Chapter 13 – 1955 Hours
I had been at the range for an hour, simply firing Battle Rifle bursts at steel targets. Even with my sound-dampening headset I could still hear someone walking up to me, telling me that the Flood blood was gaining more ground in me. I put the safety on and turned around to greet Johnson.
"Simple minds are easily amused, huh?" he asked.
"I guess so, but mine is, too," I replied. "So, what has my squad been doing around the ship?"
"Oh, they're messing the place up. Nicholson and Davis are spraying the mess hall with Silly String like you suggested, and I think Posada and Cummins are running through the halls firing dummy rounds at each other. I've heard so many complaints over the radio, but no permanent damage has been done yet." I was cracking up.
"Oh my God," I laughed, "I didn't think they'd get that crazy. Give me your radio." I turned it on and started talking to my squad. "Listen up, Marines. That's enough havoc for one day. Now start getting ready for that meeting," I radioed.
"Yes, sir," they replied sadly. The radio clicked on and I heard Colonel call for me.
"Henson, where the hell are you? Over."
"I'm at the firing range, sir. What so you need? Over."
"About time you responded. I need you and Johnson in the briefing room right now. Your squad still comes at the time I told you earlier.
"Dammit. This isn't about the reports of small arms fire, is it?"
"What reports? There's been small arms fire?"
"No, sir, not at all," I quickly replied. "I'll be right there. Over and out." I turned the radio off. "Oh shit, this has to be important. Let's go." I slung my rifle over my shoulder and we made our way to the briefing room. I noticed that the Arbiter and a few other Elites were there as well. "Well, at least I'm not in trouble," I whispered to Johnson.
"Not yet, anyways," he whispered back. We sat down and Colonel started talking.
"Lieutenant, I have reported back to UNSC headquarters about our current status. No, your secret's safe, so don't worry about being dissected. ONI and the Arbiter had a meeting and have decided that we should know our ally's culture. Thus, you are to live in a Covenant rebel setting so that you can teach them our culture. You will be accompanied by Sergeant Johnson, Commander Keyes, and you can choose any other female Marine. In return, the rebels will send two Elites and two Grunts to live here on the Concrescence. We have agreed that this is the best way to fully learn each other's cultures."
"How long will we be living with them?" I asked.
"We haven't determined a preset amount of time so that you don't feel rushed or anything. You're free to take your time and learn about some of their customs first, if you wish. Any other questions?"
"Yes. Why have you chosen the three of us for this assignment?"
"The Arbiter requested you because of your brilliance in battle. I chose Johnson and Keyes because of their overall experience with several enemies."
"Well, Johnson I can understand, but I still think that Keyes is a little wet behind the ears." I saw a confused look on the Arbiter's face. "I don't think she's ready for this kind of thing." Arbiter nodded to show that he understood."
"Well, she's also proven to have a level of discretion that surpasses what you two have. Either way, she's going. So, have you chosen a Marine yet?"
"First Sergeant Davis. We're good friends and she's different enough from Keyes so that the rebels won't get the same girly-girl story twice. What can we take with us?"
"We have agreed that you can take anything but UNSC weapons and munitions. This is so you can become familiarized with their weaponry. You're also limited to what you can fit into a jumper pod."
"Good. I can take MRE's until I'm used to their food. So, anything but guns and ammo?"
"That's correct. Now go and get your equipment ready. Dismissed." We stood up, saluted, and left the room.
"Dude, this is bullshit. I was just getting used to the Concrescence, too. I wonder how Keyes and Davis will take this," I said as we walked back to my squad's room.
"Keyes already knows. She wasn't too happy about the idea of being stuck with you for an undetermined amount of time," Johnson replied.
"Trust me, the feeling's mutual. My squad will know something's up, so you want to be there when I tell 'em?"
"Sure. It's not like I have any shit to pack." When we got to the room my squad immediately knew something was wrong.
"Davis, pack all of your stuff. Leave your weapons on the Concrescence. No, not you, Brad, just Davis."
"Sir, what the hell's going on? Keyes came in muttering something about being stuck with you again, so what's up?" Davis asked.
"You'll learn later at the briefing room. Just start packing."
"We're not getting sent back to Earth, are we? No, they can't give me a desk job! Damn them!"
"It's not a desk job, but it is a big change from being a Helljumper. Before we leave, I want to tell you guys about how I decided to join the UNSC, since I've heard about why you all did." Everyone took a seat on their bunks while I moved to sit on mine. "It was about 18 years ago while I was still in high school. I still lived in one of the outer colonies, the ones that have had the bejesus bombed out of them by the Covenant. My dad had been a General in the Corps before he retired, so he had lots of old military weapons. We learned that a wave of Covenant was coming near our sector, so my family moved closer to a military base. I decided to still go to school where I had been going. The Covenant fleet was dangerously close, so I armed my friends with weapons, most of which I had made myself since I was a fan of early 21st century guns…"