Don't Patronize Me.


Zeta. Peaceful when you sat back and looked at it… the way the Ring slowly turned in harmony with its rising 'sun'. The small creatures that scurried around the ground, warbling to one another and the birds that flew through the air, singing their songs. The Spartan wondered why the Forerunners would make a world such as this, with such a damning purpose. John had been sitting on a cargo box, MRE in hand as he swirled it with his spoon. It was supposed to be oatmeal but really just tasted like a shredded cardboard box with sugary aftertaste. He just breathed in the cold air, felt refreshing on his pale skin, thinking of everything but what needed to be done. He was exhausted. There was so much going on all the time it was hard to deal with the real problem at hand. Without a basic line of command or assets- he was stretched thin. He was glad for the reinforcements that the Arbiter had sent for. It was very little, but he appreciated it nonetheless.

They had taken to removing some of the higher impacting Banished leaders around the area's they were visiting, collecting marines and FOB's that they could manage while John had headed for the Spire. The mission had truly made him feel his age after battling the Spartan hunter's after he took out the AA-guns. The Spartan began to let his mind wander, rethinking his battles in the past two days; the conversation he had with Fernando during his breakdown once they crashed.

"Animals…" the pilot said as he popped out from the bowels of a ship, removing the helmet from his head as he walked to the Chief. "Chief, my eyes didn't deceive me back there."

"We need to go." The Master Chief stated as he watched him walk by.

"Three UNSC Condors! Seeing one is rare. Finding three? That's a miracle. I should've known better." He said as he pointed angrily at the ground. "Torn apart. Completely gutted. Slip safe drive obliterated." He huffed, his voice pained.

"We don't have the time." The Chief replied, watching him intently. His body seemed to shake as he watched him.

"Over there is another. Shattered and cratered over a kilometer!" He turned from the edge of the cliff as he pointed. "Over there. The last one. All of it.." His lips curled in distaste, a fire burning in his heart. "Crushed. Broken. Beaten! Useless!" He stepped forward towards him at each word, his sadness apparent, the Chief's body ridged at the truth he spoke but he dared not fall down into a pit of despair with him.

"Enough." John spoke strongly as he looked down at him, taking a step forward to assert his tone. But Echo 216 only pushed back.

"When? When is it enough?!" He hissed, words like acid. "When we're in there?! Because that is where I belong! In there! With them!" Fernardo was infuriated, tossing his helmet off the side of the cliff as it clattered against the ground below. He paced, throwing his hands in the air as he turned to pick up a piece of the ship with the UNSC logo on it, picking it up and tossing it to the ground in anger. "Worthless junk!" He turned as he approached the Chief again, "Not this. I'm not you! I'm not a pilot. I'm not even a soldier. A marine.. I'm a fraud! I stole that Pelican. I stole it!" He turned, "Do you know why? No! Of course you don't! Have you ever been scared…? So scared that you…" his lips quivered with intensity as he turned, clenching his fists and walked back to the graveyard of ships, falling to his knees as he made a choking noise. "I'm worthless. You should leave me here with the rest of the garbage." He cried, holding back his tears best he could as he hung his head. John could feel the agony that came from his words, walking up to him as he took a knee, the ground moving some as he dropped- looking out over the ships.

"Well all fail. We all make mistakes. It's… what makes us human." He spoke, looking down at the meek pilot in distress.

"I'm sorry Chief, but how have you ever failed?" The pilot turned his face from the super soldier.

"I should have protected Cortana. Stopped everything from going wrong. I failed her. I will not fail you." He promised, looking into the face of the man. He felt a disconnect. Sure, John worried, he felt guilt, animosity. He wondered if those correlated with the feelings that Fernando was feeling right now. In a way, maybe they did.

"Chief-" Weapon said softly, the Spartan opening his hand for her to pop up. "We're going to make it. We have to." He said as she turned to look back up at the green giant.

"I… this is all I've got." The pilot muttered as he looked up at the man, his face still saddened.

"It's all we need. Our only way home is straight through the heart of the Banished."

"We need you."

"We can fix this." John reassured him.

"Together." The AI smiled as the Chief closed his hand, standing up as he kept his eyes on the pilot.

"Of course we can…" he sighed, just shaking his head as he took the Chief's hand. He put his hands to his hips, arching his back some as he tried to clear his eyes some. "So, what's the plan? Lemme guess. It's dangerous and probably going to get us killed?" He said in a sarcastic tone, only to have a crack reign over the sky, a large blue ball of light rocketing into the sky. "I have my answer, let's do this." He said, a smirk on his face as he nodded, heading back to their downed Pelican.

John shook his head of the memory, he didn't know why he was thinking of this now. Swirling his spoon a few more times before he heard a guttural trill as he spooned the food into his mouth.

"How you manage to be so elusive on such a small base is beyond me." Arbiter spoke, walking quietly across the decking plate to the side of the Spartan. John looked up at him, feeling a bit out of place. He just wanted some privacy to eat.

"What do you need?" The Arbiter noted that his voice did not seem as gravelly as it did inside the helmet than outside of it. The Sangheili stood there for a few more moments, shifting his weight.

"The Ring seems quiet today." He spoke as they looked down the hill. They had recently moved most of their operations to FOB Juliet. There was constant air traffic- Banished forces always on the move, gunning down everything in its path. But the UNSC and Swords of Sangheilios we're pushing back just as hard.

"It does." Hereplied sarcastically, putting his food to the side, losing his appetite. The 'sun' barely even touched the valley yet. He knew what Thel was thinking, it would be the perfect time to attack the base that had set itself up between the mountain pass to continue moving across the fractured island pieces of Zeta. And it seemed Thel knew exactly what he was thinking.

"If you are tired, you may rest before we go." The large alien said, looking around on the ground for a spot for him to rest. He sat on a box, just a few feet away from the Spartan as he looked at him.

"I don't need to rest." He said as he waved his hand, grabbing his helmet to emphasize his point.

"You only returned an hour ago. Your pilot sleeps soundly in his ship from today's events. I feared that perhaps, the Spartan hunter's nearly had you. The beacons can wait for you, they will not go anywhere." The Arbiter said as he leaned against the box at his back, eyeing the human with annoyance. John opened his mouth as he shut it again, looking into his faceplate as his helmet sat in his lap.

"Why is that any concern of yours?" He asked bitterly, his cold blue eyes staring hard at the Elite. Arbiter would say that he had never seen eyes such as his. So vacant and void of any emotion, a fierce stare as stormy as the dark blue waters of the sea. He had never taken the time to detail his face… featureless cheekbones that ran down to a strong jaw always clenched into a wide chin and lips set in a flat line. He noticed the deep surgical scar that ran from the far corners of his eyes that curved down in a geometric shape that crossed the bridge of his nose- symmetrical, intentional. A nose that sat crooked- broken one too many times. His hair sat short and cropped that turned downward in a crest of a widow's peak, jaggedly cut with a combat knife to keep practical and a face freshly shaven. Though the dark auburn showed through the short crop, just above his ears it turned a soft white. Despite the wrinkles amongst his eyes and forehead from stress, he looked younger than most humans his age. He guessed it was from the experimentations they suffered as a young child that he learned so very little about back in the day when they first arrived on the battlefield. A ruggedly handsome man as the humans might say. John watched carefully as the Arbiter stared for far too long. He cleared his throat some, arching his thick eyebrows in question.

"It is of a heavy concern of mine. As an ally, as a friend, I implore you to rest." The Arbiter said, making the hair on the back of John's neck stand up. He had things to do. Missions to complete, they couldn't just sit idly by and let the Reformation continue. It was true that the Master Chief struggled in the battle against Tovarus and Hyperius. They had pushed their way through his comfort zone in battle. He had never dealt with Jiralhanae so powerful or well equipped as these. They were only becoming more challenging for him. "If you continue to take part in these missions I will not stand by idly, I will have to accompany you."

"Do you not trust me?" John hissed as he turned fully to him. He did not know what he was getting at.

"I did not say this. I worry for your well being, John." The Arbiter said calmly, he knew that anger would not solve this. That made John recoil into himself. It was so strange to hear his name outside of the lips of Cortana, his team or Dr. Halsey. He should've never told him his name. He'd never thought he would hear it from him. Arbiter saw the confusion mix on the Chief's face. He swallowed hard before he grabbed his helmet and shoved it onto his head.

"I'm fine." John announced with a sharp tone, the Arbiter Stood as he held out his arm- stopping the Spartan from leaving. John bristled at the hand on his stomach- his HUD alerted him of his vitals spiking as he stood there.

"I am not done speaking to you." He reminded him.

"I am, Thel." John pushed past him as he moved towards the ramp that brought him up onto the FOB deck.

"What an obstinate human." The Arbiter muttered to himself as he watched the Spartan take his leave. It was clear that the Spartan did not like being told that he should rest, or that he should relax in any manner. But the beacons could wait. They could not fight with their energy reserves on empty. It was going to be impossible. He wondered if he should apologize, or leave the Chief to his brooding. The elite stood tall as he headed for his team as he heard the warthog pull up the small incline. Marines and his men piled out, far less than had gone out. They looked worn through as one clobbered over to him.

"Arbiter. We have an issue." An Elite said as he shook his head. "Myriad has been tracking our movements. Several of our brothers and sisters remain behind their territory. Trapped." The Sangheili growled. The Mgalekgolo had been a pain for weeks. But they were much faster than they had initially presumed. The mountain pass base would have to wait. They needed to take care of this now. The Arbiter's mandibles flexed, shaking his head.

"Regain your strength, I shall talk to the Chief." He said as he waved his hand some, heading up to the ramp. He knew that the Spartan would still be in a mood.

"What now?" He scoffed, back turned to him, a rifle in his hand as he checked the chamber, clicking it shut as he loaded it.

"Myriad has drawn closer." Was all the alien needed to say. John leaned down, grabbing an energy sword, tossing it towards the Arbiter, catching it in his large hand.

"Let's go then." He said as he brushed past him in a swift movement.


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