Disclaimer: I do NOT own Pirates of the Caribbean or Halo. They are property of Walt Disney and Bungie/343 respectively. Thank you. ~LE

The Shenanigans of Cap'n Jack Sparrow

Chapter Three

The Start of a New War

They hadn't walked very far when they came upon two very large machines that Jack simply couldn't describe. He could only assume that these were the 'Pelicans' that Johnson had referred to. He approached them a bit apprehensively, unsure of what they did. After a moment or two, he followed the other three onboard, spotting when they snapped a few strips of cloth around their chests. He did the same, noticing that it kept his back snuggly against the seat.

A deafening sound arose from the front of the Pelican, causing Jack to jump slightly in his seat. Faintly, he heard Arbiter what must have been a laugh from his left. He plainly saw Johnson smirk in front of him.

"It's not funny!" he tried to yell over the motor but his voice was drowned out. Before he could say another word, the Pelican gave a great shake and began to move. Jack looked out of the opening in the side with horror; they were leaving the ground.

"This isn't possible!" he hollered, again for his voice to be lost. He gripped the sides of his seat until his knuckles turned white. When the Pelican had reached its cruising altitude, and the ride smoothed out, Jack finally relaxed and loosened his death grip on the seat. He realized that riding in a Pelican wasn't that terrible; in fact, it wasn't much different from taking a ship or boat over a stormy sea. That's it, he thought. Think of it as ship on the sea. He closed his eyes and imagined that he was back on the Black Pearl, sitting in his quarters while he plotted where he and the crew would go next. Jack figured that he would travel out of the way of the East India Trading Company and head closer to the Spaniards land. He had heard of a treasure buried somewhere near Campo Grande. It had to be worth checking out. Besides, while he made port nearby, he could restock his rum supply! One could never have enough rum. And lately it seemed as if the crew had been drinking more and more rum. That meant that there was less for him to drink, and that didn't make for a happy Jack.

With his course now plotted, he strolled out onto the main deck of the Black Pearl. He spotted Gibbs on the helm, temporarily directing the crew in his place.

"Ah, Mister Gibbs," Jack said, taking the helm from him.

"Cap'n," he replied. "Have ye a course?"

"Indeed," Jack smiled, bringing out his favorite compass.

"I had no idea you humans were so amusing," Arbiter said, stifling a chuckle. Master Chief turned an unseen glare on the branded Elite. Much to their surprise, Jack had fallen asleep on the Pelican and was now murmuring as he dreamt. To be honest, Chief did find it slightly humorous but it was also unheard of in someone who was on their first Pelican ride and that worried him slightly. He shook his head, pushing it to the back of his mind. His only thought concerning Jack was to get him out of his way. The last thing he needed was some stranger civilian's death on his hands. But then again, if Jack died, it would have been his own fault, leaving Chief with nothing to worry about.

They approached their destination and Sgt. Johnson stretched out and rammed the butt of his gun into Jack's leg. He jerked away with a small yelp, and Johnson chuckled.

"Wake up, sleeping beauty," he laughed. "We're about to land, so brace yourself."

"Why couldn't you have let me sleep until we landed?"

"Because as soon as we land, we have to get off."

"So, where are we now?" Jack asked obnoxiously as the Pelicans took off, leaving its passengers on the ground in front of a single door in a nearby hill.

"Crow's Nest," Johnson replied, thumping Jack on the shoulder. "Try to keep up, son. We wouldn't want to lose you in this jungle."

"Says you," Chief mumbled, shifting his grip on his rifle and quickly walking forward. The remaining soldiers and Jack followed after, entering into an air-cooled building that sat inside the mountain. Jack looked around in awe; the walls were covered in metal sheets and some weird picture frame. He assumed that they housed more of the moving pictures that he had seen previously.

"Dude!" a soldier at the far end of the room cried in awe, having spotted Master Chief.

"What?" his companion asked, swiveling his head around wildly. It was almost as if he couldn't see.

"A Spartan II," the first soldier replied.

"If you're joking with me…" the blind one growled.

"No, he's right. It really is a Spartan II; we're gonna be fine, fellas," said another soldier, walking up behind the blind one and gripping his shoulder. Jack hurried to catch up with Johnson and Chief, reaching them as they stopped in front of staircase.

"Where'd you find him?" a woman asked. Jack stepped to the side and saw a woman wearing a pristine military outfit and short, dark hair.

"Nappin' out back," Johnson replied, emitting a chuckle. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Jack open his mouth to speak and shook his head. Jack noticed this and slammed his jaw shut.

"I think this 'Captain' needs to stay with Johnson more," Chief whispered to Arbiter.

"Good to have you back, Chief," the woman said, bringing everyone's attention back on her. "And who is this?" she said, pointing to Jack roughly.

"An other-worldly civilian that we picked up on our way," Chief responded dryly.

"And he came along for the ride," Arbiter added. "If we have time along the way, we are going to try and send him back to where he came from."

"Yeah, but there's only one problem with that," Chief snapped, turning to face Arbiter. "We don't know where he came from." The woman glared at them for arguing, but neither acknowledged her.

"The human has told us quite plainly," Arbiter pressed. "He is a pirate from Earth. I thought we agreed that there could possibly be another Earth in another galaxy."

"There is no other Earth in any other galaxies, but nice try," the woman said, finally able to get a word in edgewise. "He quite plainly speaks English, and as I'm sure you guys know already, there are no more pirates," she sighed. "He's on the right planet. He's just in the wrong time."

"What?" Jack said, quirking an eyebrow.

"Pirates don't exist anymore," she said. "Lieutenant Commander Miranda Keyes, commanding officer. And you are?" she asked, extending a hand to Jack.

"Cap'n Jack Sparrow, captain of the Black Pearl in the Caribbean Sea," Jack responded, awkwardly shaking hands with her. A woman was never allowed to hold a position of power. If he had truly been thrust into the future, things had changed for the worst. He wanted out, and fast.

"Well, Cap'n Jack, welcome aboard the team. At the current moment, we don't know of a way to portal through time. However, we might be able to get in contact with someone who might. In the meantime, hang tight and stick close to Chief or Johnson," Keyes said, turning and leading them down a hallway. "You seem like the kind of man who constantly needs to be doing something and it will be better on all of us if you assist, the best you possibly can, Master Chief in the field."

Jack nodded, mock saluting her as he had seen Johnson and Chief do when they had first met with her. Keyes laughed at the sight, causing Jack began to rethink his evaluation of her. She was a different kind of woman. Nothing at all like Elizabeth or Scarlett or Giselle….

"Back to business," Keyes said, walking down the hallway again. "Chief, we need to get you caught up. The Prophet of Truth's ships have breached our Lunar perimeter. There's nothing left of Home Fleet. Casualties were extreme, following the subsequent bombardment." Keyes hung her head and sighed. A few soldiers stepped aside and saluted as Keyes moved past. Jack watched them lower their hands in astonishment at the sight of Arbiter. "Truth could have landed anywhere but instead, he sent all of his forces here in East Africa, the ruins of New Mombasa. I don't know what they're up to, but they've started digging."

"What about Halo?" Chief asked.

"I've managed to place the firing on hold, but it's only temporary. We've heard that Truth is looking for something called the Ark. Some in the chain of command believe that it's the key to fire all of the Halo rings. You know what that means," Keyes said, turning to face Chief with a solemn expression on her face.

"I know," he replied, voice just as solemn.

"What are you guys going on about?" Jack asked, pushing his way to the front of their group, where he forced them to stop.

"The Halo rings are a set of devices that the Forerunners created thousands of years ago in order to stop a species of parasitic aliens, called the Flood, from killing everyone," Johnson replied, walking up behind them after tending to a wounded soldier. "Well, when they fired it, it worked. But somehow, the Flood survived and are threatening to do it all over again."

"So, what happens if these rings are fired?" Jack asked, furrowing his brow.

"All of the sentient life forms will be wiped out," Keyes stated, staring down at the pirate. She watched as he comprehended this, his eyes going wide.

"How do we stop it?" he asked, voice slightly panicked.

"Ma'am, Lord Hood wishes to speak with you," a man said, running up and saluting Keyes. She nodded and the man dashed off to activate the moving picture. She followed after the man until they were in front of the moving picture frame, which blinked with color and came to life. Jack saw an older man with graying hair appear.

"I hope you have good news," Hood asked, eyeing Master Chief. "Status?"

"Green, sir," Chief replied. Hood nodded and turned his attention back to Keyes.

"As you can see, as good as it gets, sir. We do have one small complication but nothing that we can't handle," she said, sweeping her hand over and indicating Jack. Hood looked over at him but didn't press the issue. He trusted Keyes' judgment, no matter what the subject was.

"Have you told them of the plan, yet?" Hood asked. "Now that Chief is here, I'm certain we can pull it off."

"Not yet, sir. I was bringing the Chief up to speed when you conferenced," she commented. "We know where Truth's ships are at, as well as the fact that his infantry has deployed anti-aircraft shields along their perimeter. If we can neutralize just one of these shields, we can pop a hole into the Prophet's defenses," Keyes explained with a smile.

"We can initiate a low-level strike and hit 'em right where it hurts. While I only have a handful of ships, and it's a big risk, I'm confident in you, Master Chief. You can – " Lord Hood was unable to finish, however. The room went black, along with the screen.

"Get the generators online! Now!" Keyes hollered through the dark.

"We're working on it, Ma'am!" someone replied. "As soon as it's fixed, we'll re-establish contact." Commander Keyes had been about to speak but smiled instead. Her team was one step ahead of her. They were about to speak with Lord Hood when the screen blipped and someone else appeared. Jack saw the picture of an oddly formed alien, with a very curved spine, sitting in an ornate chair with a headdress that was just as ornate.

"All of you are vermin," he spoke in a weary voice. "You cower in the dirt, thinking of what, I wonder? Are you planning on escaping the coming fire? It's too late; your world will burn until there is nothing left. Not even your Demon will be alive to crawl over the blackened remains. He will not be able to mar our passage, the culmination of our journey! Your destruction is the will of the gods! I am their instrument!" he hollered, shaking a fist at the camera. The screen blipped once more, darkening the room.

After a few seconds, the power kicked back on.

"Is he always that cocky?" Jack asked.

"Yep, sure loves to just run his mouth," Johnson laughed.

"Does he usually mention me?" Chief asked, looking to Keyes. She shrugged, adopting a thoughtful look. Her eyes grew wide as she realized exactly what the alien on the screen had meant. "Commander?" he questioned, a small amount of worry creeping into his voice.

"Close shop," she shouted. Everyone in the room turned to look at her with odd expressions. "We're about to get hit, hard."

"Defense code Alpha-one!" a personnel shouted. "Prepare for immediate evac!"

"Make sure all of the wounded get out," Keyes ordered.

Johnson nodded. "Even if I have to carry 'em myself."

"Chief," Keyes said abruptly. "Where's Cortana?"

"She stayed behind when I landed," he said solemnly. She looked like she wanted to say more but she was interrupted.

"Ma'am," someone asked. "Do we have a rally point?" Commander Keyes looked at him for a moment before striding to the weapons cabinet on the far side of the room. From inside, she removed a pistol and cocked it.

"To war," she replied simply, letting the slide go. A click resounded off of the walls. Jack looked at her, realizing that she meant business. And right now, there was no way he was getting home anytime soon. For some reason that he couldn't explain, even to himself, he felt somewhat compelled to help them win this war. So what was his next action?

Sorry, it took nearly a month to get this chapter up. I've been working on a bunch of other things right now and trying to do well in school, so it doesn't leave much room for writing. To the one comment I received about Cortana not being mentioned, well, she's finally mentioned. Most of this chapter is just cutscene from Halo 3 but I didn't want the chapter to be extensively long. Chapter Four should be more on the battlefield with less cutscene. Please R&R!

~LE