and thought about the situation.
"Foley, is there a building overlooking the arms cache?" he asked.
Foley pulled out his map, reviewed it, and nodded, pointing towards a series of buildings down the street and past the wall they were currently hiding behind.
"Good. We're going to get into those buildings, get to the roof, and attack the Covenant forces from above."
The Master Chief peered around the corner and waved the others to follow him. They quickly ran down the street, keeping as close to the wall as possible to avoid detection. The sounds of plasma fire was getting louder as they moved, meaning they were getting closer to the fight. After finding a door, the Master Chief quietly kicked it open, and they piled inside.
The Spartan did not stop. He found the stairwell and led them all the way up, until they got to the roof. There, the Master Chief crept to the edge and peered over. The other did so, careful to stay as low as possible.
Kevin gulped as he spotted a Wraith, two Spectres, each alongside the Wraith, and a lot of Grunts and Jackals, as well as a few Elites, all of them taking cover near the Spectres. They poured fire on a small, nondescript two story building where the first team was pinned down at. The front of the building was blown out by the Wraith, revealing both stories of the structure. There was minimum cover now for the people inside.
The Master Chief looked over the area, and seemed to have worked out a plan in almost record time. He started by taking off the six grenades he had strapped to his armour and gave all but one of them to Foley.
"Foley, ready the grenades. This is how it will work - I will drop down and take the tank out. As soon as I'm done, throw the grenades close to the two Spectres. After that, open fire on any Covnant troops still standing."
"Wait, you're going to take the tank out?" one of the soldiers asked, in shock.
"Let the Chief do his job," Foley replied. "I'm sure he's already taken stuff like that out a number of times before."
Foley handed out one grenade for each soldier and told them which Spectre to throw them at. As soon as they were done, the Master Chief carefully leapt over the edge and landed behind the Wraith. The Master Chief then ran beside the tank, hopped and and began punching at the top hatch of the Wraith.
The Spartan then tore it off, primed the one grenade he had, dropped it in, and hopped off. Six seconds later, the grenade went off, and the tank died down. All of this had happened so fast the Covenant soldiers on the ground had barely noticed it.
"Now!" Foley barked.
Kevin pulled the pin off his grenade and tossed it at the Spectre. The others followed suit, priming and throwing their grenades at the targets. To his amazement, the small explosive landed right inside the driver's seat. Seconds later, there was a frightening roar as the grenades went off, destroying the vehicles, and killing several of the Covenant troops on the ground.
The others then lifted their weapons and fired down at the still surviving Covenant soldiers. Kevin froze, and after that, shouldered his SMG and opened fire.
Where they going to win this? For the moment, it actually appeared as if they were.
The Master Chief waited until the fire died down before he made his next move. Keeping his Battle Rifle ready, the Spartan checked the area for any remaining Covenant, but had found none. The grenades did their job, and the firing that followed after cleaned up the rest.
Positive that it was all clear, the Master Chief walked towards the building. As he approached, the soldiers inside looked on in disbelief. It was hard to tell whether it was because they were no longer in their once bleak fight, or whether they were saved by the Master Chief.
Of the soldiers who stood up, one of them was Elias.
"Over here Chief!" he yelled, signaling for the Spartan.
"What's the situation Elias?" the Master Chief asked as he ran towards him.
"Out of the original twenty guys, eleven are dead," Elias said sadly. "We've got the vault cracked open though."
"Show me."
Elias led the Master Chief into the back of the building and down a flight of stairs into the basement. There, the Master Chief caught sight of an entrance carved into the floor, with the solid vault like doors open. Soldiers walked to and from it, carrying lots of weapons with them.
Crates loaded with various ammunition types, weapons, and explosives were stacked around in the basement. The sheer number of weapons would easily bolster the armoury back at base.
"How much of the cache is emptied out?" the Master Chief asked.
"Nearly all of it," Elias replied. "Our only problem now is how do we bring it all back? There's a lot of it, and I don't think we have enough men to carry it all."
The Master Chief tried to think about how it could be done, but he was interrupted by the sounds of quick footsteps and yelling.
"Chief! Elias! We've got trouble!"
A soldier burst into the room frantically screaming.
"What's wrong?" Elias asked.
"We're seeing another Wraith incoming, along with some Ghosts and a Shadow with a full load of troops!"
"Crap" Elias responded.
"Can't we use the stuff we found here? We can take 'em out easily" the soldier said.
The Master Chief disagreed. The weapons here needed to be saved until later. This meant that the incoming Covenant force needed to be neutralized without using any of the weapons or ammunition from the caches. He tried to think of all the possible alternatives, and any methods of improvising. He thought back to the remaining grenades Foley and the others still had. Would they be much use? Would they be able to use anything else?
His mind then thought back to the damaged Wraith tank from earlier. The vehicle itself can't be used, but it weighed around 45 tons. Could it be used somehow?
The Master Chief then worked out a plan.
"Elias, get all the ammunition upstairs and get it ready to move."
"Right, Chief. What are you planning?"
The Master Chief did not reply, instead, choosing to run back upstairs and back to the street. He searched the bodies of the dead Covenant for plasma grenades, and found five. It would be good enough. He then approached the Wraith. It was be a pivotal part of his plan.
"Foley, how many grenades do you still have?"
"Six, why?"
"We'll need them."
'Ortomee slowly drove down the street, keeping his tank in a steady path. He had given up trying to contact the forces at the position. Were they wiped out? That was impossible though. He had to tread carefully here.
Slowly, the group continued down the street towards the building the human forces were pinned down in. The Ghosts led the way, scouting ahead at a slightly faster speed. It was several minutes before they got close enough to pick out the details of a previous battle, hidden away in the fog.
'Ortomee cursed as he caught sight of a damaged Wraith and Spectres. The humans had somehow fought and won against them. Were they already gone now? Did they already retreat? They continued to move in closer to check it out. While they did, he sent an order for the troops inside the transport behind him to dismount and be ready to move.
The closer 'Ortomee got the more detail he was able to pick out, particularly on the wreaked Wraith. It was flipped so it was standing vertical against the side of a building. It was a curious thing. Why it was even positioned like that left 'Ortomee confused.
Suddenly, a bright glow appeared and stuck itself onto one of the Ghosts, and then it happened again, attaching to the other. Seconds later, the Ghosts exploded, parts of the vehicles as well as the pilot scattered around the street. Something then leapt onto the last Ghost, kicking off the pilot and commandeering the vehicle. There was then a burst of plasma as the hijacker opened fire and killed the previous pilot. The commandeered Ghost turned it attention to the Wraith, firing a long burst of plasma in its direction.
The humans were still here after all. 'Ortomee activated the mortar and sent a ball of plasma down the street, trying to aim for the Ghost, but it slipped away, obscured by the fog.
Cursing again, 'Ortomee drove down the street further to get a better view, and to hunt down the Ghost. Curse the fog – it hid the enemy too well.
There was then a brilliant explosion, right next to 'Ortomee. Looking beside him, he then realized he was right next to the damaged Wraith. A cloud of smoke drifted up from the cockpit, as though some type of explosive ordinance, and lots of it, went off inside.
'Ortomee then realized in horror that the Wraith was tipping over, directly over top of him. He tried to get out of there, but the damaged Wraith fell too quick and pinned him down. Swearing as he hit the controls, 'Ortomee realized now that he was trapped – an immobile target ripe for the picking.
There was noise from behind – gunfire. The troops behind him were under fire and they could do nothing against the hidden humans. Curse them.
From beyond the fog, he saw three glowing orbs tossed in his direction in a single continuous stream. The grenades fused to the surface of his tank and detonated, throwing the Elite around in the cockpit. He was of no use being trapped inside.
Keying for the hatch to open, 'Ortomee climbed out and readied his plasma rifle. Taking a look around, 'Ortomee saw nothing beyond the fog. The rain had died down considerably, reduced to nothing but scattered drops of water.
Hopping off, he surveyed the street, trying to pick out where the attacker was. He fired a random shot, hoping it would hit something. The sounds of gunfire and dying were behind him, and his worst fear was confirmed – he had fallen into the enemy's trap.
But he was one warrior the humans would not kill as easily.
A burst of projectiles then struck his shields. Turning around, 'Ortomee spotted the human soldier running towards him while spraying with an automatic weapon. He laughed at the foolishness of the human – running from his cover, firing while on the move, and trying to charge straight at a fully shielded Sangheili while doing so.
'Ortomee swung his plasma rifle and caught the human in the face, knocking him aside like a rag doll. As the human staggered, 'Ortomee struck again at the human's chest, forcing him to the ground. Kicking aside the human's fallen weapon, 'Ortomee readied his plasma rifle, staring back into the human's pained eyes.
Suddenly, several rounds struck him. He was under fire! Leaping away, 'Ortomee squeezed off several shots, but he was sure he wasn't able to hit anything. His enemy, however, continued to hammer him with shots until it unexpectedly stopped. It was lucky for 'Ortomee, as his shields were now disabled, and was an easy target. Looking around, the Elite then saw the figure of his attack.
It was huge, perhaps the same size as he was. Unlike the humans 'Ortomee had fought and killed with relative ease in the past, this one was covered head to toe beneath a bulky suit of armour.
It was the Demon!
'Ortomee did the most basic thing possible – he raised his plasma rifle and opened fire. The shots were in vain, as they were only absorbed by the Demon's shield. The Demon charged at him, so quickly that it was right where 'Ortomee was in less than a second.
The Demon's fist connected with the side of 'Ortomee's jaw. At that instant, the Elite felt his mandibles snap and his teeth shatter. He fell to the ground, and was not able to move.
Standing over him, the Demon aimed his rifle down at 'Ortomee's head. 'Ortomee, amidst the pain and humiliation of being defeated, did not notice the weapon, but rather the sky above him. It was previously cloudy, but was clearing up now, revealing the blue sky behind it.
The clearing blue sky was the last thing Ouna 'Ortomee, a Red Veteran Elite, had seen before the Demon fired his weapon.
The Master Chief did not keep his eyes on the corpse of the Elite for long. He immediately moved on finishing off the last few Covenant soldiers on the street.
He was thankful that his plan came together and worked so quickly. He had Foley and the other soldiers take five of their grenades and stash them inside the Wraith's cockpit, right after the Master Chief flipped it vertically, setting it close to the wall of the building to one side of the Covenant tank, so it would create some type of partial closed lid, with enough space for the last grenade to be tossed in when needed.
When the Ghosts came first, the Spartan hid away within the fog, and took two of them out with carefully thrown plasma grenades, and hijacked the last one to lure the second Wraith in closer. As soon as it got close enough, Foley primed and tossed in the last grenade, igniting the other five and pushing the tank off from the wall and down onto the Wraith. It pinned it down, and prevented the driver from being able to move or use the tank's plasma mortar. It was then a simple matter of flushing the driver out with the remaining plasma grenades.
After that, the soldiers finished off the rest of the Covenant troops coming in from behind the Wraith.
"Are you alright?" he asked, helping the soldier the Red Elite was moments from executing up from the ground.
"I-I'm fine, sir" the soldier replied. His face was bruised, and he coughed out blood. He was just a kid, but even the Master Chief had to commend him for being brave enough to charge against an Elite.
The Master Chief looked over the corpses, making sure there wasn't any Covenant still alive. After making sure they were all dead, the Master Chief slung his Battle Rifle over his shoulder and pushed away the Wraiths to clear the street.
Elias, as well as everybody else watched on in amazement as the Master Chief did his task with such ease. The various biological augmentations and the MJOLNIR combat armour aided the Spartan greatly.
"Elias, do you have all the weapons and ammunition ready?" the Master Chief asked, after he finished moving the Covenant vehicles away.
"Yeah," Elias replied, his face filled with shock, awe, and surprise as he surveyed what the Master Chief had done – taken down two tanks and helped take down a whole lot of Covenant.
"Let's start moving the ammo."
The Master Chief then nodded towards the Shadow, lying motionless in the street. Elias looked from that to the Spartan and back, again with surprise.
"Chief, you're a lifesaver."
Within minutes, the remaining soldiers moved the crates of munitions onto the Shadow. After it was fully loaded, everybody got in. The soldiers also brought with them the eleven bodies of their fallen comrades. They wanted to bring them back for a proper burial.
"Alright, we've got everything. We can go now, Chief."
The Master Chief, taking a seat in the Shadow's driver seat, activated the vehicle. The Shadow lifted off from the ground and slowly moved forward. The Master Chief brought the vehicle as close back to the tunnel entrance and from there, dismounted and helped the troops unload the munitions and bring them down into the tunnel.
When that was finished, the Master Chief kept the Shadow activated and jammed the controls so that it would keep traveling in a single direction. The Shadow would end up somewhere else, so the Covenant would not be able to figure out where it had stopped off at.
Satisfied with his work, the Master Chief entered into the tunnel last. Down below, the soldiers now had to carry the munitions back to base.
"It's too bad we couldn't fit that Shadow into here" one of the soldiers joked as he and another three tried to push along a crate of ammunition.
"Look on the bright side – it's like working out, which is what you kids need to be doing a bit more of!" Foley yelled, chuckling afterwards as he struggled to carry a small crate of rifles, as well as a few dozen grenades.
The Master Chief helped, carrying a large number of weapons with him. As he walked alongside the various soldiers, one of them looked up at the Spartan. It was the same kid he had saved from before.
"Hey, Chief? Thanks."
"No problem."
The other soldiers muttered their thanks as the Spartan walked by. The looks on their faces, a combination of relieved and thankful, weren't feigned – they meant it. His work had saved them today, and they were grateful for it.
Grateful enough to forgive what they thought he had done thirty-five years ago, and trust him.
End Note: This chapter was a new one made as in-between material to demonstrate a method of which the Chief gains the trust of the soldiers. As I might have said in an earlier chapter note, he's hated by the soldiers in the beginning, but he gradually earns their trust, and this chapter is meant to show that. He pretty much goes out, saves them, pulls off a MacGuyver (even I, myself, was impressed with the 'creative' use of frag grenades, although I think it's pushing it a bit), and saves a few soldiers. This chapter was also written as a bit of a warm-up for writing action again, since I took a break from doing so during the last few chapters.
At the same time, for the next few, since they start going into a fair bit of action. But hey, action's good, right?