-::Sorry for it being a while since my last update, work as been a hassle the last few months, now that things are starting to slow down for the holiday season i can focus back on writing. Enjoy!::-

Jared woke in the shack by a slim beam of light shining through a crack in the wood. He stood up. His body still felt weak, he had taken a hard beating through the past few days. He stretched as much as his body would let him, grunting as he did so. He opened the door to the cabin and peeked out, the city was far away but still barely in view. 'Cato?' he thought, a small chill filled his body, "Good Morning, we survived the night somehow." she responded "well it could've been worse" he said out loud, and pulled up his pants to inspect his calf, a few of the stitches had broken from last nights altercation. "Fuck" he said as he lowered his pant leg, he had nothing to fix it, he had to get to Bdaoro if he wanted to survive 'Cato, how far away is bdaoro?' he thought and lifted his hand, Cato pulled up a map "approximately 10 Kilometers away." she replied. He let out a sigh. "Looks like we've got a walk" he said and began walking the direction Cato pointed towards.

After walking for a long while the small city peaked over the horizon, it was nearly midday, Jareds hopes spiked and he began running. Stopped by the pain in his leg he began limp running to the city, unsure what to expect after he got close enough he inspected the city, unlike Hilot, the city had no walls but seemed to mesh into the almost wasteland like desert. Behind the city stood a cliff with a sangheili statue carved into it, he cautiously entered the city. Almost like a ghost town he didn't see a single person till he made it to the center courtyard, where the bodies of humans and sangheili alike laid with plasma burns. Angrily he punched a wall. "What was that?" a voice said. Jared hid behind a crate, two sangheili appeared in the courtyard around the bodies. "It doesn't matter, just keep clearing houses, they're could be more." the other said, past the courtyard the statue loomed over and a door with markings Jared couldn't make out stood closed underneath it. 'Must be a temple' he thought, "I'm seeing multiple heat signatures inside. Some are humans" Cato responded. The two sangheili walked out of the courtyard through an adjacent alley way. He emerged once again and approached the temple. He tried to push the door open. It wouldn't budge at all. More footsteps from one of the roads came closer. Jared had to think of somewhere to hide, with nowhere close enough to hide he drew the pistol and prepared to fight. Just as the sangheili made it into the courtyard he charged his pistol and pointed it at the corner, the split second he saw them he released the charge and fired a ball of plasma towards them, striking one in the shoulder depleting it's shield and searing it's armour. Above him a shot pierced through its skull, falling limp on the floor the second and third began blind firing in his direction, diving for cover behind the bodies he charged his pistol again. Once fully charged he stood up, aimed at one that stood behind cover and fired. The shot grazed it but hit it's shields. It dove behind cover "Peloski!" a voice behind him shouted. He turned his head towards the voice, the marine who had driven him to and from the ONI base stood in the doorway. Under fire he sprinted towards the door. His leg had given out, the stitches had torn all the way, he fell to the ground before the door. The marine pulled him through the door and shut it. Both breathing heavily he struggled to stand back up. "Fuck! My leg" he said gripping it, the mud that had accumulated around his pants began to turn red. "Were you hit?" he asked pulling him further in. "I need more stitches!" he said. "Get the medic!" the marine yelled. A female marine ran up placing a bag beside him. "What happened?" she said rummaging through her bag. "That's a long story," he said. She began sewing the leg closed "holy shit, how did you make it out of there?" she said before wrapping it up. "Best way to put it is fucking magic" he said.

A cold shiver ran down his spine "what Cato" he said aloud lifting his hand up. Cameras outside show they're forming up to break through that door. "Well luckily that door is pretty thick stone." The marine that drove him said. "Don't think so quick" Jared said. "Thickness doesn't mean shit if they have the firepower" he finished. He sat up. "Who's in charge?" he asked. "Well it was me, sir, but now it's you" the medic said. Jared cursed in his head. "Alright, when i was out there someone shot one of em after I fired my pistol, where did that come from?" he asked, "there's a balcony we have a sniper hiding from to keep a lookout. "How many people could fit up there?" he stood up looking for the way up. "Possibly four or five people? Why" one asked. "We need to get marines up there, before they break through. Get on it" he sent the driver off. He turned to face the group of civilians and marines. Scanning through the group he spotted three sangheili wearing elite armour. "What happened here?" he asked the group, one of the sangheili in armour spoke up "they came out of nowhere, they started killing before we had time to react" he finished. Jared let out a sigh "are you armed" he asked the three. They nodded. "Well today is your lucky day, you're the front line down here, guard the civilians." he said, they grabbed their rifles, two had plasma rifles and the other a carbine, and stood behind pillars watching the door. "The rest of you, find a place to hide from the fire." he said, 'how many are out there?' he thought, "ten so far, they're getting as many as they can for the assault" Cato spoke into his ear. He made his way up the stairs to the balcony, where five marines crouched behind the balcony's railing. "Do any of you have grenades?" he whispered. Two nodded back. "Be ready to throw those when the time comes, take out as many as possible with them. Level the playing field." the two nodded. Jared peeked over and saw the number had grown to just under fifteen. They weren't close enough for the grenades to be effective. "Once they get bunched up throw them." they pulled the pins and help the spoon peeking over to watch them.

A six of them grouped up to prepare to blow the door open, one holding a fusion rod cannon. One threw their grenade at the group, hitting the ground the group looked down at the grenade, before they could react the grenade detonated and killed four and wounded two others. The other marine threw theirs between a spaced out group of five, detonating destroying their shields and sending them flying into the buildings around them and others into the courtyard. "Open fire!" Jared yelled, the five popped their heads over the rail and began shooting into the seven to eight left standing, more sangheili entered the courtyard and began to shoot the balcony, injuring one marine. Jared picked up the wounded marines DMR and began shooting, Jared wasn't an expert shot but he was making fairly good shoots, hitting their chests or getting lucky headshots. One made a break for the fusion cannon, Jared tried to shoot the sangheili, taking out it's shield it reached the cannon, before he could stop him, it fired the cannon and blew the door open. "Don't let them get inside!" Jared yelled. Blue blobs of plasma and green streaks came out from below them, some striking their targets. It was blind fire. Less and less came, eventually the fight was over. The Hand of Prophecy marines laid strewn in the courtyard. Rain began to softly come down over the courtyard, red blood from the humans executed mixed with the fresh blue blood from the sangheili. Two marines carried the wounded down, the medic rushed in and started to assist the wounded marine. "Is everyone alright down here?" Jared said aloud. "All of the civilians are ok, sir." a marine came up to him and said. "And the three elites?" he questioned. The marines expression changed. "One didn't make it, the other two were left wounded, sir" he responded. "Has the medic administered aid?" he said walking towards the downed elites. He didn't need a response to see the bandages around one's arm and one with their helmet off and a makeshift eye patch over it. Both stood, 'interesting how despite many sangheili hating humans, some still give respect' he thought, cato gave a shiver in agreement. "You fought well. I thank you for your assistance in protecting the civilians." he said to them in which both nodded. "Where is the base here? I need to get a message out to my people" Jared asked them. "The base was destroyed, nothing left" one responded. Jared sighed and took a step outside the temple and inspected the bodies, the blood nearly washed away and the soil was muddy. The rain felt good on his skin, he could feel the dirt and grime that had covered his face through the past few days wash away. The driver came out and stood by him. "What are we going to do now?" he asked. Jared turned to him, anger in his eyes "we fight back, like the human race has always done." he said. He turned to walk back in the temple, facing the civilians. "This was your home, and they came and took your family and friends, and executed them in broad daylight. I don't know about you but I'm pretty pissed off" he paused and scanned the group, many were female sangheili and children with a few males. "This should be the pinnacle of making the decision on whose side you're on." some that were cowering behind objects stood, seeming more determined. "It's time to take back your home" he said. The two elites stood behind him. Jared turned to face the two who were nearly twice the size of him alone. "We will fight" they both said nearly in sync. Jared nodded and turned to the civilians. Many were ready, others were scared.

The ones who volunteered, which were majorly the males were handed the weapons from the fallen enemies from outside. Helping set up a base of operation inside this small city wasn't the best location but it was what they had. A flicker like feeling went through Jareds brain. 'I know what you're going to say' he thought as he helped them move the bodies out of the courtyard and into a mass grave. "You know you can't do this, ONI-" Jared cut her off "does it look like i care? In the past three days I've been shown the true side of this fight, it's time we actually do something rather than just wait it out." he finished, she remained silent, Jared looked around and noticed everyone was staring at him, the moment he realized they all went back to work as if it never happened. 'What i want you to do is help me get this whole thing dealt with, you're on my side, forget ONI. They've failed these people, and now it's our time to start fighting' he thought, she remained silent, then he felt a shiver. "It's time to become the resistance," he said, the sun started to set on the small city.