A/N: Perhaps the home planet of two of the team might be a good place to use as a home base, right? Well, just so long as they're not too disturbed by the memories that are invoked...
And Kat has an encounter with some ghosts of her past...
Also, to the lovely guest who left a review: Thankyou! And yes, I definitely agree - Jorge is the oversized teddy bear of the team who won't hesitate to show his claws if they're threatened. XD That sounds funny about making him the anchor of the cuddle pile...but hey, at least then none of the lil IIIs will get squished if he's under them!
Oh yes, stir-crazy SPARTANs indeed...what's to do with a whole team of them, eh?
Carter's eyes snapped open in the darkness, having awoken from the sound of soft breaths nearby. He felt more than saw Artemis perched on the edge of the bed; once his night vision kicked in; he was just able to make out her blurry form above him. "What's up, lone wolf?" he asked quietly, propping himself up on his elbows.
Originally, the term "lone wolf" had been nothing more than a badge...and that badge had belonged to a person who was at first almost resented by the rest of the team. But over time, the term had actually stuck, and so it became a nickname that only those within the team had ever called the SPARTAN-III. It was a term of fondness, now.
"...It never gets any easier, does it?" Artemis responded with a question of her own. She heaved a sigh, and he saw her shoulders slump with the motion. "I just...I never thought...with all I've seen...sometimes I believe I don't deserve any of this."
"Hey. Don't. Don't do that to yourself." Carter shifted to sit fully upright, and he grasped her shoulder in a firm gesture of comfort and support. "I've been down that road before, and it isn't pretty. Please, don't fall down that same path." So long ago now, he had been caught up in a whirlwind of self-loathing and doubt and confusion, and it would have perhaps never ended if not for Kat's unwavering loyalty, and her brutally honest opinion on what was going on with him.
Only his best friend had been able to pull him out of that fire.
He could see Artemis tumbling down the very same road – he envisioned it, and hated it – and he wanted to do all he could to protect her from that kind of fate.
She was his friend, and she had come back for him when she could have easily left him to die – and at the risk of failing a priority mission, too. He felt like he owed her, and yet, he did not – it was a strange way of thinking, but one that made sense in the long run.
"I don't-" The lone wolf began to protest, but she must have thought the better of it, because she shook her head, glancing down at the floor. "...thankyou, Carter," her voice came out as barely more than a whisper, and she sounded slightly shy about it.
"What are friends for?" The Commander returned gently, giving her shoulder a squeeze. "Like I said, I'm here for you whenever you need me. Same as the rest of the team."
It went beyond him being team leader, now; it had done so ever since WINTER CONTINGENCY had come into effect. They weren't just his team anymore; they were his family, and he would die if it meant that they were safe.
"I don't know what I would do without any of you guys. I don't know where I'd be... nor who I'd be." Artemis confessed in a whisper, breaking into Noble One's train of thought.
He had to acknowledge the fact that he thought the same way – and no wonder. In training, he had always been told that SPARTANs had to take care of their own – no man left behind – but it was not just that anymore. They were a family, and that was something that the supersoldiers had learned and adapted to on their own. It changed them for the better – their teamwork was far improved than when Noble Team had first been assembled.
Artemis shuddered as if shaking off bad thoughts, and swung her head in his direction once more. "Can I...?" She seemed hesitant; unsure.
He knew what she was going to ask before the words even left her mouth. Funny how that happened sometimes.
"Sure." He shuffled over to give her room, and allowed her to lay her head on his chest again. It was a strange sensation; he was still getting used to the idea of being ... tactile. Yes, he was used to having his personal space invaded, but not quite like this. It actually felt...kinda nice, now that he thought about it properly. It was as if having someone else so close...it felt like it was easier for him to protect them, that way.
"You're a good man, Carter, and one hell of a leader. I'm proud to fight by your side; under your command. Glad I can...call you...friend." Six's voice was barely above a whisper as she spoke, but he heard it well enough.
Noble One felt a strange warmth in his chest when the other SPARTAN-III told him that. He felt...happy. Huh. So the thing about "SPARTANs never feel" was wrong, by far. He felt more than he had ever done in a long time...he felt...alive.
By the time he actually thought to say "thanks, kid", Artemis was already fast asleep.
He stared up at the ceiling, mulling over her words for perhaps another hour or so more, and then he gradually drifted off to sleep himself.
UNSC Stalwart Dawn, drifting close to New Harmony, unknown system, December 26th, 2552
"Where are we?" Artemis inquired, staring out the window as the ship pulled in closer to the planet. All of Noble Team was gathered in a viewing room just beyond the ship's bridge; a discussion having previously been underway now abandoned at the sight of the world.
"Home," Kat said quietly, and a smile crossed her lips; but a sad smile, melancholy.
Even Jun – chatterbox that he was – was more subdued at the sight of this place. Memories were being invoked for him, too, it seemed. "New Harmony," he clarified at Carter's questioning look.
Ah, yes. The home planet of Nobles Two and Three. Covenant tried to cause mayhem here, but the UNSC defeated them – though I think not without the loss of Monastir. This place is probably still under the watchful eye of the UNSC...that's a good sign.
They had wound up drifting outside the planet after making their second slipspace jump – not an emergency one, thankfully – and had cut off the engines to conserve fuel lest they need to get away quickly again whilst they worked out where they were.
Somewhere good, it seemed.
Six studied the team; saw the tiredness on their faces...and the hope in their Commander's eyes. Perhaps here...they would finally be able to call for help and get the Covenant bastards off their backs...resupply themselves and maybe even take a break. Surely there was something they could do besides wandering in space. Emile was itching for action – he wanted alien blood spilled. He wanted them to pay for what they had done to Reach, and more importantly, what they had done to the team.
As it was, now, the assault specialist had rather all-too-eagerly taken to scratching marks on the walls of their quarters. It didn't really help the ship any, but nobody bothered to stop the guy – they didn't want to wind up missing an eye or a finger if they told him no. He was missing combat, and it was all he could do to alleviate that.
Artemis shook her head and banished the rest of her thoughts, instead wisely deciding to tune back into the conversation that the team had picked up again.
"It's your call, Kat." Carter was saying, and the lone wolf found that rather interesting...he never deferred to any of them to take charge...at least not in situations like this one. But then again, things were different – maybe it wasn't so unusual after all.
"I say we go down and have a look. There might not be much, but..." Kat shrugged. "It's worth a try."
Outskirts of Monastir, New Harmony, unknown system, December 27th, 2552
"Two, you take point – you know this place better than anyone. Three, you're second-in-charge." Carter stated as he doffed his helmet, walking down the ramp of the Pelican, Noble Team following. "If you have any questions, they go to Kat and Jun. Don't come to me on this one."
Again, Artemis found that curious...Carter never told anyone else to take charge ahead of him – nor did he ever tell them to not look to him for leadership guidance. Strange.
But then again, Nobles Two and Three did know the place better than him, so it made sense.
With a few hand gestures and signals, Kat gathered the team into formation – she and Carter were up ahead, Emile and Artemis checked their three and nine o'clock, Jorge had their six, and Jun watched over them from the shadows high above whenever he could.
She told them it was better to keep their helmets on for now in case they ran into trouble, but to also ask questions first, and then shoot – usually, it was the other way around, but she told him that that kind of thing just wouldn't do here. They were just the visitors here, and who knew if there were any kind of trigger-happy militia groups out there, just waiting to take down a handful of SPARTANs at even the smallest hint of trouble?
As one, they moved out, keeping careful watch of their surroundings. Who knew what kinds of people lived out here?
"It's changed," Kat remarked quietly, and Jun made some kind of noise of agreement. Two looked out toward the city beyond them, the "crown jewel" only recently restored to its former glory, and then glanced behind her at the team.
They'd made quite some headway since landing here nearly three hours ago now, and they were gradually coming into view of the city itself. That was when Kat stopped them, having decided to split the group up – to send one ahead of them into the city, and for one to stay back here and explore the outskirts further.
"Nobles Three, Four, Five; you are Recon Alpha – move on to the city centre. Commandeer a vehicle if you can; it's a long walk still. One, Six, you're with me – we're Recon Bravo. Keep close, and stay alert. Don't get sloppy just because you're no longer walking, Recon Alpha. We've come this far and not gathered any attention...I don't want that to change. Understood?" She looked around at Noble Team, seeing the five green winks of affirmation on her HUD.
"Good. Now go." she stated succinctly, hand momentarily straying to her pistol before thinking the better of it as she lead Recon Bravo southwest at a slow jog.
It was strange to see the town so ... quiet. Hardly a vehicle in sight and no civilian pedestrians about, either. What was going on?
Kat felt unnerved at the utter emptiness of her home town. It was as if someone had known the SPARTANs were coming, and told the residents to stay indoors. And yet she didn't even feel like they were being watched from inside the houses they passed, either. Something felt seriously wrong here, and they needed to figure it out, quick.
There was no chatter from the others of Recon Bravo, and she knew that Recon Alpha had switched their TEAMCOM frequency – those three were the most talkative of Noble and probably didn't want to distract Bravo as they yakked and passed observations amongst themselves.
And so of course, the lack of voices from her teammates only added to her unnerved state – though it wasn't like she knew what to say to Recon Bravo. It wasn't like Carter or Artemis had much questions to ask, either. They usually discovered facts by observing in silence, rather than asking and learning.
Feeling the odd sensation of familiarity, Kat scanned her surroundings to double check, and she felt like she ... knew ... the street they were on. And not just "knew" as in "I've been here before", but "knew" as in "she knew the place like the back of her hand".
Slowly, cautiously, she made her way down the road, getting the impression that an invisible magnet was drawing her ever closer to the house at the very end.
Kat glanced over her shoulder at the two silently following her, and she signalled to Carter that she was unnerved, but not to the point where she would be compromised if a battle arose. He nodded curtly, and gestured back that she should continue; that he would have her back if she became more unnerved.
She hesitated for a few minutes at the front door to the house she'd been drawn to, before shaking her head to clear it and keying in a code that was more muscle memory than anything else.
The door unlocked – unusual – and she slipped inside, checking the motion tracker on her HUD, before moving ahead with Carter flanking her, Magnums at the ready; she didn't have to check to be aware of the fact that Artemis was walking backwards behind them, covering their six. She knew this place like she knew the street – but from where, she could not recall. Nothing came to mind as she sifted through her memories of Before...still nothing.
Shaking her head again, Kat holstered her Magnum and wordlessly Carter did the same; he didn't even signal to her any form of confusion as she stepped into the first room she came across. Noble Two lingered momentarily before heading into the room, the Commander following her like a ghost; Artemis remained in the in the doorway, looking into the hall.
The room was a child's bedroom, that much was clear to see, but why did she get the feeling that she knew that she was where she had once belonged?
She was thankful that Carter was an observant leader, but even then, she jumped when he placed his hand on her shoulder, having noticed some kind of distress emanating from the cryptanalyst. She jerked her head to face him, and even from under his gold visor, she knew he was giving her a reassuring look; his stance alone told her that.
"Where are we, Two? You remember something, don't you." The question was phrased rhetorically – there was no point answering something that he already knew.
"I-" Kat paused in her words, furrowing her brows as she recalled a memory to the forefront of her mind; her shoulders slumped and chin tilted downwards. "My ... bedroom."
"Two?" The Commander expected her to clarify her answer, but Kat never said a word; the footsteps and loud voices which were not those of Recon Alpha had Noble Two pressing past the other members of Recon Bravo, Magnum drawn, maintaining a battle ready stance.
Tilting her head as she eavesdropped, Kat raised her hand and gestured for One and Six to lower their weapons as she did the same; she then pulled her helmet off and tucked it under her arm.
Signalling for the two to stay behind her, yet out of sight, she stepped out into the hallway, and walked into the lounge room.
What she saw had her eyes widening in surprise, and her heart gave a painful jolt of familiarity.
No, that can't be right. I thought – my family should be dead. How-?
The two civilians had simply frozen at the sight of the cyan-armoured SPARTAN-III, but the young woman in the wheelchair had tears glistening in her eyes.
"Catherine?"