Chapter 31: The Thursday Wars
What's new, people?! A new chapter of SND, that's what! Did anyone get the Crysis reference in the last chapter? Barnes? Laurence Barnes? Prophet? On a more relevant note, Raptor Team will make more appearances in the book, so expect that, and that's about all. Now, how about those reviews?
Trollface41: OF COURSE I'M HAVING JOHNSON APPEAR IN HALO 4! Are you crazy!? I would be such an ass if I didn't! And like I said, of course I'll beta-read for you. I would be thrilled to pre-read something that isn't my own.
That's not all, folks, I plan to start another mass-crossover. But this one will be better thought out. Check it out on my profile, It's called 'War of the Worlds', and tell me what you think. (PLEASE! DO SO!) PLEASE!
Extra special thanks to Winter's sentinel for beta-reading. I appreciate it.
ONI Station in orbit around Moon. March 6, 2553.
The last three days had been utterly confusing for the surviving Spartan 1's 2's and 3's. They had arrived at the station, and learned that they would be assimilated into a new generation of Spartans, the 4's. After being acclimated to their new roles as diplomatic bodyguards, peacekeepers, and glorified bogeymen, they were taken to special stations where they were given new GEN 2 MJOLNIR armor. Initially, each Spartan chose a base set of armor, and then was able to customize the different parts to their liking.
Carter walked back to his quarters. Since there were so few personnel on the station, each Spartan was given a room on the station. He sat down at his desk and began reviewing possible attachments for his base GEN 2 Commando armor. He barely recognized himself in the armor.
There was a knock at the door, and three other Spartans came in.
"Commander." Jorge said.
"Good to see you all again."
Jorge had chosen a modified version of the Venator armor, adapted for his size. Kat had chosen Locus armor and had already gotten to work modifying it, as evidenced by the lack of a left shoulder pauldron and knee guards. Jun had chosen Scout armor, just like he had for GEN 1, and had already put a pouch for spare Sniper rounds on his left shoulder in place of his pauldron.
Carter set down the datapad he had been reading and stood up.
"You guys know what you're going to be doing after this is finished?"
"We're all going to be training Spartan-4's on the Infinity." Kat answered.
"Great, now we get to deal with kids, and here I thought I would never get that honor."
"You won't. ONI only wants adult volunteers from the armed forces. You get the honor of picking the first recruits."
"Really? They say why?"
"Because you were the leader of NOBLE. Still are. The most successful Spartan fireteam." Jorge said.
"Send me the list."
As if on cue, his datapad pinged with a new message.
"We'll leave you to it. Colonel." Jun said.
"Wait… Colonel?"
"Yeah. ONI gave you a promotion to Colonel for your actions. Probably just to get HIGHCOM off their backs." Kat explained.
"Figures."
The three left, and Carter picked up his datapad, entering the code to decrypt the message.
To: Colonel Carter A-259, NOBLE 1
From: Brigadier General Urban Holland, NOBLE ACTUAL
Colonel,
The Office of Naval Intelligence has chosen you to select the first recruits for the SPARTAN-IV project, for your 'excellent leadership qualities and command of the battlefield'. They believe that you will make 'informed and dependable decisions'. I may have had a say in that.
For your action over the last 6 months, HIGHCOM has also given you a promotion to the rank of Colonel. You've earned it.
I've attached the list of those who have volunteered for the project. Good luck, Colonel.
You have my sincere condolences for the loss of your teammates. They were damn good soldiers, and I was honored to have commanded them.
Holland out.
Over the next 6 hours, the newly-appointed Colonel read over the CSV's that were provided. Three stuck out from the rest:
ODST Captain Sarah Palmer
ODST Lieutenant Edward Buck
ODST Sergeant Michael 'Mickey' Crespo
All three had had plenty of experience fighting the Covenant, and Carter could vouch for Buck personally: he had fought alongside NOBLE and the Chief when they were trying to disable the bomb on the Cairo at the onset of the Covenant Invasion of Earth.
Palmer was a complete unknown, as was 'Mickey', though Carter had heard Buck talk about Mickey a few times, and assumed that he was a part of Buck's squad.
He read over their CSVs one more time:
Captain Sarah Palmer;
Career Marine and ODST. Served twelve tours of duty on eight worlds. Excellent physical prowess and innate leadership.
The rest of her CSV consisted of several of the battles she had participated in and her role in those battles: Reach, as a part of 105th ODST Division in the Battle of Viery, and in the Battle of Aszod, assisting James as he assaulted through to Sword Base, and later defending the drydock where the Pillar of Autumn received the Package.
The next was a little more intriguing.
Sergeant Michael Crespo;
Former Pelican Crew Chief. Has an aptitude for flying. Even after almost 5 years in the ODST's, still has not seen a planet glassed. Currently specializes in demolitions. Enlisted in the Marines as a mandatory requirement to leave foster care.
He had a less lengthy history in the UNSC, but still had a few high points: He had been on Earth during the Invasion in 2552, and had been on Reach during the early portions of the attack.
Why would they pull out an ODST, for Christ's sake? He's a valuable asset. Carter wondered.
After some lengthy consideration, he finally gave the green light for 22 out of the 25 volunteers to become Spartan-IV's.
I just, in a sense, gave birth to a whole new generation of super-soldiers. I should feel better, shouldn't I? Why don't I? He wondered.
The truth was, he expected it to be like his own training, or that of the II's. At least, what Jorge had told him of it. He didn't like it, or the fact that they may die in the augmentations.
Don't BS yourself! None of the III's died, so none of the IV's will either. You're being paranoid.
Must be the war finally catching up to me.
Fuck, I'm tired.
Carter suddenly realized that he hadn't slept in almost 4 months, his last time being on the medical station where he had been treated for his injuries sustained on Reach.
He took off his helmet, and removed his armor down to the undersuit. It was convenient for the Spartans to be able to snap the parts on whenever they needed them, and detach them when they needed to, mainly to get at injuries sustained to the actual operators themselves. He laid down on the bed across the room, and fell asleep almost instantly.
Carter shot up in his bed, drenched in sweat, and breathing very heavily, with the last words from his dream still echoing in his ears:
"We will return."
He got up and wiped his forehead, then checked his datapad. A new message was displayed.
We're going to the firing range to find some new weapons. Never know what we might find. Come down if you have the time.
A-266.
All Spartans signed messages with their service tags, to prevent anyone who didn't know it from knowing who had sent it. He also noticed that it was 0800, on March 7th.
So I slept for 10 hours. I can't get into that habit. He thought.
"Firing range sounds good." Carter said out loud.
As he began to replace the pieces of his armor, his thoughts drifted back to his dream:
There were billions of them. The Flood was everywhere. He could see them devouring entire colonies-worth of humans.
Seven figures stood in front of the Colonel. He suddenly looked around, and found himself in space overlooking the devastated colony of Reach, but still feeling like he was on solid ground. A bone-chillingly deep voice rang out.
"You think us defeated. You think us gone. You think wrong. We shall consume your entire species, and all others."
The figure in the center of the group stepped out of the shadows, revealing itself to be Carter, clad in his old Mk. 5 armor that he wore on Reach, but the armor was green in places, and the visor was a deep black.
"We are not a thing that you can comprehend, nor can you hope to defeat us. We lie in waiting, gathering our strength." The figure said.
The six others stepped forward, manifesting themselves as the rest of NOBLE and the Master Chief, all showing the same aesthetic deformations as Carter's double.
"We will return." All seven of them said in unison.
(End)
Carter finished snapping the pieces of his armor back into place, and tucked his helmet under his shoulder as he left his room.
What is happening?
He shook his head to clear these thoughts and walked into the firing range, which was more like a full-fledged training ground.
The room was huge, easily the size of the rest of the station. The other members of NOBLE were situated around an armory, getting a feel for different weapons.
"Hey, you made it." Jun commented as Carter walked over.
"Wouldn't miss it."
"Been a while since we all just… sat down." Jorge commented.
"Not all of us." Kat added.
"I know what you mean. I can't shake the feeling that they didn't die." Carter said.
"Well, I guess we can't do anything about it. Not until the spooks let us off this station anyway." Jun commented.
"I heard that we'll be put on the Infinity in about a month." Kat said.
"Heard, or hacked into secure terminals to find out?" Jorge asked.
"A little of both."
"Well, no sense just sitting around. Let's put this armor to the test." Carter said as he walked over to the control console.
He punched in a few commands, and the room transformed into a suburban cityscape, complete with buildings and rubble. Then he walked over to the armory and selected an M395 DMR and an M6H Magnum.
"Begin simulation!" He shouted.
Instantly, the team sprang into action. Kat swept the area with her MA5D AR, while Jun jumped onto one of the nearby rooftops to provide sniper support, and Jorge readied his M247H HMG.
"Colonel, hostiles approaching from the southwest. Permission to engage?" Jun reported.
"Negative, Three. We'll get the drop on them."
"Affirmative. Contacts are three Brute Captains leading a squad of Grunts."
"Copy that. Jorge, take up position behind that parking barrier. Kat, take cover in that building, find a window to fire out of."
"On it." Jorge said.
"Will do."
Carter slid behind a virtual car and slotted his DMR through the window. The first 'Grunt' came around the corner and was shot through the head.
"Engage!"
Jorge mounted his MG on the barrier and blasted the rest of the patrol, taking down a Brute and a pair of Grunts before having to reload.
"More behind us! Five Brutes, 3 Jackals, and ten Grunts, roughly." Jun reported.
"Take out as many as you can. Jorge, go help him."
"On it, sir."
Four cracks rang through the air, and Carter knew that between three and four enemies had fallen at his back. Jun rarely missed.
The sharp staccato of AR fire rang through the landscape, and bullets rained down on the patrol in front of the Colonel. Two Grunts went down, and a Brute lost its shields. Carter snapped off a quick shot, hitting the Brute in the throat and sending it to the ground. A second shot silenced its screams.
"Contacts neutralized-SHIT! Chieftains!" Jun shouted.
"Hang on! Kat, can you handle these guys?"
"A Brute and three Grunts? I'm insulted, Colonel. Even an ODST could handle them."
"Forget I said anything, then."
Carter jumped out of his cover and ran to Jorge and Jun, who were both backpedalling from a pair of Hammer-swinging maniacs-uh… Brutes… Yeah, Brutes. He put an entire magazine of DMR rounds into one and it still didn't go down. The other was right on top of him. It swung its hammer at Carter's stomach, which he caught and diverted into the ground. They were both catapulted into the air by the force. Carter landed on the ground behind the car he had been hiding behind before.
They were that close the whole time? He thought.
He got up and unholstered his M6H Magnum. He unloaded the clip into the Brute that he had fought before and it still didn't go down. So he threw a grenade. It finally went down.
"Done now, Colonel?" Jorge asked, walking up behind the virtual corpse.
"You could have helped."
"Didn't feel like it." Kat said.
"That's 'didn't feel like it, sir.'"
"Don't give us that BS, Colonel." Jun argued.
"Impressive work, Noble." A familiar voice said as the virtual battleground disappeared.
"Major Barnes. Good to see you again." Carter said, shaking the man's hand.
"You too, Commander."
"To you and the rest of the III's, it's Carter."
"Alright, then. Anyway, plans have changed: we're being deployed to the Infinity ASAP."
"Is it even completed?" Jorge asked.
"Most of it is, including the Spartan Deck. ONI wants us training the IV's as soon as we can. I guess that means now."
"Thanks. Get your gear, Noble. We're leaving."
"Finally." Jun said.
The next day, the Spartans left for the Infinity, and the facility was once again silent.
August 9, 2554. UNSC Infinity. Spartan Deck. (Happy birthday to me!)
Carter watched his Spartan IV trainees engage in a mock assault. One side was clad in blue SPI armor, while the other was in red. The reds were supposed to enter the blue base and retrieve a flag, and then return it to their own base on the other side of the room, about three football fields away. A secondary objective for the reds was to eliminate the leader of the blues, sporting an outdated MJOLNIR Mk. 5 helmet.
The blues had set up a manned MG turret, and had a pair of snipers, all armed with stun rounds, of course. They also had a three man patrol, and had three inside the base guarding the flag and their leader. Carter thought their chances of successfully repelling the 'attack' were fairly even.
The reds advanced up in groups of two, smart, considering that there were ten of them. They headed for each of the two entrances to the base, with three teams waiting back to reinforce.
"How are they turning out, Colonel?" The ship's XO, Commander Thomas Lasky, asked as he walked up.
"They're good, considering that they've been training for only 5 months."
Lasky had personally acquainted himself with each of the Spartans that had come on the Infinity before it was complete.
"Any outstanding characters yet?"
"A few. There's one in that base, Alex B-107; he's a natural leader: Former ODST squad leader, and before that, an MEU Commander."
"And the attackers?"
"The one with the gray marks, Alan B-084; he's a career marine as well, top marks in officer school, and the unofficial leader of Saffron squad, his team."
The reds had been seen, and a firefight had started. The blues had the advantage, as their gunner just rained stun rounds on the reds. That's when Carter realized what the reds were doing.
Those three teams weren't in reserve, they were the infiltration force, and the two other teams were a distraction. Clever, Alan. Carter thought.
The diversion worked: the defenders were so focused on the two diversionary teams that they didn't notice the three other teams slip into the base through the vents.
"Nice tactics, reminds me of my time at Corbulo academy on Circinius IV, before it was attacked by the Covenant." Lasky commented, as he too realized what the reds were up to.
"I heard the stories, but I never knew that you were there."
"That was even before anyone knew what the Covenant was. My teammate, Sullivan, found classified footage of a squad of marines fighting alongside Insurrectionists against the Covenant, and a pair of Spartans helping them."
"Remember which ones?"
"The footage was from one of the Spartan's helmets, but I think the other was SPARTAN-104, Fred. The details are a little fuzzy, up until the invasion."
"What happened?"
Lasky chuckled a little.
"All the cadets were asleep when the alarms started going off. It was chaos. No one knew what was going on. We were waiting in line to get off the planet on an evac shuttle, and one of our squadmates, Dima, got impatient, and forced her way on the first transport. That one was shot down by a CCS-class cruiser."
"Harsh."
"That's not the worst part. By a long shot."
By now, the blues had caught wind of the reds plan and had reinforced the interior of the base.
"We ran, until we found my dorm room. We hid inside, and we heard this marine shooting at something. I poked my head out, and there was an Elite, stabbing the man with its sword. It cloaked and hunted us all through the academy, finally cornering us in the weapons room. The lockers were locked, and we couldn't open them, so we hid. I remember crouching behind the wall, trying so hard not to breathe too loudly, and also trying to find the Elite. It splashed a puddle of water next to us. My squad leader, Vickers, tried to distract it by throwing a fire extinguisher at it, but he was killed, too. Then the Elite found us. I remember staring into its helmeted face, and seeing it relish the fact that it had five humans terrified for their lives. Then it fell over, and there was another Spartan, holding a combat knife. He saved us all."
"Who was it? The Spartan?" Carter asked.
Lasky paused for a moment, and drew in a deep breath.
"It was the Chief."
"I'm sorry. It must have been hard to hear that he's dead."
"He's not. The Chief's a survivor, and so are all Spartans. We'll find them. I know it."
Lasky and Carter exchanged a salute and the XO returned to the Command deck.
The reds had been pushed out of the base, with only three survivors. One went down as a blue sniper hit his helmet, and the other two fell back to their base.
"That's enough! End simulation!" Carter shouted as he jumped down and joined the trainees.
"Number-084, step forward!"
He did so, and snapped a crisp salute as he did so.
"Sir!"
"Your tactics were solid. A diversion to allow you main force in is a dependable, but also predictable tactic against those with any experience on the battlefield. You won't always be facing trainees, so adapt that style, and you and your team will be great infiltrators."
"Thank you, sir! I'll do my best!"
"Another tip, you don't always have to have just two teams, with more experience leading, you'll be able to micro-manage any number of teams."
"Yes, sir!"
Alan stepped back into line.
"Number 107, step forward!"
He repeated what Alan had done.
"Sir!"
"You did well today. Your defenses were solid and you used the soldiers under your command effectively. But make sure for next time that you monitor all entryways into your base."
"Yes, sir!"
"Report to the war room. Commander B-320 will be teaching you all how to hack a secure terminal."
"Sir, yes sir!"
They all removed and stored their SPI armor and left for the war room.
Carter removed his helmet and leaned against a nearby bulkhead.
"Little more than you're used to, Colonel?"
Carter shot up and looked over to the source of the voice.
"Lieutenant Buck. Good to see you again."
"You too, Colonel."
The two Spartans exchanged a handshake and leaned up against the bulkhead again.
"Hard to believe it's been almost two years since I met you and the rest of Noble."
"Not all of it."
"I talked with Jorge and Kat. You're a hell of a leader, Carter. You know that?"
"I wouldn't go that far, LT."
"I would. You handled what happened on Installation 05 and Earth with efficiency that any soldier would aspire to. Most would have panicked with the Flood knocking on their helmets. You didn't. These trainees hold a great deal of respect towards you and all of NOBLE Team for that."
"Thanks. How are the rest of the Spartans holding up?" Carter said, referring to the surviving I's, II's, and III's.
"Johnson… well, he's Johnson, so he's pushing them as hard as regulations allow him to. I don't know about many of the II's, since they hate ODST's. The III's are holding up well, all nine of you."
"It's a shame to the Spartan Corps that more didn't survive."
"Just goes to show you that even if we're super-soldiers, we're still human."
"Yeah."
"It's been good talking to you, Carter. Take care of yourself."
"You too, Buck."
Lieutenant Buck left, and once again, Carter was alone with his thoughts.
This is so different than what I expected. I thought this would be… tougher. That's okay, though. Just means that I have to push them a little harder.
October 17th, 2556. UNSC Infinity, Command Deck. 0900 Standard Military Time.
"Get on the horn to FLEETCOM, tell them what's happened." Captain Andrew Del Rio ordered.
"Yes, sir!"
"Colonel, assemble your team, you're going groundside."
"Sir! Method of entry?" Carter asked over the comms.
"Hard-drop. 20 minutes."
When Carter arrived in the armory he found the rest of NOBLE assembled around a computer.
"Did I miss something?" Carter asked as he walked up behind them.
"Not much. What's down there that's so important, Colonel?"
"A Forerunner artifact. We're going to secure it, and the Infinity is going to tow it up to Ivanoff Research Station."
"Just us?" Jun asked.
"Probably the IV's will back us up."
"There are almost 3,000 of them. That's going to be a grand target for any Covenant forces that still hate us." Jorge pointed out.
"That's precisely why all of them are coming."
"Alright. When do we leave, and by what means?" Jun asked.
"13 minutes. Hard-drop."
"Copy that." Jorge said as they went to work assembling their gear.
"This is the Captain. All Spartan personnel are to assemble gear and prep for hard-drop. Drop in 13 minutes. Del Rio out."
The Spartan deck became organized chaos: Spartans walked to and fro, assembling armor and weapons, then moving to check misc. gear, and finally assembling in the drop bay.
"Spartans: we are dropping onto this Halo, and securing a Forerunner artifact for the Infinity to take to Ivanoff Research station. Any questions?" Spartan IV Commander Sarah Palmer said.
"Any hostiles in the immediate area?" One IV asked.
"That's what we're going to find out."
"When do we drop?" Chief Warrant Officer Avery Johnson asked.
"Now. To your pods, ASAP."
The assembled Spartans clambered into their pods.
"Spartans, we are green and very, VERY mean!" Captain Buck, Palmer's second-in-command, announced over the comms.
10 seconds later, roughly 3,000 drop pods exploded out of the bottom of the Infinity, heading for the ring, and the artifact that would come to be known as the Composer.
December 19, 2556. UNSC Infinity. Command Deck.
"What the hell are these?" Captain Del Rio said.
"Sir, these are coordinates. Slipspace coordinates." Commander Lasky told him.
"What's on the other side?"
"R&D says it might be another similar artifact, or a Forerunner world. Your guess is as good as mine."
"Roland, plot a course for these coordinates. We're going in. Lieutenant Faison, inform FLEETCOM of the situation."
"Yes, sir. Message away."
"Activate the Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Generators."
"Done, sir. All hands, brace for Slipspace jump."
The Infinity's Slipspace generators tore a hole in real-space, and the warship was gone.
March 4th, 2557. UNSC Infinity, Spartan Deck.
"NOBLE Team, report to the bridge." The ship's AI, Roland announced over the intercom.
The four Spartans walked onto the bridge in full armor and saluted.
"Spartan NOBLE Team reporting as ordered." Carter said.
"Over here, NOBLE." Lasky said.
They walked over, and caught the tail end of an emergency beacon.
"-Victor Zero Five dash Three dash Sierra Zero One-One-Seven."
"Play it again, Roland." Lasky said.
"Mayday, mayday, mayday. This is UNSC FFG-201 Forward Unto Dawn requesting immediate evac. Survivors aboard, prioritization code: Victor Zero Five dash Three dash Sierra Zero One-One-Seven." A very calm female voice said.
"That's… Cortana." Jun said.
"I noticed that, too." Lasky added.
"You were right all those years ago, Commander." Carter said.
"Seems that way. We tracked the beacon into the planet."
"The planet is hollow?" Kat asked.
"Put bluntly, yes."
"Then we need to get inside and find them." Carter said.
"The Captain agrees. We're already going in."
The Infinity descended towards the Forerunner planet, and the biggest threat to humanity in almost four years.
DONE! That's that! Next up, the four years spent on the Aft section of the Dawn, mainly just a few flashbacks to the Chief's adventures on Installation 04. Almost to H4! Just one. More. Chapter! OH… I CAN'T WAIT! I gotta start writing that next chapter. I know that updates have been very sporadic, but I will try to get up to 2 chapters posted per week. That's the goal, anyway. But I have been… distracted. BY BOW SHOOTING! But for now…
MASTER CHIEF! (#3 on the list!)
