Author's Note: Alright, so I was quicker updating this time. Chapter is kinda short, but next chapter will have more action.
Chapter 9: Ascension
As the light faded into the ground around his feet Nathan immediately took in his surroundings. The three had been teleported inside some kind of structure. The walls were a gray metal of some kind, and the ceiling was a few hundred feet up. The extensive corridors stretched on until they faded into the gloomy shadows that filled the structure.
The first thing Fenris heard was a faint skittering, and the distant growl of a flood warrior.
"We can't stay still long. We'll be overrun if we stay indoors," she informed her comrades.
"We will not be here long," the high, almost snobby voice of Guilty Spark said as the construct floated down to their eye level.
"What is this place?" Jimaelhae asked.
"This is the library, and it is here were we will find the transport needed to get to the Ark," Guilty Spark informed the trio.
As Guilty Spark was explaining about a ship that would be launched into the centre of Halo then fired through hyperspace back to Earth, she felt something pulling at her. She turned to face down the corridor, staring into the shadows.
"Where are you going?" Nathan asked grabbing her shoulder. Fenris blinked and looked back at him, only then realizing she had started walking away from them to follow whatever it was that was tugging at her soul.
"I'm not quite sure, but there's something down that way," Fenris said.
"Yes, that is the way that led to the index, however the index has already been taken. We must proceed onwards," Guilty Spark said.
"We can, and we will, but I am going to check out what's down there," Fenris said, and started walking again. Nathan and Jimaelhae decided to trust her instincts. Those instincts had after all saved them before. They walked for a few minutes, in silence with the exception of Guilty Spark who complained the entire way.
Finally Fenris took a right turn and walked up to one of the walls. She placed her hands on the wall, feeling it.
"Behind this," she said.
"There is nothing here, you are mistaken, now follow me," Guilty Spark stated.
Fenris moved her hands down the wall. There was a slight hiss and a section of the wall opened. Nathan and Jimaelhae smiled despite themselves. They both already had a great dislike for the machine following them, and to see it proved wrong was priceless to them.
"This doorway isn't in any of my records," Guilty Spark said, surprise obvious in his voice.
"That's because the Forerunners didn't want you to know about it," Fenris said as she stepped through the door. The other three followed her into the room.
Cerberus stumbled into the camp, covered in dirt and blood. Brutes and Jackals watched him walk past, determined as he was to get to Barkarus's tent. He had not stopped moving since he had left the elite's temple, and he would report the success of his mission, to kill the elites inhabiting the ruins.
After wandering through the camp, Cerberus soon stood in front of the chieftain's tent. Cerberus stood proud, not caring that doing so reopened the wound on his chest, sending another trickle of fresh blood to run down over his fur.
Barkarus emerged from the tent, and he looked at his chief soldier.
"The elites are dead chieftain," Cerberus said.
"If the elites are all dead then where are the rest of your brutes?" Barkarus asked, crossing his arms over his chest, glaring at Cerberus.
"They were all killed by a demon," Cerberus explained, the memory of the axe being planted in his chest replaying in his mind's eye.
"The demon was trapped on High Charity. Consumed by the flood by now. How could he be here to kill you brutes?" Barkarus demanded, rage beginning to fill his mind.
"Not the demon we have been warned about. A demon that we have not seen before. She killed brutes with her bare hands, tore out their throats. I've seen the damage she's done," Cerberus said, standing straighter to allow a better view of the wound on his chest.
"Another demon? I thought the others had all been killed on that wretched planet Reach," Barkarus said, slightly confused. The prophets had told him the others were all killed.
"No, this one was different. She appeared at first to be just another marine, but inside she was not human," Cerberus said.
"Regardless, there is a cruiser in orbit. We will leave this second demon here to fight the flood alone. We are going to Earth, where we will be able to crush the Humans once and for all, there is nothing else here for us," Barkarus commanded, and he headed back inside his tent. Cerberus stared at the tent into which his chieftain had disappeared for a moment before turning away and disappearing into the camp.
Compared to the hallway this room was tiny, but it looked as if would be able to hold about thirty people without getting cramped. On the far wall was an old tablet with alien writing across it. Along the two side walls were human sized capsules, all had a red light above them.
"What is this place?" Nathan asked.
"It appears to be a preparation chamber of some form. It appears similar to our own, however the technology here is much older," Jimaelhae explained, glancing over the room.
"Can you read the tablet?" Fenris asked.
"No, this writing is more ancient than our historians know," Jimaelhae replied, stepping further into the room.
Fenris followed, and as soon as she crossed the threshold, the light above one of the capsules turned to green. With a slight frown Fenris started towards the capsule. With each step the pains in her body became ever more intense. Her hands were twitching, and blood was running from her nose.
"Jesus Christ, help her," Nathan yelled out, about to run forward when Jimaelhae grabbed the marine.
"She knows what she does. This is her destiny," the Sangheili warrior said quietly.
Fenris stood in front of the capsule, as the brown evaporated from her eyes, once again becoming the brilliant hazel and gold color. She struggled to raise her hands and placed them on the cold metal of the capsule. With a hiss the seal was broken and the front of the capsule lifted up.
Inside was a pair of blades the length of Fenris's arm, and a suit of armor. As she reached inside her headache vanished, her hands stopped twitching, and her nose stopped bleeding. She pulled out the blades, and found that her hands fit the grips perfectly.
"The reclaimer awakens," Jimaelhae said softly.
Cerberus looked up into the sky as the covenant cruiser lowered itself from orbit. The remainder of the covenant forces on the sacred ring were gathered here, ready to depart for Earth. Once there the remaining humans would be crushed.
However, the brute could not shake the thought of the woman that had nearly killed him. Though Barkarus believed leaving her here would solve the problem, Cerberus was not so sure. If there was any way at all off this ring, she would find it. She would find it and hunt them down, and kill them.
Cerberus shook his head; it wouldn't do to have such thoughts of defeat in his head when preparing for the final battles. This invasion would be the last in the war, no matter the outcome.
The cruiser stopped lowering itself, and hovered a few thousand feet in the air. From the bottom a large metal disk detached and lowered to the ground, held in place by a translucent purple beam; the gravity lift that would load the troops into the hull of the cruiser.
Soon the great journey would begin.
Fenris pulled the last bracer on over her forearm. The dark grey armor fit her perfectly, and protected all her vital organs. The cuirass covered her torso completely, and had edges along her stomach. The back had two sheaths for the blades, and two shoulder pads protected the shoulders. Her upper arms were bare, but bracers with edges running up them covered her forearms, connecting to gauntlets that still left her fingers unprotected, but flexible. There were plates over her groin, upper legs, knees, and a pair of boots that nearly went up to her knees.
She had let her hair loose, so that it fell around her shoulders in a cascade of raven black. She turned to face her two comrades and the construct that was following them.
"How do you feel?" Nathan asked, almost cautiously, his gaze flicking to the pile of her old UNSC Marine Corps issued armor. She was still wearing the fatigues, though she had cut the arm sleeves off of her shirt.
"Better than I had for a long time, lets get going. Nothing else in here," came the reply as Fenris picked up her shotgun and battle rifle.
"Quickly now, the flood know we are here now, they'll be here any minute," Guilty Spark exclaimed, and floated out of the room. Fenris sighed, and followed after the construct. Nathan and Jimaelhae were not far behind.
Barkarus smiled as his troops began to pile onto the gravity lift. They marched on by fives, and were carried up through the air into the cruiser. It wouldn't be long now.
Shots rang out from the edges of the small army. Then screams. Barkarus looked out over the sea of his warriors to see what the problem was.
"The Flood are here," someone called out.
"No, not now," Barkarus said. He picked up his hammer, he would not let anything stop him now.
"Battle is upon us, fight them back. Kill them all," Barkarus roared above the din of the quickly escalating battle.
In the midst of the chaos Cerberus felt dread twist his gut. He wasn't strong enough yet to give his full potential in battle. He knew if Barkarus stayed the Covenant would loose, and if they got to the gravity lift. They would be released upon the galaxy.
"Don't let them get to the gravity lift," Cerberus tried to yell.
That was until he saw one figure in particular emerge from the jungle with the hordes of Flood warriors.
Captain Miranda Keyes.
Author's Note: the blades Fenris has now look like the blades that appeared onthe heoric and legendary difficulty icons from the game. I had to fit them in.