Trotting through the snow, McArthy raised the SMG in his hands as he slowly approached the old cave. What was once their shelter now seemed to be a hive of Covenant. He watched as grunts waddled in and out of the cave, as two sangheili minors stood atop the cave mouth. He didn't know why they would stay here, it was only a cave, unless they were guarding something important inside.
Hiding himself behind a tree, McArthy tried to come up with a plan. He certainly couldn't take them all at once, he'd have to draw some away. Peeking back to look, he wondered who to start with. The sangheili were in a dangerous position for him, it would be hard for him to even try and draw the grunts away without them noticing.
His hands tied, McArthy would have to walk all the way around to get behind the elites so he could start with them. Shifting his feet and keeping himself a good distance away, he began walking back through the snow. As he walked, a strong gust of wind made him look up. Large clouds were in the sky, giving him a pang of worry. It seemed a big storm was on it's way, which means he had a time limit.
Not that he didn't have one already.
It wasn't long until McArthy reached the backsides of the elites. He was hidden between trees with bushes along their trunks, peeking over the bushes to see the elites. He ducked back behind him, then looked down at the weapons he had. The SMG and pistol weren't very powerful weapons, though they were all he had. But, as he looked down at his weapons, something else caught his eye.
Footprints.
There were two pairs of prints, one sangheili and the other kig-yar. He looked at the prints and followed them with his eyes as they traveled into the snowy forest, then he saw a metal glint. Suddenly curious, hoping whatever that glint was could confirm whether his idea of what they were guarding was right or not, he carefully moved forward towards the glint.
He paused as he saw the source of the glint, being Mim's shotgun. Quickly swiping it from the snow, he brushed it off and checked it over. It was fully loaded, which probably meant Mim didn't get to put up much of a fight. She must've been caught completely off guard, a pang of remorse hitting McArthy again. He shouldn't have made her go, not at all, and definitely not alone.
But, this shotgun did give him something to work with. He only had 6 shells, but he could make it work. Putting his SMG on his thigh again, he carried the shotgun and moved back to his prior position.
Pushing away some snow next to him, McArthy uncovered the ground underneath, revealing a few small stones. Grabbing a few in his hand, he peeked over the bush again and saw the elites still with their backs to him. Turning to look at a large stone not too far to his right, he drew his arm back and chucked the stones at it.
The rocks smacked against the stone, the sound making the two elites spin around to look. The two aliens stared into the forest, then one pointed off the right side as it went off to the left. Splitting up, the two elite's raised their plasma rifles and walked into the forest.
McArthy carefully peeked around the side of his bush to see one elite walking far off to his left while the second approached the source of the sound. Good, this gave him the space he needed.
The elite slowly approached the stone, grumbling as it stood over the stone and looked around. Suddenly, the explosion of buckshot filled it's ears as pellets blew through its side. The elite let out a yelling warble as it stumbled to the side, turning to see McArthy lower the shotgun and pull his pistol out with his left hand.
Putting a round into the elite's head, he quickly holstered the pistol and spun around, putting his back to a tree as he heard the sound of an approaching elite. McArthy pumped the shotgun as he heard the elite get close, then jumped from behind the tree and aimed.
He watched the elite sprint right past him and pulled the trigger, sending a spread of buckshot into one of it's legs. The elites stumbled forward and rolled through the snow, crashing into their allies' corpses. McArthy grabbed his pistol again, then the elite sat up and fired at him. McArthy spun himself back around the tree as plasma ate at its bark.
Once the firing stopped her spun around with the pistol and fired at the elite. Two shots struck it's chest and neck, then the final third round punched through one of its eyes, the body of the elite promptly falling over.
Sighing with relief, McArhty turned back towards the cave edge and saw two grunts had made it on top of the cave and were now waddling towards him. They raised their needlers and opened fire on McArthy, making him quickly slide the shotgun on his back and spin back around the tree.
He watched as purple needles flew past him, curving around and landing into the snow as they tried to fly into him. As soon as he heard the needler fire stop, he spun around and fired with his pistol, running towards the two grunts.
Immediately, one of the grunt's flew back into the ground as a round flew through it's head. The other one cried out with a surprised grunt, then began running off to the side and firing at of his shots struck it's arm and leg, then the third and fourth one punctured it's methane tank, sending the grunt flying forward into the ground as gas raced out of it. The grunt let out another yelp as it struggled to get up, then the tank exploded off it's back.
The grunt sat up, shaking its head, then McArthy stepped next to it and shot it in the back of the head, reloading his pistol as the grunt fell back down on its face.
McArthy moved to the mouth of the cave, crouching down as he peeked over the edge. He saw as two grunts were currently waddling out. Aiming down, he fired his pistol and shot them both in the head, watching them slump onto the ground. Switching to his smg, he leapt off the cave mouth and landed in front of it with a grunt, spinning around.
Standing in the cave was a group of grunts, all now staring at him. One stepped forward with a fuel rod, letting out a loud laugh, and fired at him. McArthy had to force himself to fall on his back, the green explosive racing right over his face. McArthy rolled away, pointing his smg forward and firing at the grunts.
The grunt with the fuel rod moved the weapon in front of its body to protect itself from his gunfire as it's friend tried to run into the cave, only for McArthy's bullets to litter their bodies. Jumping up from his position on the ground, McArthy watched the grunt raise their fuel rod and fire again.
Spinning around the projectile, he fired at the grunt, dumping the rest of his magazine into their head. Quickly reloading his smg, he sprinted forward into the cave. The first thing he saw before he took the bend was Mim's belt lying against the wall, everything still attached to it.
Running around the bend, he saw bars lining the cave, and Mim standing behind them. She looked up at him with a squawk as he ran towards the cage and loudly asked, "What are you doing!?"
McArthy gripped the bars, trying to find some kind of door, and said, "Listen I am sorry, I should-"
"Duck!"
Without a second of hesitation, McArthy threw his body on the ground. An energy sword ignited and thrust right over his body, Mim jumping backwards as the blade passed between the bars, almost stabbing her. McArthy rolled to the side and jumped onto his feet, seeing a golden zealot roar at missing him. With rage, the zealot slashed his sword through the bars and at McArthy.
Giving the belt near his feet a kick towards the cave, McArthy dove away from the zealot as he moved to cut through him again. McArthy rolled towards the cave entrance, jumping up and backing away as he looked at the snorting zealot turn to him with a snarl.
The zealot drew his arm back and began running at McArthy, then the sound of an energy sword igniting paused both of them. The zealot spun around to watch Mim cut the bars off her cell, then she launched herself at him with a loud caw. Quickly blocking her blade and parrying it to the side, the zealot was about to plunge his sword through her open chest when he felt the pain of a small blade piercing his side, roaring and spinning around.
With a backwards kick, he knocked Mim back against the uncut bars, then focused his attention on the human. McArthy sheathed his bloody blade and quickly pulled out his shotgun, rolling under the zealot's arm as he swept his blade at McArthy.
Rolling onto his feet, McArthy spun around and fired a shot into the zealot's back, but the shield ate the pellets without breaking. With a roar, the elite spun around with it's blade far faster than McArthy expected. He barely jumped out of the way, the sword cutting through the shotgun in his hands.
As the zealot prepared to slash at the unarmed human again, Mim suddenly leaped over McArthy with a bar in her hands. With a swing, she bashed the bar against the zealot's head, sending him staggering into the wall.
Grasping McArthy's hand, she pulled him and the two began running out of the cave. Gripping the plasma rifle on his left thigh, the elite pointed it at the two retreating with blurred eyes and fired at them. His shots went high over their heads as they ran out of the cave and into the forest. The zealot gave his head a shake, then watched as the two ran off, leaving an obvious trail in the snow.
Letting out a roar into the forest, the zealot placed the plasma rifle on his thigh and gave chase.
McArthy was panting as he looked ahead at Mim, still holding his hand and trying to sprint through the forest. No matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't keep up. Plus, he knew that zealot would be able to catch up to them in a heartbeat at his pace.
Pulling his hand from her, he put his back to a tree and took a deep breath. Mim paused with a squawk, quickly moving back to him, "McArthy! We have to move!"
Shaking hi shead, McArthy coughed and said, "I'm… too slow! We gotta make a stand somehow, I'm not outracing a zealot!"
He watched Mim turn her head left and right, then her eyes lit up and she let out a squawk. Grabbing his hand, she tugged him again, "Follow me!"
The two began sprinting back through the forest, McArthy swearing he could hear the zealot not far behind them, but too terrified to look back. Mim led him through winding trees, a direction he's not too sure they've ever gone.
They ran down a snowy slope, McArthy barely stopping himself from falling by catching a tree. Once down the slope, Mim turned to the side and chirped at McArthy. The ran down the side of the slope, then McArthy saw what they were running towards. Not too far down the slope, it opened up into another cave entrance.
Suddenly, plasma fire peppered the ground around the two, both of them lifting their heads to see the zealot running on top of the slope, firing at them with his plasma rifle. McArthy stumbled for a moment, then raised his SMG and returned fire. His bullets did little damage to the zealot, the elite's shields easily deflecting them.
McArthy felt Mim's hand grip his collar, then she pulled him into the cave as plasma fire struck the ground he was standing on. McArthy lifted his head to look at the cave, finding it to be very strange. There were natural stone pillars all around the cave, along with what seemed like cracks in the ceiling, which were now covered in snow.
Mim once again pulled him behind a pillar, them finally stopping for a short breather. Though, any relaxation they could've had was interrupted as they heard loud stomping come from the entrance.
Mim leaned close to his ear and whispered, "We have to kill him here. Use the pillars."
McArthy nodded, quietly reloading his smg, then taking a moment to peek around the pillar. He could see the golden elite slowly enter the cave, his energy sword lighting the dark cavern.
With a chortle, the zealot loudly spoke in English, "Show yourself, heretics! Fight me! Prove you are worth a warrior's death!"
Spinning around the pillar, McArthy aimed at the zealot and opened fire, the muzzle fire lighting the cave as the crackle of gun fire echoed. The zealot roared and ran directly towards McArthy, blade held out, ready to cut into him. McArthy quickly stopped firing, then turned and ran from the pillar. He turned his head to watch the zealots blade slice through the pillar, then the elite let out a roar and turned to face McArthy.
Suddenly, a squawk came from the zealot's other side, but he turned too late to avoid a flying kick from the t'vaoan. The zealot stumbled into the pillar he cut through as Mim skipped past him, McArthy taking his pistol and tossing it to her, then he opened fire on the elite.
Snarling as the bullets continued to deplete his shield, the zealot spun around the pillar and sprinted for McArthy. More bullets struck him on his other side, the zealot turning to see Mim firing from behind another pillar across the large cavern.
His mind spiraling, the zealot roared and ran right for the t'vaoan, ignoring the beeping as his almost depleted shield continued to get lowered. He watched as the t'vaoan pulled back behind the stone pillar, then swiped through it with his energy.
Mim had jumped over the blade, expecting the attack, and now dove away from the pillar. With a roar, the zealot was about to continue after her when McArhty leaped onto his back, plunging his knife into the elite's collar.
With a roar, the elite spun around, trying to get a grip on the human repeatedly stabbing at his neck, though missing anything important. The zealot roared, "Why do you risk your life for a simple kig-yar, human!"
Plunging his blade as deeply as possible into the zealot's neck and giving it a twist, McArthy shouted, "She's all I have left you fucking hingehead! She's my everything, and I'm not letting you fucking take her from me!"
The zealot snarled, "You heretics and your passion disgust me!"
Then, the patter of feet tore the zealot's eyes forward, forcing him to watch as Mim threw a kick full force into his stomach. It knocked the elite back, the kick knocking the plasma rifle off his thigh.
With a deafening and warbled yell, the elite grabbed a hold of McArthy's arm, whipping him off his back and throwing him against the wall. McArhty struck the wall with a loud grunt, letting out a long breath as he quickly rolled onto his side to see the zealot attacking Mim. He was swinging and lunging with his energy sword as Mim desperately dipped and dove from every attack, though her pace slowed.
McArthy finally got onto his feet, grabbing his SMG and aiming it upward. Before he could shoot, he watched as the zealot missed another swipe at Mim, then spun around and landed a back kick directly against her chest, sending her flying into the wall. McArthy watched her fall limply onto the floor, then yelled as he opened fire at the zealot, running towards him.
The zealot raised his arm to his face as the bullets peppered his shield, then they broke. Multiple bullets crashed into the zealots armor, other racing right through the zealot's sides, but nothing fatal. The pain only drove the zealot with more fury as he swiped with all his force at the human. McArthy, however, was able to roll under the sword, sliding next to Mim's unconscious body. Reloading his smg, he raised it at the zealot, but the weapon was promptly swiped from his hand.
The elite's foot slammed against McArthy's chest, pinning him to the ground as the zealot drew his arm back, steadying the energy sword to McArthy's helm. Purple blood trickled down the zealot's golden armor as he took in heavy breaths.
After a few seconds, the zealot slowly began chuckling, which grew to laughing. The laughing finally slowed, then the zealot drew closer to McArthy and said, "I will be honest, you two put up more of a fight than I expected. But in the end, you both will meet the same fate."
McArthy raised his arm, feeling up Mim's waist, and asked, "That's what you think, you fucking split-lip."
The zealot roared as he drew his arm further back, about to strike the human, when the sound of an energy sword igniting made him pause, for just a moment. Holding MIm's energy sword, McArhty yelled as he swiped it at the leg holding him down, cutting the limb clean off the zealot.
With a roar of pain, the zealot reared backward, losing balance and falling backwards with the leg to catch him. McArthy shoved the limb off his chest, quickly standing up and looking over the snarling zealot. The zealot leaned forward and made a desperate sweep at McArthy with their sword, but McArhty simply leaned back, letting the blade pass right in front of him. Gripping the sword with both hands, McArthy swung it upwards, cutting the zealot's arm off, separating him from his weapon.
Now, the zealot was simply sputtering in his own language, trying and failing to crawl upwards and away from McArthy. McArthy gripped the energy sword, hovering it over the zealot's chest.
Reaching his arm out, the zealot said, "Human, wait, I-"
His voice was silenced as McArthy plunged the energy sword into the elite's chest, listening in satisfaction as the elite let out a long and weak roar. Soon, the roar turned into weak gasping, then the zealot's arm fell back onto the ground as his head fell back onto the ground.
McArthy stared at the corpse for almost half a minute before pulling the sword out of their chest. He deactivated the sword and held it at his side, taking deep breaths as he continued looking at the body. His head spun and turned to Mim, running to her side and falling next to her.
He shook his head as he moved his hand over her body, "Please no, for the love of God, don't be dead. Don't be dead, don't be dead, don't be…"
He paused as he held his fingers to her neck, feeling her pulse beating strongly. Letting out a tearful shutter, he placed the brim of his helmet against her chest, holding back a joyful sob.
After a minute of simply sitting there on, he lifted his head with a sigh. Knowing she was alive and breathing, he took the time to quickly grab his SMG from the ground. After checking if it worked, he placed it on his thigh and ran back to Mim. He clipped her energy sword back to her belt, then scooped her under his arms and carefully lifted her up from the ground.
He turned towards the mouth of the cave, then gave the zealot's head a quick kick, then said, "Don't worry, Mim, I got you. You've carried me to safety before, now it's my turn."
As he left the cave, he turned his gaze back up to see it had begun snowing. The clouds were large and the air was windy, a blizzard was definitely going to roll in. With a sigh, he began his march back to the base.
It was a long walk, but McArthy knew he had to make it. After almost half an hour of silence, McArthy lightly chuckled and said, "I… know you can't hear me. Well, I talk to myself all the time anyway, so this isn't very different."
He paused, for some reason expecting her to let out some kind of amused chirp, then sighed and said, "God, you got me so worried. Now look at us! I shouldn't have ever doubted you, or let you go out there alone. You were being stern, but I should've been more stern. I'm… sorry."
McArthy made the rest of the journey in silence. As he walked, the snowing and wind only got worse, for a bit McArthy was unsure if he'd even make it back to their shelter.
However, such fears disappeared as he came upon the ever familiar stream, leaving a smile on his face as he moved over the stream and began walking up the slope.
As the fence came into view, he suddenly felt something press against his neck. He looked down and let out a small gasp at the sight. Without him knowing, Mim had moved her arms around his neck and moved her beak to his neck, slightly rubbing it.
Though he was caught off guard, he chuckled and asked, "You are awake, right?"
He heard only an amused chirp, then he asked, "How long have you been awake?"
Mim softly crooned, then said, "Long enough."
McArthy sighed, hanging his head and looking down at Mim. She only giggled, tightening her hold around his body.
"I guess you want me to carry you all the way in then."
Mim nodded slyly, "If you would please, McArthy."
Letting out a relieved chuckle, he nodded, "Only cuz you deserve it. Any other person I'd drop in the snow for that right here, right now."
With that, he carried Mim through the broken fence and into the bases' grounds. There were many emotions going through both of them, but they were overwhelmingly relieved, glad to have escaped what both of them thought would've been their death.
#
Both Bota and Zuhl looked down at the zealot's corpse, both unsurprised at the end result. Two amputated limbs, riddled with bullet holes, and a deep stab through the chest.
Nodding at the corpse, Bota looked up at Zuhl and said, "I did warn him."
Zuhl bobbed his head, "Yes, yet the foolish zealot still went after the heretics."
They're conversation was interrupted as a sangheili major walked behind them and asked, "Ultra Bota, what's the-"
The major paused, however, as he looked down at the zealot's corpse. Both Bota and Zulh stepped aside to allow the major to fully assess the corpse.
With a snort, Bota pointed at the major, "I want you to write a full report on this situation. The shipmaster won't be happy to know another zealot has died in the hunt for these heretics."
The major nodded, giving Bota a salute as he and Zuhl walked past the major. They moved past the sangheili minors currently searching the rest of the cavern and out of the cave. They both raised their heads at the storming blizzard. It had moved in much faster than expected, but they weren't too far from base.
With a rare and light chuckle, Zuhl turned to Bota, "I see you have learned to not report directly to the shipmasters yourself with negative news."
Waving down at the champion, Bota sighed, "I must, to make sure I can continue helping heretics. I cannot appear involved with so many… heretical incidents. Such reports would rack up, making me suspicious."
Zuhl nodded, "Absolutely, boss. I'm… I'm quite glad myself they survived. That t'vaoan would've made a great soldier."
Sighing, Bota looked off into the snowy and blurred environment as the blizzard raged through and softly said, "Perhaps. But it is better this way. The less there are following this false path, the less power the prophets have. I just hope all of our kinds figure this out before it is too late for humanity."
Well, look who's on a real fuckin' roll! And guess what? The next chapter is coming out later today! Probably! Hope ya'll enjoyed! Leave a review, fav, or follow if you like! And I'll see you guys soon!