"Six… Six! Hey, Thom, wake up!" an innumerable number of voices spoke to him.
Six opened his eyes, blinking as what looked like a flashlight shone in his eyes, causing him to instinctively smack the foreign object invading his senses away. Something colored white and blue then drew away as he tried to focus.
The Spartan scanned his surroundings through blurred vision and hazed senses. Stark white walls, the sound of machinery beeping softly beside him while his body was devoid of armor and wrapped in a thin sheet. The black eyestalk-shaped camera in the corner of the room gazed eternally at him, even as he had slept.
He was in a hospital. The person shining the light in his face was one of the nurses taking care of him while he was unconscious.
The Spartan looked back down, seeing his arms covered in faded burns and surgical scars. He flexed his fingers, testing the muscles in his body to feel that they were stiffened, likely from the lack of movement.
What the hell happened?
"Rise and shine, Noble Six, you've been out for a while," a familiar voice commanded him, one that earned his immediate attention. A voice that commanded authority, Noble One.
Same as he saw him before, his hair still cut high and tight while dressed in what looked to be a traditional Army uniform. It made sense, this wasn't a battlefield nor was Noble Team affiliated with the Navy anymore.
But that still begged the question, what was he doing here?
"Sir- ghhg!" the Spartan began an informal salute before hissing in pain, clutching his shoulder as the remnants of a blade wound stretching to the inner portion of his right pectoral lanced through his body.
"Take it easy, Lieutenant, we wouldn't want you to reopen that wound," Carter cautioned the younger Spartan, standing casually despite his status as a fellow Spartan and commanding officer, "You're on the UNSC Hopeful, Spartan. You've been through quite a bit."
The Hopeful… that sounded familiar.
"A bit is an understatement, Commander," another presence entered the room, having eventually caught up and entered the room. Six turned to see that it was Kat, now watching him blink in confusion for some odd reason, "Seven stab wounds and multiple plasma burns covering over sixty percent of your body. We thought you were already dead by the time we went looking for you."
What were they doing here? What was he doing here? He thought they were… no, that couldn't be right, they were standing right here in front of him.
The pain in his shoulder told him this couldn't have been a dream.
"What's the matter, Six?" Kat tilted her head, a single blue eye stared at him with an inquisitive glint, the other was covered in heavy bandages, "You look like you've seen a ghost."
'Funny you should mention that,' he wanted to say, holding back his tongue as he looked away, "What happened to me?"
Kat noticed his obvious discomfort, looking at Carter who only nodded back at her. With that, she left the room with Nobles One and Six remaining.
"What do you remember before waking up?"
Six blinked at the question, looking down at his palms as he tried to remember what had happened. He remembered staying behind on Reach while the Pillar of Autumn made its escape. After that was just a long blur of shapes and hazy figures before waking up here.
"Staying behind, sir."
Noble One pondered the answer before speaking, "What I'm about to tell you is classified information, Spartan. Only known by ONI officials, Dr. Halsey, and Noble Two after some… accidental breaches in multiple security systems."
Six nodded again as the doors remained closed, leaving only the two of them in silence, "Understood."
Carter sighed and crossed his arms, looking down at the floor as he tried to word his next statement with the right precision, "On the thirtieth of August, the Pillar of Autumn escaped thanks to your efforts, Noble Six. However… today is the fourteenth of September."
He watched as Six blinked again at the statement as the information slowly sank in.
"You were found wandering aimlessly on the ninth by a retrieval team of Spartan-IIs sent to rescue Halsey on a classified mission," the leader of Noble continued to explain, "Even then, you attacked the team in a blind rage before you were shortly incapacitated. Thankfully no one was injured."
That was good to hear.
The Spartan-III opposite of Six sharply sighed, "You were supposed to have died days prior, according to the surgeons that performed the operations. I told you before that I read your file, but Six… you really are a damn Hyper Lethal."
A light jab at the man's status and his impossible miracle.
"And what happened to the rest of you?"
"I don't follow, Six," Carter raised an eyebrow at the question, "What do you mean?"
"I… I thought you all-" the Spartan clutched at his head, an oncoming migraine seared itself near the base of his skull. He held up a hand to Carter, letting him know he was okay as the Spartan blinked away the flickering red dots in his vision, "What's Noble Team's current status?"
"Jorge and Emile are currently being debriefed on the prior missions during your coma, both had survived despite their injuries while Jun… is currently MIA."
"What do you mean, MIA, sir?"
Carter pursed his lips, trying to suppress a grimace at the memory, "I believe I'm supposed to tell you that Spartans never die, aren't I?"
It was all too much for Noble Six to absorb, the information provided seemed so wrong and yet… there was no way for him to deny it. The truth had manifested itself before him, it couldn't have been anything but the truth.
"What do you need from me, sir?" was all I said
Carter only shook his head, giving the man a rare smirk, "You'll receive your assignment and be redeployed as soon as you make a full recovery. I was only checking on my men to make sure they're up on their feet when the time's right. In the meantime, my only mission for you is to relax, Spartan."
"Roger that, Commander," Six acknowledged, letting a small grin creep up on his face as Carter nodded and left. The glass door slid shut on the way out, leaving Six to his own thoughts.
He noticed that the Commander seemed tense. The former Lone Wolf knew that Noble One was a man that cared for his soldiers, he couldn't imagine knowing how it felt to watch each of the men serving under him die before his eyes.
Then there were those words.
"You were supposed to have died days prior…" those words echoed in Noble Six's mind.
The hell was that supposed to mean?
The door slid open out of the corner of his eye. His peripherals told him the figure was a woman as she walked through the glass doors, a uniform consisting of pale green scrubs and blue vinyl gloves covered her relatively slim form as she made her way towards him.
"Oh, I see you're finally up," her voice was gentle.
"Yes ma'am," he looked up to ask her if there was anything she needed from him, but he froze right as he saw her.
White hair and red eyes, skin colored a milky and pale white. It looked like she had been born with albinism, but there was something off about her… but nothing particularly wrong.
She leaned in close, snapping him out of his brief stupor, "Are you alright, sir?"
"Y-yes ma'am," he blinked and looked up at her. She looked to be in her early to mid-twenties, though definitely older than him by a slight margin, "What did you say your name was again?"
She smiled, "My name is Dr. Ahri Mann, but you can call me Ahri. I've been assigned your treatment over the week, and for the next few months. I happened to stop by after I saw your CO walking out."
Six nodded warily, still somewhat transfixed by her appearance. Something about it looked… familiar
The doctor coughed, snapping him out of his stupor, "You... must be a Spartan, right?"
Six's gaze hardened, "Isn't that-"
"Classified information?" her smile never left her, "I guess, but it doesn't really matter if I have personal jurisdiction from ONI. You are a top secret kept by upper command who just so happens to be on a state-of-the-art floating hospital that's known for its miracles, right?"
That… made sense.
"Did you need anything from me, ma'am?"
She pursed her lips in thought, "Only if there's been any issues since you've woken up, any pain or discomfort?"
"Just an old wound on my shoulder and… weird dreams, I suppose," he answered, listening to her humming at his answers.
"I see," she scribbled down some notes on a nearby paper, "I'll make sure to prescribe more antibiotics and painkillers. I'm afraid I can't do much for weird dreams unless you need sedatives."
"That won't be necessary, ma'am," the Spartan shook his head, "Thank you."
"Aren't you a gentleman," she giggled before straightening herself up, "If there's anything else you need, make sure to let the nurses know. I'll be back next week to check up on you, Spartan."
She gave him a wink before turning around and leaving.
Noble Six sighed as she left, never once ignoring the strange feelings that felt like his chest was going to burst. There was a strange captivating presence that woman gave off, and he wasn't sure why.
He leaned his head back against the somewhat stiff pillows.
"Relax," the Spartan ordered himself. He made sure to abide by those orders.
Noble Six sighed as he closed his eyes, drifting back to a dreamless sleep.
Several months passed and Noble Team was reunited sans for one quiet sniper. Even without Jun, the silence was even more deafening than it should've been.
Six was the last one to arrive, covered in new yet the same Mark V armor that he had since grown accustomed to. Before the rest of Noble Team could voice their own thoughts upon seeing him alive, a voice from the center of the room broke the silence.
"Listen up, Noble Team," the man on the screen, Colonel Holland, spoke as the small group that made up the Spartan fighting force gathered into the room. The soundproofed and thoroughly secured channel that the man was speaking through ensured that no one would be listening.
The mission was a simple one, but enough so for Noble Team: likely Insurrectionist activity on one of Hestia V's satellites, a moon called Meridian. The attacks on one of the local UEG stations had suffered from an unexpected attack that had managed to slip through their detection.
The only issue was what had happened to the casualties, as well as the original team sent there to investigate. Everyone that had died suffered from plasma wounds and needle gouges similarly to fatalities resulting from Covenant weaponry. The implications of an Insurrection-Covenant operation was absolutely ludicrous to consider, but even the most ridiculous notions weren't always impossible.
The rest that went missing were last seen heading towards Apogee Station, one of the many that existed on Meridian.
The mission? Investigate and put a stop to the attacks.
It was simple. Wiping out Insurrectionist groups was something Noble Six excelled in during his earlier years.
The research station was on a nearby asteroid belt on a neighboring moon of Meridian, having dealt in covert studies concerning Project CHRYSANTHEMUM if anything Kat had told them was to be believed.
And when it came to Kat, there was rarely any doubt.
Noble Team was dismissed, the four remaining members left through and strode down the halls. Each and every one of them offering their own welcomings to Six, alongside the acknowledgement and mourning of their sharpshooter.
Six and the rest of the team took the elevator to the ground floor. The facilities housing their briefing in hidden lower floors for classified purposes even for the research station that housed them.
What an ONI way of doing things.
To the left of Six was Emile, and to the right was Jorge. The skull-faced Spartan seemed to be facing the door with an unassuming demeanor, but Noble Six knew otherwise.
"Take a picture, Six," was all he said. The Spartan's lips twitched in a subtle display of amusement, looking down at the helmet in his hands, running a thumb across the smooth matte visor.
"Funny, Emile," Jorge answered Emile for him, who only shrugged nonchalantly, before turning to Six, "How've you been, Six? Haven't spoken to us in some time."
"Glad to be back," Six answered neutrally, the answer automatic as though he had rehearsed it a thousand times. Of course, the short answer left the larger Spartan dissatisfied, but didn't bother to press further.
"Right," Jorge responded, inhaling slowly, "It's a shame what happened to Reach."
Six looked at the larger man for a moment, "Yeah… you grew up there, right?"
"Born and raised," the larger man nodded, "Not how I would've preferred it, but I can't say I'm unhappy. How did you figure it out?"
"The accent," Six replied as they stepped out of the elevator, the doors sliding open to reveal a bright grey hallway. Noble Team made their way down the halls as dozens of scientists and researchers bustled past them to their locations, "They look busy."
A flash of white appeared out of the corner of his eye. A familiar young woman, that doctor that treated him earlier, walked past him, paying him no mind as though he was a ghost. Six gazed past the large group surrounding him, pausing mid-step as Emile quickly took notice.
"Gotta make room for the big guys," the skull-faced Spartan quipped, paying no mind to the usual civilian unease around the decorations in his visor and laser focusing on his teammate, "What about you, Six, see something you like?"
"Real comedian, Four," Six shook his head and letting a low chuckle escape his lips, "But I'm afraid she's already married."
"Hmph, how d'ya know that?"
"I-" he choked on his words as the thought sunk in.
Six didn't know. It just came to him and he merely voiced it automatically. She'd spoken with him through the months he was still hospitalized, but she never mentioned her marital status to him. It would've been unimportant to either of them.
Why did he say that?
"Oh, I see it," Emile turned back to where Six had been staring, "The ring on her finger. Good eyes, Six, it's nice to have you back."
Six only shook his head, subtly rolling his eyes at the jab as he placed the helmet back on his head.
A Pelican waited for Noble Team outside the facility. Anything larger would've been obvious for the mission. Maintenance crews had long since left as the aircraft sat there in the hangar bay, the troop door sat open like a gaping maw as a row of empty seats lined up on either side.
"Shotgun," said the Warrant Officer.
"Denied," said the Lieutenant Commander.
Six swore Kat was smirking beneath that helmet of hers as she beat Emile to the punch yet again.
Carter took the pilot seat while Noble Two followed suit. Flicked on the buttons and pushed in the circuit breakers that lined up along the panels overhead and behind.
Faults within the systems? None.
Hydraulic pressure? Stable.
Discrepancies within designated craft? None listed.
Liquid Oxygen quantities for Crew, Passenger, and Auxiliary converters? Maximum.
Emile picked out a shotgun amongst the array of firearms that lined up amidst the weapons rack that sat in the corner of the hold. Among them were the usual while Jorge decidedly kept hold of the heavy machine gun he was never seen without.
Six picked up a rifle, an M392 DMR. He checked the weapon by pure habit: magazine, chamber, barrel, reset the counter below the scope before pushing the mag back in and flicking the safety.
It felt so right, like second nature.
He listened to the dull roar of the Pelican's thrusters warming up, a slight teetering off the ground as the three remaining Nobles in the troop bay sat in their seats.
With everything said and done, the aircraft lifted off. Noble Team began their objective.
Two hours of conversation between Noble One and the governor of the Colony, one by the name of Sloan, had finally ceased. The disgruntled politician was initially unmoved by the deaths of UNSC officials nor did he confirm the existence of any Insurrectionist activity in the area.
They quickly learned that the mission was far more than a simple Insurrection clean-up and even more eerie than the presence of Covenant forces. All of which were a fabrication made by Governor Sloan to utilize UNSC resources to quell a much more unknown threat.
It was a dirty move, but the only truth of the matter was that UNSC troops did in fact disappear. Whether there were rebels prowling about the area was secondary at this point if what the Governor said is true.
Noble Team stepped off the Pelican just seconds after landing, standing just outside Apogee Station before entering. The area seemed ruined and dilapidated, begging the question over what exactly happened before they arrived.
"There was supposed to be someone to escort you through," Governor Sloan's voice suddenly spoke through comms, "In fact, there are supposed to be people here at all. My apologies for having you take the long way around, Spartans"
The observation was obvious. The world around them was quiet, save for the echoes of boots thumping against metal as they walked. The filters in their helmets told them that the air was thick with glass particles… it'd be a miracle if there were anyone alive.
"And what about you, Governor?" Noble Two inquired.
"My presence here is a lot less… tangible," the man in the comms spoke with precision, trying to pick his next words, "I can assure you that this has no detriment on my health nor to your mission. I can't speak for the rest of my people, however."
Noble Team made their way through the narrow corridors, the entire complex as they walked through held a completely industrial feel to it. This was apparently a settlement, according to the briefing they received.
It almost reminded Six of New Alexandria.
"We were a year too late," Jorge muttered beneath his breath as Noble Team passed through the corridors and out into a more spacious room, one that spanned outwards to show off the beautiful landscape of Meridian.
Or at least… what once was.
Noble Five stared out at the sight, his eyes focused on a lava river flowing down a small bank in the distance. There weren't any people here or out there, devoid completely of activity or life.
'The Covenant.' they all simultaneously thought. What once held endless bounds of soft green hills and flowing water abundant with fauna was now merely a ball of glass floating through the sea of space, like a marble.
Six placed a hand on the larger man's shoulder, snapping him out of his thoughts, "We'll kill those bastards, Jorge. For Meridian, for Earth… and for Reach."
A beat before Jorge nodded, regrouping with the team, "Knew there was a reason why I like you, Six."
The Spartan smirked underneath his helmet as the team came to a stop. Nothing showed up on the radars, no matter how much they reset and extended the reach.
"What did you say this place was for again, Governor?"
"Apogee Station is one of our primary settlements, one that uses its resources to mine away the glass sitting at the surface of our home," the man answered in a low, almost mourning tone, "The Liang-Dortmund Corporation was charitable enough to lend their services for reconstruction shortly after Meridian was glassed by the Covenant."
"And the missing troopers?"
"Of course, Spartan, your mission," the man spoke curtly, "They were last seen heading down through the mines on the other side of the door to your left."
The team turned to see two massive doors, massive and sturdy like the entrance to a bomb shelter.
"Governor, we'll need access, if possible," Kat spoke through the comms. If that wasn't possible, it would simply be a matter of how long it'd take for her to do it herself.
"Understood," the doors suddenly creaked open, "Make it quick, Spartans. I'd rather you don't go snooping around my belongings for very long."
"Got something to hide?" Noble Two queried.
"Everyone has their secrets, Spartan."
The doors came to a stop, allowing them inside. The cavern was dim, only illuminated by the light outside, but was sure to grow darker the farther they traveled.
Surely enough, it did. Six activated night vision, the outlines around the tunnels becoming much more clear. The walls were rocky, as well as much of the flooring and ceiling, as though it was in the process of being set up for an excavation site before it suddenly stopped.
The tunnels went further, the rocks were slick with condensation even after the entire world was glassed to bits. Noble Team noticed the walls growing wider with each passing step until they reached a set of multiple corridors.
Two were the only ones lit. It was almost like it was beckoning to them, Six noted.
"Sir?"
"Noble Two and Five, with me. Four and Six, you take the other," Noble One raised his rifle, slowly treading into the other corridor, "Maintain radio communication. Status update every five."
"Roger that, Commander," Jorge followed closely behind the two blue-colored Spartans while Emile and Six took the other, "Good luck."
"You too, big man," Emile nodded to them as they disappeared, "We gettin' a move on, Six?"
"Copy," Emile and Six made their way into the other corridor.
Emile and Jorge's synergy within Noble Team was no different than the rest, but the two mixed about as well as oil and water. Emile respected Jorge as a teammate and as a friend, though was never too keen about showing it.
This was certainly a rare sight.
"S'there something on my face?" the man asked, keeping the shotgun level as they passed through what appeared to be another research hall, remnants of neon lights scattered around the floor, "On your right, Six… the hell's that?"
The Spartan swiveled on his heels, turning in the direction Emile had pointed to and froze, flicking the night vision off and turning off the night vision, inspecting the contents of they saw.
On one of the counters was a jar filled with what appeared to be some kind of thick clear solution, formaldehyde most likely. Floating inside was what looked like a hand, gnarled and thick with smooth opaque skin the color of ebony, each digit held a talon roughly five inches in length.
"I don't think this is just a mining op."
"What gave it away?" Emile looked closer at the hand, suspended within the opaque liquid and completely motionless, "Creepy… but this isn't part of the job, Six."
"Copy," Six nodded, making their way past the room, "Any sign of the missing troopers?"
"Nothing shows up on my radar aside from you and what I can assume to be One, Two, and Five taking the other route," Emile shook his head, "So that's negative as well."
"Noble Two to Noble Four, come in."
"Noble Four comm check."
"Comms are still clear, Noble Four."
"Copy, got something Noble Two?" Emile asked, motioning closer for Six to head further down the corridor.
"There doesn't appear to be plasma damage throughout the area. No bodies either… this is strange, we swept Apogee Station clean before we came here."
Something caught Six's ear, a quiet sound deep into the corridors. His head swiveled at the sound, it was somewhere in the distance, maybe somewhere around forty meters away. It sounded wet yet brittle, like predators eating a fresh kill.
Noble Six rechecked the counter on his DMR: fifteen rounds. The Spartan released the safety and continued making his way over there with caution, his steps muted and avoiding any obstacles in his way as he stalked onwards.
Thirty meters…
"No bodies up there or down here, but the damage still remains," Noble Five spoke through the comms as well, "It's like we're investigating a ghost town."
Twenty meters… ten meters...
"I'll speak with Actual about this, Noble out," Kat's comms went dead. Emile looked at his radar, seeing Six make his way further.
Before he could ask Six on his condition, gunshots rang out.
"Six!"
"Contact!" was all he said throughout the gunfire followed by the sounds of something else, a guttural and inhuman cry broke the silence before Emile came to a halt, stopping to see the barrel of Six's rifle still smoking as he stood over a dead creature.
It faded away as it died, like it was made out of vapor, but Emile saw a vague and wispy black lupine outline and dull red eyes.
"Condition?"
"Didn't even graze me, Four. It didn't even show up on our radar, but I still-" Six doubled over, clutching at his armor, "What the hell is- gah!"
"Easy easy, Six," Emile cautioned, lowering the shotgun in his hands and lending a hand, helping straighten up Six as he let out a breath, "Can't have you dying on us right outta the hospital."
"Right," the Spartan nodded, letting out a hiss of pain. It felt like he got shot, but the damage wasn't there. It was like it was… inside?
The pain ceased and Six checked the counter on his gun: twelve shots.
Three bullets put that thing out of commission, it was relatively weak if it only died to few body shots.
Comms flared to life, "Noble Six to Noble One, do you read me?"
"Loud and clear, Noble Six. We heard heard a disturbance and are moving to investigate. Actual isn't responding and Two says the doors are locked, won't even open no matter how hard she tries to crack it."
That couldn't be possible. Kat's talent as a cryptoanalyst was second to none, this'd be mere child's play to her.
The doors were magnetically sealed shut, air tight and explosives-proof. A nuke could go off nearby and the door would still be able to hold. Even Jorge's unsurpassed strength couldn't open it, so it all fell down to Noble Two.
Or at least it did.
"Sir, we've made contact with the enemy," Six chose his next words, "Neither Covenant or rebels, unknown origin."
"Native species of Meridian, perhaps?" Noble Five cut through to the comms, the sound of Jorge's heavy armor and weapons could still be heard amidst the chatter.
Six shook his head, thinking back at the preserved hand in the jar, "I don't think so. They give off no heat signature nor do they appear on our radar. There's no heat, no heartbeat, nothing."
"I'll contact the Governor as soon as we can get signal back on the surface again. Carter out."
The electrical whine of a comm call finally cut dead.
Broken lights hung overhead as they passed through two sets of double doors and entered into a narrow corridor, shelves made up the walls as their route split up into dozens of different routes.
Everything hanging or sitting on the shelves were merely either hard plastic boxes or power tools. A thin layer of dust coated their surroundings as they came to a halt. Signs all pointed to different instruments with their own respective purposes, while ID markers labeled what subset of tools someone was looking for.
The floors were still smooth, unlike the rocky tunnels they traversed through. Everything was completely established inside just as much as it was out. Everything looked so hastily made, yet with a quality finished work. Something stuck out for Six, but he didn't know what.
This must've been a big operation. So why did everyone suddenly disappear?
"Split up or stick together?"
Six felt a tingle on the back of his neck. Maybe a change in the air?
"Together," Six shook his head, "Something doesn't feel right."
Emile stared at him for a while before pointing over a path with a dimly lit red sign, "Leads to the stairs, this place probably goes hundreds of meters underground. But you feel that?"
The quiet hum of something gently rumbled beneath the Spartan's armored feet. Six nodded.
"The generator," Emile noted, "Damn thing's intact, and working too. The others probably feel it."
Six nodded, taking in what the man beside him was saying, "Why didn't those things kill the power instead of the lights?"
The Spartan had only got a glimpse of it before it died. There was something familiar about it, but he couldn't put his finger on where or when.
"Beats me. Either way, this place is just giving me the creeps," Emile shrugged, lowering his shotgun as he turned his head to the sign, "After we find these troopers, I'm torching this damn place to the gro-"
Something pushed him aside.
BANG!
A scream as an explosion followed. Something impacted right next to Emile as he finally caught his balance. Whatever attacked him missed as Six pushed him out of the way, putting a bullet in its skull before it could hit him.
"Contact!" Emile and Six looked at one another before a cacophony of screams split the air as if on cue with their transmission.
"Of course there'd be more," Six clicked his tongue, looking back at Emile, who held his own weapon at the ready,"Let's go."
"Don't have to tell me twice," Four nodded and strode alongside the Spartan to his right.
They didn't appear on radar, but a Spartan wasn't simply blind without it. Six watched as several red eyes appeared in the darkness, night vision made them glow like pilot lights as they began to emerge.
Six unconsciously took a step back.
They were as tall as him, bodies vaguely humanoid as they stood on two legs.
That's where the similarities ended.
Their legs bent at odd animalistic angles, like Elites but on a more twisted scale. Their arms were long and thin, stopping at gangly fingers with claws the size of kitchen knives. Beast-like faces, their eyes looked like ugly red gashes than actual eyes.
Six fired before they could do any further damage to him or his comrade, something in the back of his mind screamed for him to get away from these things at all costs. Bullets piercing their bodies with ease as they growled and sped towards him in long gaits.
Many died before they could reach him, but their weak constitutions were overwritten by the vast numbers that began to multiply around him.
"What the hell are these things?!" Emile exclaimed, firing his shotgun into another beast, watching it crumple and disappear like wisps "Are you seeing what I'm fucking seeing?"
"I wish I didn't," Six backed away, dodging a swipe from another creature and firing until his rifle clicked empty, "Get down to the lower levels, we need to put space between us and them."
"Easy," Emile agreed as his gun clicked empty as well, "Shit!"
One quickly closed in on him, but quickly fell as the butt of his shotgun met its ugly maw, "You're going to have to work for it, you shits."
A flash of steel rang out as Emile buried the kukri between the eyes of another before backing away.
They leapt off the foot of the stairs and landed with a resounding crack, turning around the corner to be greeted by another flight.
They repeated the process.
Emile and Six banked to the right as they were met with a short hallway, the door at the very end leading into a nearby cavern. To the right was another set of stairs, while behind them was a ravenous horde hot on their trail.
"We're not leaving without the troopers," Six spoke through his fear, his voice coming out as a whisper.
"We're not," Emile shook his head, quickly reloading his shotgun even as they ran, "I have something on the radar, three dots."
"The rest of Noble," Six looked at his own radar to confirm it, "But still no soldiers. Something doesn't feel right Emile..."
"Of course something's not right, Thom," Emile turned back to the direction those beasts were coming, "Whatever those freaks are, it ain't natural."
Six slowed down, pondering his words, the sound of those creatures growing louder with every passing second.
"Six, what the hell are you doing?" Noble Four stopped just ahead of him, looking back at the man, looking down at the assault rifle now clutch in his hands. Even behind that skull mask, Six could still see the concern on Emile.
He was brutal and sociopathic when it came to the enemy or to anyone that wasn't Noble Team, but Emile wasn't inhuman.
"Go on ahead of me, Emile," Six looked back up, "I just remembered something."
"What are you talking about?"
"Just go," the Spartan watched as they appeared, tearing off the dog tags and tossing them to Emile, "Find the troopers, regroup with Noble Team. I'll buy you some time."
"But Thom-"
"I said GO!" Six scowled underneath his helmet, a soft step before followed by several hundred more. The beasts appeared, packs of ravenous demonic wolves growing closer by the second.
"This is how it always ends, doesn't it?" Six muttered to himself as he raised his rifle and pulled the trigger.
Howls filled the air.
Blood stained the walls.
Pain flooded his senses.
The world went black once again, as it always did for an eternity.
Six opened his eyes, lights greeted him as he found himself in a hospital room. Everything looked the same, nothing seemed out of place.
"Must've been a scary dream you were having," a voice caused him to turn, seeing that familiar white-haired doctor, "You were tossing and turning in your sleep for that past hour."
What was her name again?
"Yeah," the Spartan said, the visions that flashed before his mind were so eerily real, but quickly began to fade like a distant dream, "It was. But now I'm awake."
The doctor was fiddling with the controls hooked up to him. Six looked down to see that he was still in that thin sheet of fabric.
"Well, that's good to hear," she smiled, standing back up and inspecting the machinery before turning back to him, "Is there anything you need while I'm here?"
The Spartan opened his mouth before closing it a second later, shaking his head.
"In that case, if there's any further complications, let me know," the doctor said before turning back.
"Wait."
She stopped, turning around, "Yes?"
"There's still a slight pain in my shoulder," Six grit his teeth, rubbing a hand against the spot, "Could you check if some of the stitches reopened? I can't see it from this angle."
"Certainly," she strode back to him, leaning in to get a closer look at the damage as the Spartan pulled fabric on his shoulder. The doctor looked back up at him a minute later, "Nothing seems to be wro-"
Crack!
Before she even realized what was going on in the fraction of a second, the doctor found herself colliding against the wall nearby. Eyes practically bugging out of her skull as she was unable to breathe.
The grip of a Spartan was not one to be taken lightly.
"Who are you?" a cold voice asked her.
"I… ghugh!" she choked, unable to breath, "D-doctor… Ahr-"
"Don't play games with me," Six's hand tightened around her neck, her face nearly on the verge of turning blue, "What are you?"
He noticed that security didn't even make a move to stop him.
In fact, the entire facility had gone quiet.
"Let… me… go," she gasped between breaths before Six eventually let go. She fell hard against the ground as the woman gasped, finally able to breath before looking back up to see a very angry Spartan looking down at her, "What gave it away?"
"My name isn't Thom," Six had many other things to note that were wrong. Jorge would've been more solemn over the death of his homeworld, Meridian was glassed a year ago, the Hopeful wouldn't have been around so close near Covenant activity even after Reach was already glassed, and Emile wouldn't have spoken to him as much.
There were also the details of things he wasn't supposed to know, but he supposed that would suffice.
She sighed in disappointment, standing back up and brushing a lock of hair out of her face, "Damn… and I was hoping this was convincing enough."
"You didn't answer my question."
The doctor pouted at him, "And I thought you were a gentleman," she relaxed, "I suppose I didn't, but congratulations."
Six's face twitched, a slight bit of confusion on his face amidst the anger.
"Your wish has been granted," the thing that looked like Irisviel Von Einzbern flourished an arm, "Everything has gone back to the way it was. The Covenant is gone, now simply back to Insurrectionists and a few… notable things that you could kill to satiate that Spartan need."
"It wasn't exactly convincing."
"But you believed it for the time," she smiled, "But that's all that matters, doesn't it?"
Dreams. The Grail wasn't omnipotent, Six knew that now. Forced to live an eternity of living and dying over and over again within this dream, only to wake back up at this same medical bay. Rinse and repeat until he finally snapped, that was inevitable, such a thing couldn't be perfect.
Now he remembered. Truly remembered.
The only thing he wanted could only be accomplished in a fantasy, an almost frighteningly convincing one. Six almost wanted to laugh, he was never truly that lucky.
Only someone else had that kind of luck. Another Hyper Lethal.
He looked at the woman, or whatever it was that was standing in front of him. Behind her were the four remaining members of Noble Team.
Jun was still missing. That was what stuck out to him ever since the beginning.
How much control did this thing actually have?
"I'm afraid I couldn't bring your final friend back," she apologized in her own way, "There seems to be something wrong with this reality."
She looked back at him.
"But your wish has been granted, not in a way you wanted but in a way you could accomplish," she held out her arms, "You are the final victor, everyone else was rejected or rejected me."
"I wonder why."
"You're no fun," she sighed, "You're one of the few that could bear the contents of the Grail, someone who could bring about my birth to the world: an unnamed martyr. Be honored, Spartan-B312."
"And what exactly are you?"
Irisviel smiled, "The Grail of course, the object of your desire."
Six strode past her, looking back at the standing forms of Noble Team. They stood as still as statues, as if awaiting something.
There was something in one of their hands, he took it.
"Why did you take her form?" he asked.
Irisviel's doppelganger tilted her head in curiosity, "Are you not comfortable with this body? Does it not bring about feelings within you, perhaps a life you could live with it?"
He laughed as if it was a joke, still looking away from her, "You misunderstand, I don't have feelings for her. She was a good friend, yes. But if I'm going to be honest-"
Six turned back around, a click pierced the silence between their words as he pointed the object at her forehead.
"-I would've killed her myself if I was ordered to," his eyes glazed over as if a film of ice washed over him.
The fake pursed her lips, "I see… is that mask truly so form fitting? I wonder... No, you're simply incomplete, unsure of yourself."
"What?"
She laughed, a hollow and fake sound passing off as something sickly sweet to his ears, "Nothing, merely an observation. If you won't accept this dream, then would you simply return to the Throne of Heroes? You'd be throwing away a chance at happiness, all you have to do is simply forget."
Six lowered the pistol, "I should, but I won't… return to the Throne, that is."
"Oh, so you're accepting my offer?"
"Not in the slightest bit I am," he scowled at her before turning away. He could still feel it within him, buried deep, his power as a Servant.
He just needed something to kickstart it. A trigger of some sorts.
Noble Six turned around to a member of Noble Team, their faces hidden behind their helmets.
Spartans were symbols of hope. Even if he was hidden from the rest of the world, the Spartans would always be heroes even if he wouldn't admit himself as one.
He placed a hand on Noble Two's shoulder before placing the muzzle of her pistol against his temple.
"W-what're you doing!" the woman behind him cried out, "If you kill yourself, you'll only return to the Throne!"
His voice was hesitant. Desperate. But he was sure. The trigger was right there.
"Noble Phantasm," he spoke, closing his eyes and inhaling, the second Noble Phantasm he had hidden from the War, an unknown power only his Master had seen, "Fall of Reach."
He pulled that trigger. Hot lead puncturing his skull and splattering brain matter across the walls and ceiling.
The world went dark once more, pain flooded what remained of his mind before that too faded away.
Everything ceased to exist… until it did once again.
Smell came first, then sound, then touch and taste and sight.
He opened his eyes. Fire flooded his senses and smoke filled the awoken Spartan's lungs as he struggled back to his feet, looking at the burning landscape around him.
Assassin found himself in hell.