They'll remember usall, one day; Freelancers and A.I.s alike. And if they don't, I'll personally make sure they do by crippling them to their foundationsmyself. 'Til they are practically begging me for death, and that's when I'll take off my black helmet. There will be no death mask of animosity for them; when they die by my hands, I want them to know my face. I want them to see the eyes of the monster they made me into. Those eyes...I want those cold, emerald eyes to haunt them right into the afterlife. And, when our job is done, you are right. You and I...we'll die together, doing what we do best. So don't you damn well be late!
-T

We failed.

That's the only way to put it, really. Blunt, to the point. We managed to get into the facility...that part was a success, but when we got in there, to where they were holding the Alpha...God, I've never seen Tex so distraught. We had arrived too late – the unit had fractured beyond repair. She tried over and over to get through to it, to communicate with the Alpha, but it did not recognise her...I think that destroyed her more than anything. Perhaps even more so than its treatment...

That was when Gamma and Omega, who were both responsible for Alpha's current state, remotely set the alarms and the guards came flooding in. We almost didn't make it out because Tex just would not move. It was like she didn't want to move anymore. I can't say I blame her either. All this time planning, only for it to come to nothing in the cruellest way possible...I think it would've broke any one of us had we been in Tex's shoes. Anyway, I had physically drag her out of there before we were all killed, and lead all seven of us out of there in her place. I didn't release my grip of her until we were far enough away from Avalanche and I was sure we were all safe; that they wouldn't find us.

When I finally let Tex go, she just collapsed. Collapsed to her knees in a black heap, head hung low. She did not cry, being far too strong in character for that, but I sensed she wanted to. She likely wanted to beat herself up, or someone else up, too. But she didn't move. None of us really did. We just hung around, all in the dumps. I desperately wanted to console Tex, tell her everything was all right, but I knew not how. Not only that, I knew she wouldn't take that crap, and I knew in my heart it would be a lie. Nothing was all right anymore. The Alpha was as good as gone now. We were too late to save it.

Despite not having eaten in years, due to my armour sustaining me, I tentatively asked if anyone had any rations on them, and offered to cook them up for all of us, if just so that we could all take our mind off recent events. South said she had some, and C.T offered me a few of hers, too, along with an old army rations tin to cook the food in. Creating a basic and rather crude fire, I began to cook, and the smell of smoke and cooking food through the vents of my helmet soon eased my mind. The food took less time to cook than I thought it would, and soon, the majority of us all had our helmets off and were tucking into the rations in silence.

Tex was the only one who didn't join us. She just stayed where I left her, still in a despairing heap on the ground. None of us were going to push her into moving. If she wanted to join us, she would do so in her own time and on her own terms, I figured. By the time we were nearly finished eating, however, she still hadn't moved. If I wasn't concerned for Tex before, I was now. I'd never seen her look so lost, deflated...defeated. Before I could voice my concerns, she finally seemed to come to life and shifted around to face us. I noted her head was still bowed, like she didn't want to look us all in the eye; like she felt guilty. We were soon to find out how much.

"It's all my fault..." She whispered gently; meekly. "I failed..."
"No, it's not." North was surprisingly quick to console her. "These things happen, Tex. Some things are beyond our control. And, besides, it wasn't just you involved in this operation. We all had our parts to play."
I stared at North. He had never been close to Tex, not in the way I was, yet he had managed to make an attempt at consoling her where I couldn't. I waited to see what would happen next.
"No." The reply was blunt, devoid of emotion, but more forceful, like the Tex I once knew. "I was in charge of this rescue. And I failed. I let you all down. I let your A.I.s down. And perhaps worst of all, I let the Alpha down. When it needed me most...I failed it...and now it's as good as gone..."
It was my turn to feel guilty. If Tex hadn't found me, would she have gotten to the A.I. sooner? Would she have, alongside the other rogue Freelancers, been able to get to it in time and salvage it from the brink? These and many more questions drifted through my head. The frustrating thing was that I'd never be able to answer the questions, because it was too late. I desperately wanted to say it was my fault, but no words would come to my lips. I was choking on air.
"Come on, Tex, don't beat yourself up over this." York consoled her calmly, like he often did with me back in the Freelancer days. "We all knew this mission was never going to be easy. We all knew that, even with a plan as foolproof as ours, we had very little chance of success. Look at it this way – you should still be proud; not many can lead a successful break-in into a highly guarded Freelancer base. The after effects of this will still be felt for a while yet. This will shake up Freelancer, I bet you anything. And it will teach them a lesson – that they can't mess around with us."
We all watched as Tex rose. Awkwardly. "I'll...I'll be back later. I need some fresh air."
With that, she strode on past us all and left our sheltered location, not even looking back. I noticed C.T try to rise after her, but I stopped her with a grab to the nearest wrist.
"Don't." I told her. "Let her be and have some time alone. She has a lot of things to think about."

Tex was gone a long time. I don't know how long exactly, but I do remember it was starting to get dark outside (for once) when York decided that someone ought to go and search for her. Seeing as I had the best relationship with the black armoured soldier, I decided to go. I didn't bother with my helmet; I wagered it probably wouldn't take long to find her and the weather wasn't too bad currently, if but a little chilly.

In the end, it took me half an hour to find her. She was just sat on a rock, helmetless, her red hair blowing in the wind. I couldn't see her face, but her whole body seemed to be exuding that same defeated aura I had felt before when she had been collapsed in a heap.

"What do you want?" Tex spoke quietly without turning around. I was sure there was a hint of anger in her tone, so I thought it wise to tread carefully.
"Nothing. I just came to find you, is all." I told her straight. "They are worried about you, you know."
"Yeah, well they shouldn't be." I was shocked at the bitterness in her voice. "None of them really cared for me in the past; why should they give a damn now?"
"Tex, this isn't Freelancer." I reminded her, trying not to make my voice sound reprimanding. "Things are different now."
"Damn right they are!" She whirled around to face me, and I could see the full extent of her fury in her eyes. "I want nothing but to raze those assholes to the floor! Destroy them like they destroyed the Alpha! They deserve nothing but torture for what they did to that poor A.I. unit. You saw it, Hunt. Alpha didn't even recognise me anymore..." She trailed off, pounding the rock she was sat on with a fist. "And they'll get away with it. It's not fair, Hunt. It's not fair."

Hesitantly, I approached Tex, and laid a tentative, but sympathetic, hand on one of her shoulders. There was a brief moment of silence as I straightened what I was going to say to her in my head. Finally, I spoke:
"Nothing worthwhile ever is, Tex. Life's a bit crap like that." I told her gently. "But, just because things seem unfair now, doesn't mean they will be forever. Project Freelancer won't get away with this. There are other ways of bringing them down. Look at it this way: thanks to our raid of Avalanche, we are now the only people who know what's happening to the Alpha who are likely to speak out. If we can get more proof and somehow go to the UNSC with our proof before Freelancer turns them against us, then there's a strong likelihood we can bring them down from that angle. Yes, it will be far too late for the Alpha, but its torture will not have been in vain." I clasped her shoulder tighter.

Tex stared up at me. My eye and both of hers locked for a moment before she pulled her gaze free of mine. "I guess you are right. Maybe something can be salvaged from this..." She rose and I let go of her shoulder, before retrieving her helmet. "Thank you, Hunt."
"Anytime." I smiled slightly. "Listen, Tex, York's right. Don't beat yourself up about this. It wasn't your fault. If anything, I feel it is mine. If you hadn't of found me, I can't help but think that maybe..." I cut myself off. "Also, one other thing. I'm not hanging around."
"You're leaving?" Tex's eyes widened in shock. "Why?"
"I'm on the run, Tex. Freelancer want my head on a plate." I shook my head and sighed. "I have to stay alive; I can't let them have Rho. Not especially now after all this. And if they ever discover I helped you...they'll be after me even more. I can't risk that to all of you."
"But we are all fugitive now. What difference does it make?"
"Oh, trust me. A lot."
"Well, looks like I won't be stopping you then. When do you leave?"
"During the night, after you've all fallen asleep. I probably won't see any of you again for a long time, so could you do me a favour?" I gazed at her as pleadingly as I could muster.
"Of course. I owe you a few, anyway."
"Can you thank York for his offer he made before the raid to me, but that I can't accept it. I don't want my past to be a risk to him too. He'll know what I mean. Also, can you tell him that I..." I paused, colouring slightly. "Tell him that I love him, and I'm sorry I never got to tell him before..."
Tex regarded me with a look of disbelief. "You love York? Why don't you tell him yourself?"
"I can't, Tex. If I did, I'd never be able to go...It's because I love him I'm doing this. So...please?"
"All right. I'll tell him for you. Also, you secret's safe with me.
"Thanks, Tex. You're a good friend, you know that?"
"Likewise. Look, just in case I don't get to say this...it's been a pleasure working with you, partner." Tex held out her free hand. I gratefully took it and we clasped hands in our signature handshake. After we released, she smiled and nodded at me. "I think we'd better get back." And we walked off back towards shelter.

That night, when I was sure the others were asleep, I gathered my things and I left, disappearing into the night to see if I could find my Ghost. I didn't know it then, but this was to be my last time I'd ever see any of my friends alive.