Hello again, everyone, and welcome back to the next chapter of my remastered Halo - MechWarrior/BattleTech crossover. Thank you all for your patience, and your support. I deeply appreciate it.

Just as a heads up, there will be another brief delay after this chapter. I'm currently helping my brother out with painting the interior of a friend's house. As such, I won't be able to add new chapters for the next couple of days. Once we've gotten the job done, however, I will be back in action, and I will have new chapters posted once said chapters have been beta read. All that I ask for is a little more patience. It will not go unrewarded.

Either way, thank you very much for your support, and I hope to see you in future chapters. As always, leave a review and enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own the Halo or MechWarrior/BattleTech franchises. They are the respective properties and trademark of Microsoft Game Studios, 343 Industries, Bungie, FASA Corporation, FASA Interactive, Catalyst Game Labs, Piranha Games Inc, etc. Any material original to the franchises belongs to their respective developers, producers and publishers. Any material not original to the franchises is of my own invention. I do not own any music listed in each chapter. Any music listed belongs to it's original composers and/or artists.

SLS Dallas

Approaching Reach

August 30th, 2552

This is it, Chernenko thought as the WarShips that were in his fleet moved alongside the Dallas, weapons armed and ready for the first massive fleet battle against the Covenant. This is the battle that will either break the Covenant offensive, or ensure our destruction at their hands. As the WarShip's Alcubierre Module disengaged, he could see Reach off in the distance.

He recalled an earlier part of their plan to assist in their fight against the Covenant. One of the things that Xhov informed him that the KigYar Insurrectionists could do was monitor for Slipstream Space disturbances that indicated a WarShip was about to enter the system. These 'whispers' could be detected via specially designed passive scanners that would inform any defenders when the attack would begin.

Just a minute ago, specially planted KigYar Slipstream Space scanners had detected a large mass of Slipspace disturbances that were moving closer to the star system. It was clear, at least to Chernenko, that this represented the incoming Fleets of Particular Justice, Righteous Vigilance and Holy Respite. According to vector scans, the likeliest point of entry would be at the edge of Epsilon Eridani, where a number of Icarus and Gladius space mines were located at. It was projected that they would perform an in-system FTL jump to get to Reach, with projections indicating they would arrive at some distance from the planet.

Now, the half of Naval Fleet Delta that was devoted solely to waging war was heading towards Reach, weapons primed and ready. Good thing those Engineers finished installing energy shielding onto all of our WarShips, he thought as they drew closer to the planet. That should increase our chances of surviving this engagement. The new armor plating should also give us an edge as well. As they flew along, he said, "Engage Null Signature Systems after I inform Admiral Fremont of the impending attack."

"Aye, Admiral," Persephone replied.

Opening up a MILCOM link, Chernenko said, "Admiral Fremont. We have detected incoming Slipstream Space whispers. Passive sensors indicate that it is a large cluster of signatures moving in on our position. I believe the Covenant has begun it's attack. Do you have any reinforcements?"

"Yes," Fremont replied. "We've got reinforcements inbound." Moments later, a large number of Slipstream Space portals opened near Reach, with UNSC WarShips moving out of each one. A cursory scan indicated that there were now 150 UNSC WarShips that were at Reach. Combined with the SLDF WarShips that were armed for battle, this meant that the UNSC/SLDF fleet now had a WarShip fleet that numbered 275 WarShips.

We're roughly 40 WarShips short of the enemy's numbers, Chernenko thought as he looked at the scan. Most of those ships appear to be unshielded and unarmored. UNSC's going to take severe casualties on this battle. Clearing his throat, he said, "Good, but those are probably going to be destroyed."

"Those people knew the risks when they signed up for the UNSC," Fremont reassured Chernenko. "I told them yesterday in a broadcast that we might not survive this engagement, but that we can blunt the Covenant's attack. I even asked them that they had the option to back out of this fight."

"And?"

"Not one of them did so."

Right on cue, a man said, "This is the UNSC Savanna. We know what we're going up against. No matter what happens, sirs, we're with you to the end." Other UNSC WarShip Captains informed them that they were also staying.

The sound of so many people volunteering for an operation they might not survive was enough to cause Chernenko's eyes to mist. If this is their choice, then I won't stop them, he decided, blinking away the mistiness in his eyes. This will hurt, but if we can stop the Covenant offensive here and now, then it will be worth the price we are going to be paying.

After a moment, he said, "If that is the case, then we're ready as well. My WarShips are primed and ready for a fight, and they've been retrofitted. Once the Covenant arrives, we will hammer them."

"Agreed," Fremont nodded. "We'll teach the Covenant a lesson they won't forget."

"I can agree with that. All WarShips, move into combat formations. Engage Null Signature Systems. We will be arriving at the battle space within one hour." With that, the Null Signature System onboard the Dallas engaged, cloaking the WarShip's electronic and thermal signature. Now the cards are in play, he thought as scanners picked up anomalous activity. We will show the Covenant that Humanity will not go gently into that good night.

. . .

Onboard the CAS Seeker of Truth, Fleet Master Thel 'Vadamee drummed his fingers as he waited for the warship to exit Slipstream Space. Travel through Slipstream Space was fairly boring, with nothing to do other than spar, exercise, socialize, and wait until one reached their destination. Today, however, he could feel his hearts beginning to accelerate as adrenaline and anticipation rushed through his veins.

While he was anticipating a fight, his mood was somewhat hampered by the events that had been happening as of late. Recently, a number of KigYar tribes had done something that was unprecedented: they had broken away from the Covenant and declared independence. The schism was enough that it had thrown the Covenant into confusion, hampering military efforts, such as his campaign against the Humans.

From a tactical standpoint, it was also a nightmare. No nation fares well when fighting a two front war, he thought to himself, remembering some ancient texts of Sangheili history he studied during training. The fact that those heretics chose to break away from us during a most crucial time indicates that someone was planning that schism for some time. He snarled quietly as he clenched his fists, imagining those fingers of his crushing the throat of a KigYar heretic.

"Fleet Master, are you alright," a voice asked. Looking up, Thel looked at another Sangheili that was standing near him. Unlike his own armor, which was gold in color, this Sangheili's armor was dark in color, indicating he was a SpecOps Sangheili. However, he had garnered enough merit that he was, technically speaking, an Ultra.

However, it was the eyes that Thel recognized. That particular Sangheili was a close friend of his: Commander R'tas 'Vadumee. The two had met shortly after the incident at the Human/KigYar pirate colony known as the 'Rubble.' Their similar beliefs and mindset brought the two close together, and before long, they had a cordial relationship that seemed to made of steel. Since then, the two were close friends, often keeping in touch with each other.

Sensing R'tas concern, he said, "I am… fine, R'tas. I was distracted."

"The Kig-Yar Rebellion," R'tas asked.

"Yes," Thel replied. "The timing of this rebellion is not a coincidence. I have reason to believe that some of the KigYar were more sympathetic to the Human's plight than I, and many other Sangheili Zealots, initially believed. It is why we are short of a few warships, along with the other fleets."

"Foul birds," R'tas snarled. "They seek to weaken us when we need them the most. While their efforts are… admirable in a strange way, they will be crushed like the Humans they support. Once that is done, we can return our focus on the Great Journey."

"Indeed," Thel nodded. A chiming drew his attention to the tactical feed before him. Looking at it, he could tell they were about to exit Slipstream Space. An automated PA announcement warn the crew they were about to exit Slipstream Space.

Seconds later, the pitch blackness of Slipstream Space was filled with a blue-white swirl of energy, indicating that they were entering normal space. Moments later, the vista changed from this blue-white swirl of light, to the inky blackness of the void of space. The stars became visible, with pinpricks of white dotting the black fabric of the void itself. On the feed, Thel could see the other Covenant warships exiting Slipstream Space as well.

As soon as all the warships had exited Slipstream Space, it happened. Thel watched, with surprise, as the lighting and consoles inside the Bridge seemed to briefly flare, then blackness consumed the room. The darkness was so complete that when he waved a hand in front of his face, he couldn't see it. Not even the emergency lighting came online, indicating that there had been a total failure in the power systems.

Then he felt it: a very subtle shudder as the ship shook from something. At the same time, the crew activated small flashlights built into their helmets; dozens of beams of light cut through the inky blackness, revealing Artisan-Engineers that were hard at work restoring systems. "Status," Thel asked, his voice echoing off the metallic walls.

"We appear to have suffered an EMP," an Artisan-Engineer reported, her fingers quickly working as she diagnosed the problems. "Automatic failsafes appear to have engaged, and the circuitry is unharmed. We should have power return in but a moment."

Her words proved to be correct, as moments later, the lights inside the Bridge reactivated, causing Thel to squint slightly before his eyes readjusted to the sudden light. Consoles and computers quickly reactivated, going through diagnostic checklists before resuming normal operation. Wanting to make sure the rest of the ships in the combined fleet were alright, he checked the tactical feed.

The moment he saw it, his hearts sank. Apparently, the EMP had affected the entire combined fleet, with all warships being disabled. That shock grew when he saw one of his fleet's warships literally vanish in a flash of white light. When the feed stabilized, he found that the ship in question, a CCS-class Battle Cruiser, had been blown in half by what appeared to be a nuclear explosion. Looking around, he found that dozens of other warships had suffered the same fate, with even a CAS-class Assault Carrier being ripped to shreds by dozens of nuclear detonations.

Then it hit him: this was the Human's doing. They must have determined how to disable our ships and shielding, rendering us vulnerable to an attack. While a part of his mind raged at how cowardly this tactic was, the tactical part of his mind admired the ingenuity, audacity and cleverness of the tactic. By reducing the number of warships we have, they are changing the battle in their favor. Frowning, he asked the same Artisan-Engineer, "Can we counteract this problem?"

"Unfortunately, no," the Artisan-Engineer replied. "This particular EMP is unusually powerful. If this was an attack by the Humans, then it appears as though they have discovered a weakness in our warship engineering methods. We will have to be cautious from now on."

"I see," he remarked. Looking at the female, he said, "Do what you can. If we are hit with another EMP, ensure that we can bring back all systems as quickly as possible."

"It will be done," the Artisan-Engineer replied, bowing before she left the Bridge to tend to her new assignment.

"They disabled us with an EMP," R'tas asked. "Cowardly, but oddly ingenious."

"My thoughts exactly," Thel nodded. "How many ships did we lose?"

"Roughly thirty," R'tas replied. "Most of the casualties were smaller warships that were further ahead of our own. We will have to be cautious if this is a new facet of the war."

"Indeed," Thel replied. With that, he waited until the rest of the warship fleet had regained power and shielding.

Around fifteen minutes later, all of the warships in the combined fleet had reported in. The casualties were higher than what R'tas initially estimated, at forty warships that had been destroyed by the combined EMP and nuclear attack. That means we only have 275 ships left to work with, he observed.

Still, they had a mission to complete, and by the gods, he would see it through. Contacting the other Fleet Masters, he said, "Are you ready to continue?"

"Yes," the others replied.

"Good," Thel nodded. "We will begin the attack. The Humans are most certainly here." With that, the fleet performed an intra-system FTL jump, exiting a few seconds later closer to the planet.

. . .

Onboard one of the Covenant WarShips, Zorak 'Vortumee snarled as the CCS-class BattleCruiser he was in shuddered, causing some panels on the wall to be dislodged. While a Huragok went to work repairing the damage. Must be another one of the damned Humans space mines, he thought as the ship shuddered from the shockwave of the nuclear detonation. I must admit, they are quite clever with that tactic.

As soon as the feed on the Bridge came back, he looked at the opposition that they were facing. According to the hyperscanners onboard the CCS Holy Reverence, the combined Covenant fleets were facing a UNSC fleet of roughly 150 warships. Most of them were fairly small, about the size of Frigates in Human terminology, which would be viewed as very small corvettes by Covenant standards. Several were Light Attack Ships, while several were heavier in classification. The largest appeared to be the size of a CAS-class Assault Carrier, with that class of ship being called the Punic-class by Human standards.

It appears as though we are in for a massive battle, he thought to himself. All the better. Once we crush these pitiful Humans, we can lay waste to their homeworld, wherever it is, and begin the Great Journey.

A moment later, he heard the Lead Fleetmaster, Thel 'Vadamee if he called correctly, say, "The order is given. Begin the attack on the Humans."

As soon as he heard that, Zorak immediately went to work. "Warriors, begin the attack," he ordered. "Purge these foul heretics!" With that, the CCS Holy Reverence surged forwards, as though it was eager to destroy as many Human ships as possible.

As they moved forwards, the shields on his warship buckled slightly as a powerful projectile smacked into it. Looking around, he spotted the cause: 20 space stations that were arrayed directly in front of the fleet. Each one was rapidly firing what appeared to be high speed projectiles. Primitive, he thought, but effective. A moment later, he ordered plasma torpedoes to be fired.

At his command, nearly fifty plasma torpedoes were launched, with each purple-white bolus of energy flying towards the Human stations. It didn't take long for them to reach their targets, only for each one to splash against gold-white barriers of energy. Energy shields, he realized a moment later. The heretics have energy shields. Zorak mentally roared in righteous rage at the sight of Humans using energy shielding. Cowards! They shall pay the price of their heresy, with their own blood!

"Focus fire on the stations," he ordered as the ship shuddered once again. "They will cause the fleet great damage if we do not eliminate them immediately!"

"It will be done, Ship Master," one Sangheili nodded, before they began firing. As ordered, they began to fire at a number of space stations, when four smaller ones, most likely refit stations, began to move, their thrusters nudging them into the field of fire. When he spotted them, Zorak thought they were moving to attack, then he spotted escape pods and Human dropships moving away from the doomed stations. There was a brief hesitation in the Covenant fleet's fire as the crews of the Covenant WarShips shifted their targeting, and then the next wave of fire tore apart the enemy space stations.

As a result, what happened was expected, but it also gave the enemy an advantage, one the Covenant hadn't predicted. The moment the plasma torpedoes and bolts hit the Human refit stations, they exploded, with the titanium alloy hulls vaporizing into a thick, dense, and wide cloud. The cloud of vaporized titanium quickly rendered the other Plasma Torpedoes useless, with each one dissipating in short order. Despite the setback, the Covenant continued to fire, eager to end the lives of the Humans defending their planet.

. . .

Onboard the UNSC Leviathan, Vice Admiral Stanforth snarled as the ship shook, his hands gripping the railing hard enough that his knuckles had turned white in color. Nearby, the tactical feed showed that the shields had dropped to 30% integrity, and the armor had taken superficial damage from thermal bleed-through. Nearby, crew personnel worked at a feverish pace to ensure the WarShip remained intact, while attempting to destroy the enemy WarShips at the same time.

Looking at the feed, he could see how the massive space battle was going. So far, the battle's going well, he thought, but we're taking casualties. Already, he could tell that the Grafton, Houston and Paris had been destroyed with all hands lost, while the Texas and Jutland were abandoned, having been mission killed. Fortunately, it seems as though our earlier preparations have worn the Covenant down somewhat. We've got a chance of winning this fight.

Moments later, he heard a crew member shout, "Vice Admiral, we've got a clear shot at that CCS BattleCruiser ahead of us. Permission to fire the MAC?"

"Fire," Stanforth shouted. "All batteries fire! Blast that ship to hell!"

As soon as he bellowed the order, the ship cut loose. Pulse lasers, MAC slugs and Archer missiles tore through the vacuum of space, hammering the enemy BattleCruiser with everything in the ship's arsenal. Under the intense firepower of what the SLDF would later classify as a 'WarShip Alpha Strike', the shielding on the CCS BattleCruiser literally shattered. Massive holes and gashes were ripped into the hull by the weapons onboard the Leviathan. It wasn't long before the BattleCruiser finally exploded under the combined firepower of the assault.

"Enemy WarShip destroyed," Icarus reported. "All weapons reloading and recharging. Energy shield at 40% strength and rising fast. Shall we engage another WarShip?"

"Affirmative," Stanforth shouted. "Once shields are at 80% strength, move in on that CCS-class BattleCruiser and-"

Suddenly, the ship was rocked with a powerful blow, enough that the Leviathan's decks seemed to ripple, which was never a good sign when fighting on a WarShip. Falling down, Stanforth felt his head hit something hard. For an instant, he blacked out, but the impact with the deck brought him back to full wakefulness. Shaking his head, he wiped away some blood that was on his forehead, noting a brief moment of double vision before his brain sorted out that problem. Around him, the crew seemed jostled, but were otherwise unharmed. At the same time, he noticed that the ship was spinning all of a sudden. "What happened," he shouted.

"Enemy projector beam attack," a Bridge officer shouted. "Shields are down! Hull integrity at 75%! Severe armor ablation on the port side, midship!" Moments later, the offending ship, a CCS-class BattleCruiser showed up. Apparently, the enemy WarShip Captain thought that the Leviathan wasn't making use of the the Lamellor Ferro-Carbide armor that the SLDF had been willing to loan... for a suitable fee of course. As such, it was clear that the unexpected survival of the Leviathan had the enemy Captain shaken off balance.

Spotting this hesitation, Stanforth immediately capitalized on it. "Open fire," he roared. "Blast that bastard to hell!"

Immediately, the Leviathan's RCS systems stabilized the WarShip, halting the ship's rotation before it could get any worse. During this time, the enemy WarShip fired off another energy projector, only this one missed, thanks to the motion of the UNSC Leviathan. Once the UNSC WarShip stabilized, the engines flared as the ship accelerated at full power, before coming up on a broadside to the enemy WarShip. "FIRE," Stanforth roared.

Like the servant of a powerful deity, the Leviathan's weapon systems, guided by AI targeting and the weapons crew, unleashed a torrent of firepower against the enemy , it was clear that the weapons the SLDF had kindly loaned to the UNSC were worth their weight in gold. Pulse lasers and PPC blasts hammered at the shields, whittling them down until they lost coherence. Once that happened, Icarus fired off the Gauss Cannons the SLDF had kindly loaned, along with the Onagers that the Leviathan had been installed with when she was constructed. Archer missiles cut through space, hammering the enemy WarShip's hull.

Eventually, the combined assault of the Leviathan's armaments couldn't be withstood any longer. The enemy BattleCruiser's hull began to fracture and snap under the strain, with debris filling the space between the two WarShips. Fires streamed from both WarShips as air bled into the vacuum of space, though it was clear that the Leviathan was faring far better than her opponent. Even so, Stanforth could barely make out Human and Covenant corpses floating in the vacuum of space, before some were cut apart by his ship's weapons. Moments later, the BattleCruiser's fusion reactor fractured, with the enemy WarShip exploding moments after the Leviathan cleared the blast radius.

"Enemy warship down," Icarus reported.

"And not a moment too soon," an ensign reported. "We've got hull breaches on the port side, midship."

"That's where the energy projector hit us at," Stanforth observed. "That armor plating, whatever the SLDF uses, is really worth it's weight in gold. If it weren't for that armor plating..." He shuddered at the thought of seeing the Leviathan cut in half by the attack. A moment later, he said, "Would the SLDF be willing to conduct repairs once the battle's over?"

"Affirmative," Icarus replied. "Admiral, due to the level of damage, I recommend that we pull out and-"

"NO," Stanforth shouted adamantly. "We, and the other WarShips in the UNSC fleet are the only things standing between Reach and the Covenant. Until the SLDF gets here, which they will soon, we hold out. If anything, we'll cut down as many Covenant WarShips as possible. That should make it easier on them." As they began heading back into the fight, he thought, Please get here soon, Chernenko. I'm not sure how much longer we can hold out.

. . .

For numerous other UNSC WarShips fighting against the Covenant, things weren't going as smoothly. Captain Alders of the UNSC Stalwart Dawn was in one poor situation. The Stalwart-class Frigate was taking a tremendous beating, even as he engaged an SDV class Corvette. Part of this was because the shields on the Frigate were down, with the armor plating taking a tremendous beating as he and his crew continued to fight the Covenant Corvette. "Keep firing," he shouted. "We can't let that thing get to the planet!"

"Armor has taken moderate ablation," a crew member reported. "Structural integrity is at 95% and degrading." As though fate was giving him a reminder, Alders felt the WarShip shudder as a Plasma Torpedo smacked against the hull. Fortunately, the Lamellor Ferro-Carbide armor in that area held up, if only just.

"Get us out of here," Alders ordered. As soon as he did, though, all hell broke lose.

One moment, he was in his command chair, issuing the order, the next, he was coming to on the floor, with a pounding headache in his skull. Sitting up, he found computer banks that had burst into flames, wires that were dangling from dislodged panels, and crew that were running about frantically. One woman, an Ensign, shouted, "Captain, can you hear me? Are you alright? Captain!"

"I-I'm fine," Alders grunted out, attempting to stand up. That attempt was hampered when a spike of pain lashed through his leg. Looking down, he found the reason why: his leg had been fractured, with the bone sticking out of his thigh. "Well, shit. That explains why I can't stand. What happened?"

"We've been hit with another plasma torpedo," the Ensign reported. "Hull integrity is at 30% and we've got multiple hull breaches. Our engines are down to fifty percent operating capacity and the ship's starting to leak atmosphere."

"I see," Alders replied. After a moment of thinking, he made his decision. "That settles it then. Get the crew to the escape pods and get the hell off the ship."

"What about you, sir?"

"I'm not leaving." When the Ensign was about to protest, he held up a hand. "Ensign Andretta, when I was chosen to captain this ship, I swore to defend Earth and her colonies, even if it meant my death. I do not intend to shirk my duty in the face of imminent death. I've had a good life; you on the other hand, have a future ahead of you. Go, live on for the others. Fight on for them. My time to die has come, and I intend to go out doing what I was born to do: kill the enemy."

At first, Andretta looked as though she was about to protest, but then she realized what he meant. As she helped him up, Alders keyed the InterCOM. "To all surviving crew, this is Captain Alder. Abandon ship. I repeat: abandon ship. Get to the escape pods. Be courageous, gentlemen." As he got back into the Command Chair, he said, "Penelope, transfer control of the ship to me and get yourself off of the ship."

"Sir," Penelope, the AI of the Stalwart Dawn, replied. "I do not intend to leave the ship either. I was installed on this ship, and I intend to fight on."

For a moment, Alders was thoughtful, then he said, "Then at least I won't die alone." Looking back at the enemy WarShip, he began to accelerate to top speed, despite the engines being damaged. A moment later, he opened a COM-link and said, "To the Covenant bastard that assaulted my ship, this is Captain Alders. I refuse any demand of surrender you give. All I have is one thing to say: see you in hell!" With that, the Stalwart Dawn smashed into the Covenant WarShip.

If there was sound in space, one would've heard the loud shrieking of tearing metal, the peal of components being crushed, and the sounds of metal crumpling like tin. As it were, the ships silently collided with each other, with the remaining armor plating on the Stalwart Dawn fracturing and tearing off into space. As soon as the ships rammed, the fusion reactor onboard the Dawn could take no more. The ship detonated in a flash of nuclear fire, with the SDV class Corvette being consumed as well. The last thing Alders saw was the nuclear fire racing towards him, then blackness consumed him.

. . .

Onboard the Seeker of Truth, Thel watched as the Human ship, identified as the Stalwart Dawn, rammed into the Penitent Sojourner, with both warships detonating in a flash of nuclear light. A fitting end, was all he thought when he saw the Human warship and the Corvette being blown apart. While the loss of loyal Covenant is disheartening, it pleases me to see that not all Humans are cowards. Even so, we, the Covenant, must march on, with the destruction of Humanity, and the commencing of the Great Journey.

As he thought this over, he began to feel an odd sensation on the back of his neck. My neck scales are hackling, he realized a moment later, brushing at the scales on his neck with a hand. There are only a few times where I've had that happen before, and all of them happened when... A moment later, he realized it: something was wrong.

What Thel didn't know was that, in just a few seconds, he and his fleet would come under assault from a version of Humanity that was far more advanced than the Covenant could've thought. This was a faction of Humanity that had glassed worlds, annihilated entire systems, and had brought to heel a madman that nearly tore apart everything they had known and loved.