[A/N: One thing I forgot to add was the symbols they war. Hope's symbol is the Traveler with an eagle flying straight up the middle of it. Gold-26's symbol is the Warlock symbol with a dragon right above it. Jason's symbol of course, it the Iron Lord symbol.]

*Opening song: /D2uqpqrYmMY *

Chapter 1 Destination—Fall of the Spartan and Rise of the Hunter!

Hope POV

[…On the Surface of Delora…]

I was stationed on Delora as part of a security detail for an important UNSC official. He was nothing more than a pervert who couldn't keep this hands to himself. For once I am glad my Spartan armor gave me the appearance of a man. But I did feel bad for the girls around him. They didn't look so good. I was always looking over my shoulder seeing if they were still behind me like they were supposed to. I was escorting him back to his quarters and hoping he would give me the night off, so I could contact Blue Team and possibly Osiris to see how they are.

*LOUD RUMBLING NOISE*

The ground started shaking as it began to open and fall forward. Damnit!

"Sir we need to leave! Spartan-666 calling for immediate pickup, location; UNSC base north plaza!"

"*static*—" That was all I heard through the comms.

*A ROARING SOUND*

I looked to my left only to see a Fore-runner machine rising up from the ground. It was very big. Why did someone build a colony over a Fore-runner machine? I know that they didn't know but still, explore more before you build a colony.

*CRACKING SOUND*

My head snaps back to the UNSC official and I notice a part of the building next to us is beginning to collapse. My body moves on its own pushing the official and his posy out of the way. That's when I felt the weight of the building slam into my back. I saw my life play out from the faintest memory to the events leading up to now. But the only thing on my mind was John and the others. I was never going to see them again. That's when everything just stopped…

[…On the Infinity…]

Normal POV

Captain Lasky stood on the bridge sighing to himself. Spartan-666 was killed saving the UNSC official. He was even the one to tell him out of sympathy. But now, how was Lasky going to tell Blue Team and Osiris? That was going to be hard. He knew every well about how much Spartan-666 meant to them.

"Roland; call Blue Team and Osiris." He orders.

"You got it." Roland said in a motor-tone voice. He liked Spartan-666, she was nice to have around. Always a smile on her face without a single care in the galaxy. He remembered the time when she told Locke and John to smile more because it looked good on them. Oh, the seven days straight of teasing the two of them got their teammates. That was a funny week…and now that was a distant memory.

"This is Spartan Locke, what is Infinity?"

"Spartan 117, new mission?"

"I have a message from Captain Lasky."

"What?" They ask. Roland heard rest of the two teams in the background talking among themselves like they were in another room.

"I have some shocking news…we just received word that at O900 from the surface of Delora that…Spartan-666 has been killed due to a cataclysmic event." He said.

There was silence for so long. Then at the same time the transmission was cut. Everyone on the bridge could only guess what was going though those Spartans' heads. Where going to try and live on? Or where they going to kill someone or themselves? They could only guess.

[…With Osiris…]

Everyone was quiet. There was nothing to say. They had just killed Jul'mdama and rescued Doctor Katharine Halsey. But, now on their way home they learn that Hope, someone they promised to protect was dead. Halsey didn't say anything. She barely knew who Hope was. But, she did seem to have sympathy for the Spartan loss. Buck stood up from where he was sitting and stood in front of his seat for a moment.

*WHAM*

That had to be the first time they had ever seen Buck do that. Buck never seemed like the guy to get angry enough to where he would punch a wall like that. Now it was going to be a silent—and awkward for Halsey—ride home.

[…With Blue Team…]

They were on a mission to find Argent Moon when the transmission came in. Kelly, Fred, and Linda didn't hear anything because they were getting ready. He lost Sam, Cortana, and now he had lost Hope. She was the one thing in his life that could never not smile. Those smiles, the sound of her laughter, all the memories they made hunted him now.

"I'm sorry Hope." He said with his hands tightening around his helmet. "I'm so sorry." For the first time in his life he sherd a tear.

[…Earth, Cosmo-drone…]

Ghost POV

The sun was setting as I was flying around this old Cosmo-drone looking for him or her. Who's him or her? My Guardian. The one that would help defend the last remnants of Humanity, Exo, and Awoken. I don't care much about the gender of my Guardian, but I know that whoever they are; they're waiting for me. I've only made them wait for about a thousand years plus. Heh, heh… Opps. Well I have been traveling around the planet for that same amount of time, so it isn't my fault that he or she is so hard to find.

*FALLEN ROAR*

Uh, oh. I have been in Fallen territory before, but as a ghost… I am not fir for battle, but boy I wish. Those guys love playing "Catch and Kill the Ghost". It's just as volatile as it sounds. I give an inward sigh before I start scanning for my Guardian. They have to be around here some were. As a got closer the giant wall I got this feeling. Could it be? I start to feel funny as the light inside of me begins to activate on its own.

[…After resurrecting…]

After the light that came from me vanished, my Guardian stood before me. Given the physique of my, at-long-last-found-Guardian, it's a her. She wore hunter like armor and though with her helmet on looked disorientated. That's natural guess, I mean she did just come back to life.

"It worked! You're alive! You have no idea how long I have been searching for you." I explain cheerfully which gets her attention.

"Who—What are you?" She asks.

"I'm a Ghost, actually now I'm your Ghost. And…well, you've been dead for a very long time, so you are going to see a lot of things you aren't going understand." I explain to her trying to keep her calm. I can tell her anxiety levels are rising. "I know, this must be scary, but I promise to be with you every step of the way alright?" She nods.

*FALLEN ROAR*

Aw crap!

"Look, long story short this is Fallen Territory, we aren't safe here. I need to—somehow—get us to the city. Hold still.

Hope POV

I was inwardly freaking out. What did he mean I've been dead a long time? Who are the Fallen? Where am I? And where did he go?

"Don't worry I'm still with you!" He said cheerfully. I sigh in relief. "See that wall over there? You need to get inside, being out here in the open—especially without a weapon—is far too dangerous. Let's get going!" He said, and I listened. There was a doorway into the wall that I used to enter. Everything around me was rusted and old. Just what happened here? I knew this wasn't Delora. When the stairs stopped I had to cross a small bridge. It looked sturdy, so I wasn't worrying about falling to my death. As I was half way across the bridge I heard something.

*CLANK BANG*

I freeze for a second. "Not a word, the Fallen are right above us." The Ghost said in a shushed tone. I made it to the other side which was pitch black. Then my helmet light turned on as I made my up some more stairs. I looked back to make sure that I wasn't being followed. I walked out of the little hallway into a pitch-black room. I noticed cold blue lights appearing then disappearing. I start feeling uneasy. Then my Ghost appeared by my side and looked at me. Knowing that I had someone with me always made things less scary than they really were. "Hang tight," he said fling off, "Fallen thrive in the dark, we defiantly don't. Just let me turn on the lights, and warning what I am about to do is going totally piss of the Fallen." He joked trying to make me smile. It was working somewhat.

"Mm…" I let out a small quiet whimper as I watched his light fade away into the dark. But, I froze seeing something crawl along a red pipe. Uh, oh… The one time I really do need John and the others; they aren't here. I would do anything just to hear their voices, hell even Commander Palmer, Captain Lasky, and Roland.

"Another one of those hardened military systems and a few centuries of entropy working against me, we'll see about that." He said to himself. Maybe I should tell him that I can hear him, so he doesn't embarrass himself somehow. That's when I heard the lights flash on and he was right, the Fallen where completely pissed off.

"Looks like you over did it!" I said seeing a gate to my right opening. I race over to it as the Fallen roar.

"Yeah, sorry about that. But hey I got the lights working!" He said with a small half laugh. He reminds me of Roland. "Hey look a rifle!" He refers to the rifle lying on a rusted blue chest. "Hope you know how to use that."

"Relax, I know how to fire a gun. Just sit tight little light." I tell him as I aim the gun around looking out for the Fallen I saw earlier.

"Hey! Don't call me that!" He snaps embarrassed. Now I know how Fred and Buck felt when they did that to me. I giggle at those found memories. "Oh. And watch your tracker in the top right corner of your helm for moment." He said.

"How about I call you Halo?" I ask.

"Halo? I like it! For now, on my name is Halo!" He said happily about his new name. Then Fallen jump out and I fire. They were so slow for me. I guess that's what happens when you're trained by the best of the best. "Wow…Nice shooting there, Guardian." He said impressed.

"Halo, call me Hope." I said.

"I like that name. Any chance you got any nicknames?" He asks me as I start advancing taking out Fallen there and there.

"Buck and Fred sometimes call me Triple 6 because of my Spartan tags."

"Oh. Two questions; 1. Who's Buck and Fred? 2. What's a Spartan?" He asks confused. I had just shot off a Dreg's head. It's safe to say that he doesn't know what the UNSC is either.

"Buck and Fred are my adoptive brothers."

"You can remember your past!" He gasps in shock.

"Am I not supposed to?"

"Kind of hard to explain, but most Guardians don't remember their past after they get brought back." He explains.

"Oh." I said, but now I wonder about the Guardians that I am probably going to meet that don't remember their past. Don't they feel incomplete not knowing who they used to be?

"Hey, look to your right! It's a loot cash." I look over to my right seeing it. I prop it open and there are these glowing blue squares like things around a sniper-rifle. "That Glimmer will come in handy trust me." he said as I grabbed the rifle and I guess he did something with the glimmer because it vanished. The rifle had some rounds in it so unless I find the rounds that go with it, I'll save using it for later. I now I enter a hall with small red lights pointing from wall to wall. "Trip minds! Don't touch them." He warns. I shot them before realizing a Vandal runs toward me only to be blown up by its own trip minds.

"That was kind of sad." I say as Halo laughs finding it hilarious.

"I wanna bring him back so he can do that again." Halo said still laughing as I shake my head taking care of the other trip minds before advancing. I enter a room that is a fair size.

*FALLEN GROWLING*

Great…figured they were around. They start crawling out of the hole in the wall in front of me. I start shooting them. It was a lot like shooting the Covenant only the Fallen where smaller possibly dumber and had no suicidal grunts running up with bombs in both hands. That was a pleasant change, I had to admit. After clearing out the fallen I exited the room through the side entrance that went outside.

"Nice to be outside." I said noticing rusted tanks that reminded me of the Scorpion that Buck loved driving.

"I know the sky is pretty here. Oh! Before I forget, there are signs of a jump ship nearby."

"Sounds like our ticket out."

"Yeah let's just hope the Fallen haven't destroyed because if so we're walking home." He jokes.

*LOUD QUAKING/RUMBLING NOISE*

"What's that?" I look behind me and up at the sky seeing Ships arrive.

"Fallen ships, this close to the surface…RUN!" I ran. The ships fired at me as I tried to get into the building across the area. But I was stopped by the Fallen that jumped down. Killing them was easy especially since I had to Covenant warriors that where taller than even John. God they are easy to fight, but it's kind of fun not having something that is more than half you size trying to kill you. I enter the next building having to take out a few fallen there and there.

"Good news! Past that hall is our ticket home." He said.

"Bad news?" There is always a catch I remember Vale telling me that when someone says, "good news".

"It's surrounded by Fallen." He said.

"Figured." He laughs at my comment. I wonder if all Ghosts are as humored as him. I reach the jump ship seeing it hanging from the roof by wires. The Fallen are crawling all around it. Great… They remind me of monkeys. I pull out the sniper rifle looking through the scope.

"See the biggest one? That's the captain, they usually have a shield around them." He explains. I aim for the biggest one. It carries itself like a captain. I only have to fire twice to take it out. Then I switch back to my normal rifle and take the rest out. I grow my new grenade and watch them fly and burn. After I made sure that I cleared them out, Halo appears out of nowhere and starts scanning the ship.

"It's been here awhile. Hasn't made a jump in centuries." He said.

"Will it fly?" I ask.

"I can make it work." He turns into a flurry of light. Blue lights started flickering, then red ones, then the engine turned on. The wires then fell off allowing it hover. I noticed the little sandstorm it was making under it. "Okay…so it's not going to break orbit, but it might just get us to the city." He said. "Now about that transmat…" He said to himself wondering. Then I heard something.

*BANG, THUD, CLANK*

I turn around to see a very large Fallen walk out of the hole in the way with two vandals at its sides.

"Bringing you in!" Now I was the one to turn into a flurry of light. I am transported to the cock pit as the ship began to move. "We can come back for them when you're ready. For now, let's go home. There is so much to explain." He said, and I smile thinking of home. I really start missing my home on the UNSC Infinity. I wonder what happened to the Infinity. Did everyone think I died? I wonder that when out of the corner of my eye I notice a lone figure standing on a roof. Then the figure was gone. I took of my helmet rubbing my ocean eyes and take my long auburn hair out of its bun.

"You okay Hope?"

"I'm fine, don't worry Halo." I tell him as I close my eyes. "Let me know when we reach the City."

"You got it!"

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Next Time: Chapter 2 Destination—Welcome to the Tower, Enter Gold-26 and Jason

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Hello everyone! I hope you liked this chapter. I know it probably wasn't what you were expecting but I didn't feel like doing a flashback chapter. So, this is it for Chapter 1. Chapter 2 will be coming soon as will Chapter 3—hopefully.