Chapter Three

April 28th, 2550, Unknown Slip-space Coordinates, En route to New Cantabria Rebel Colony.

The pod shook violently as if in any second could start to fall apart. Even so Mark kept his calm; this was no different than the regular drop pods the ODSTs used to assault high valued targets. He hoped the other members for this mission were doing well in their own pod. But he couldn't be sure of anything; slip-space was wild and unpredictable, which was the only thing they could predict in such voyages. Even the best technology and physicist of the UNSC couldn't resolve to accurately pinpoint trajectories and many times, ships came from normal space a million kilometers from they were supposed to re-appear. But everyone who used slip-space had to admit that it was damn handy after all, reducing many costs and some other risks as the ones of being attacked on their way to their destination.

As the minutes passed, Mark reviewed once again the mission detail in his mind. Once he knew what he wanted to see exactly, he made the information start to display themselves on his helmet VISR Database. The first thing he noted and complimented was how much navigation and data Captain Du Point had gathered, making him wonder how long it had taken to assemble all of it and to make a clear database of it. Of course, she hadn't do the work on her own, but considering that she was the head of the mission, it had been up to her to contact the necessary informants, create the networks that would be assembling the information and finally organize and recognize the truth in all the data that would come in. And it was rare to see a rapport without any rubbish or non-sense.
But there was one thing that bothered him: the lack of information about the reports and rumors of Jackal ships being in the area. Had she been unable to get anything interesting about that matter? Even so, she would have included the rapports in the mission's database...The question Mark was asking himself right now was if the rebels were dealing with the enemy?

If that was the case, then the mission got more complicated and would have more risks added to the ones that had already been mentioned. The man's mind vaguely questioned Du Point's motives and the possibility of an eventual betrayal. He had discovered her as a smart and sly woman who knew what she wanted and knew how to get it. It could be a possibility that she hadn't added the information about the Jackals because she had seen it as irrelevant or that she would be using them as the necessary sacrifices for this mission. If that was the case, he would still have appreciated it if she told them about it. That way less misunderstandings would be possible as well a better cooperation and planning for him and his men (and woman).
In either case, if they found Jackals, they could fight evenly. But experience told him that there was never smoke without a fire and that if a covenant bastard was there, more were near. And if they had to face Elites, they would have real troubles.

He shook his head, stopping his mind from over thinking about the whole situation. Focus on the mission, he told himself. He would deal with this as soon as they landed.

The silence in the pod was heavy and minutes seemed to be hours when suddenly the transport shook harder and in a fading blue flash warned him that they were entered normal space. He sighed in relief when he saw that his pod had dodged a meteor shower. As he checked to see if the other pods had come out of the slip-space, he gave a thought about the luck they just had. Coming out of slip-space, behind a meteor shower was now a plus for this mission. All the pods checked in, including that of the Captain; once it would be possible, he would ask question and she answer to them. And that meant that he'd have to wait until they landed; protocol ordered him not to transmit such important matters through the radio. You never knew what for people would be listening to it. And being intercepted on such matters could risk the mission's success and his men's lives.

Minutes later the pods plummeted to the planet, following the trail of the burning meteors. From the orbit the planet looked almost earth-like. Vast blue oceans, deserts and icy white mountain ranges surrounded by large green forests. Almost something of a picture, as the fire engulfed the pod; he took time to see the beautiful scene from the only window of his pod. Of all the worlds he had seen since he became a soldier, this had to be in the top five, with planet Reach being the eternal number one.

As the flames that engulfed the pod died and the pod shook one last time, reminding how the travelling in slip space before landing. Many who did the first drop would soil their pants, but by now he was used to it, loving the rush of adrenaline that he felt as the pod fell rapidly to the ground. He tightly gripped the steering controls, out of pure habit than necessity, as the pod's computer calculated the trajectory and best landing zone. Though, you never knew. It was better if he could correct the course manually in any second.

As the ground came ever closer, Mark could see in vivid detail a large valley that was crossed by a river and a large forest. The mountains of the valley were capped with recently fallen snow, which reflected the the light of the planet's suns. In mere seconds the pod's computer activated the rockets to slow down the fall, and the drag-chute was deployed instantly softening the fall even more. Then in what seemed to be a split second the pod crash landed in a clearing in the forest with a lot of noise and damage to the ground it had reached. The pod's hatch slowly opened, and Mark took down his M6C, letting his eyes scan the area in front of him. It was clear.

He stepped out of the pod and began 'unpacking', aka gathering his gear. As he did so, another pod touched down near his position, the ripped off grass and roots flying around him and landing on him and in the pod. Once he had stripped down the ammo and rations out of his pod, he placed a demo-charge in it, standard procedure to ensure nothing fell in enemy's hands during an infiltration operation. Once he had made sure everything was secured and that he was ready, the leader quickly moved through the trees and located the other pod; it had crashed on top large stones, giving some damage to the transport middle, having scratched the paint off. As he came closer to the pod, the hatch opened and a slender figure in a special ODST armor emerged from it, the steps and moves of the person being a little shaky. It was Captain Du Point. She noticed him immediately, her sharp eyes not missing a single detail of what happened around her. Miss Hawkeye would have been an accurate name for her, really.

"Sergeant, it's good to find that you made It." she said with her usual cool tone, seemingly undisturbed from her rather rough landing. "Have the others checked in?"

"Not yet, Ma'am… But I haven't checked on them yet." he replied while she started to retrieve her gear.

"Then by all means contact them Sergeant, we can't waste our time." Du Point said, as she came walking to him, ready for action and looking slightly annoyed with the fact he hadn't contacted anyone yet.

"Yes ma'am." Mark replied with a vague salute and quickly switched to the encrypted channel. "Maddy, you there?"

The first response he got was just noises and interferences. Then in the noise slowly disappeared and heard something close to someone tried to re-establish the connection. He repeated the message again until someone finally answered him.

"Work dammit..." he suddenly heard the familiar voice mutter. He chuckled and the woman at the other side of the line immediately got back to her usual stern and serious attitude, replying to his message.

"Mark, I copy you loud and clear, my comlink was busted from the landing, but it should be alright by now." She sounded relieved to know he had made it. Madeleine might be a frightening woman by times and never seem perturbed by anything gruesome that could happen in front of her, but she was always worried about her teammates, how bothersome they could be. It was sort of reassuring to know that someone was always caring 24/7, especially when your nerves were about to snap from the tension.
"Is the Captain with you?"

"Yeah she is, we were about to go scout and set a rendezvous point. You, go find the guys and tell them that they have to remain close to you. And if they don't, you have the right to kick their asses." He was glad she was safe, but he knew that she was tougher than him, resisting to the biggest hells that a human could face. And that he didn't have any reason to second guess her.
Mark could imagine her grin like a mad man at the other side of the micro, from the prospect of kicking some idiots around. Something close to a smile appeared on his lips for a second, only to disappear and the normal, serious line that his lips made, to come back. "Take care Maddy, see you on the other side, out."

"Yeah, yeah, see you in the other side Mark, out." she replied curtly and the connection died.

"Well, at least we know Corporal Bakker is doing well." Du Point said while staring at him through the depolarized face plate of her helmet, an eyebrow raised from the familiar and relaxed language that had been used in the conversation. "I saw a small post not far from here. We can set a rendezvous point there."

And upon those words, she started to lead the way, not leaving him the time to add anything to the conversation.
Both of them moved without making a sound, only with an occasional stop for her to check the surroundings or when an unusual move ahead of them made them prepare to fire, only to find a stray wild animal being busy with whatever it was soing. He took a minute to wonder about the trees of the forest, they reminded him about the forest of Earth and Reach, bringing old, happy memories back. Suddenly she stopped, crouching down and holding her fist high above her head.

"We got two tangos ahead; I got eyes on the post." she said coolly as ever, seeming undisturbed or worried by what was ahead of them. Two enemy soldiers were ahead, both of them having a tall stature and dressed in jungle combat garbs. It was highly possible that they were out to scout patrol. Both men held a pair of outdated but powerful .30 caliber machine guns, dubbed confetti makers for their powerful stopping power and armor piercing capabilities. Both soldiers were talking and taking a smoke break

The captain made a signal which clearly meant "Tap them out, sergeant." Mark nodded and sneaked closer to the enemy. From his helmet HUD he could now see the outlines of the enemy soldiers.

He pulled out his M6C and black combat knife, preparing for his attack. He took cover behind a tree, a few feet to the left of the two enemies. He now could clearly hear them talking and the smoke of the cigarette was even more visible.. He tightly gripped both the knife and handgun, taking a last deep breath and slipped the last distance between them without making a sound.
"Hey, Suzy!"
It was his trademark yell before attacking and couldn't help himself from using it over and over again, loving the reaction from the opponent whenever they heard it. Mark sprinted towards both of the soldiers, who once they heard the exclamation looked into his direction, raising their guns. But it was too late: Mark, with a swift slashing motion from his knife, had already slit the throat of the closest soldier, then had risen his M6C/SOCOM, aiming without hesitation and pulled his trigger, that in a whisper quiet second ended the life of the second soldier by a shot in his forehead. The bodies fell down with a dull sound, blood staining the green of the grass and bushes, arms and legs placed in awkward positions, one shoulder having broken from the impact against a stone on which the first soldier had landed.

"Tangos down." he reported, after having made sure both enemies were dead. Then, Du Point finally made her entrance on the scene, aiming her gun towards the corpses. At first, he felt somewhat vexed from that gesture that seemed to show her distrust towards him. But when he noticed the slight trembling of her hands, even as her faceplate was polarized he knew her eyes were darting from one body to the other, he could tell her discomfort. Perhaps they were the first humans she had seen killed in such a cold blooded fashion. Kills, no murders, she had ordered to happen.

"Sergeant... I think we found our rendezvous point." She said after a deep, shaky breath to regain her composure.

"I agree Ma'am, I'll send the coordinates." Mark said after dragging the bodies behind some trees. Once he was done with that, he contacted the rest of the team.
"Cupcake, you found the boys?"

"Don't call me that." Madeleine snarled back, making him grin innerly. "And yes, they're still intact, thank god. Did you find the meeting point? And-"
Thomas interrupted her, babbling about something in the background, which he couldn't understand. She snapped something back at the younger soldier, which he couldn't understand either, making him guess that he had made her life impossible already. He rolled his eyes at the usual "Yes, mom" from the technophile of the squad and the insult that slipped from Maddy's lips.

"Yeah, I'll send you the coordinates." he quickly replied before the fight went on. "Meet you and the guys in twenty minutes and please do shut up."
And upon that, he shut the transmission line down and send the information without any other delay. Talking to a pissed off Maddy wasn't something pleasant. And having to face an angry Maddy was even less fun.
All he could to now was waiting in silence. He plopped down on a root of a tree that reached his waist, giving himself some sort of rest before any more action. Du Point for her part seemed to want to spill her energy into pacing in circles like a caged bear. Mark looked up to the sky, admiring the blueness of it. Soon, very soon, they would be storming that post. The real mission had just started.