Chapter Seventeen
TIME: DATE RECORD ERROR ANOMALY \
Time Unknown, Date unknown \ Inslipspace \
aboard Forerunner ship Titan
"What's all this?"
John had made his way to a large room that resembled his recovery room, except it held several alien-looking cots, on which most of them lay humans. John noticed every patient seemed to be in bad shape for a variety of reasons. Not all were humans, though, a certainty that piqued John's interest. The problem was, however, nobody was answering him. Instead of repeating himself, though, he strolled to the nearest bed.
The Spartan recognized the fallen immediately: Sergeant Griffith. The man had expressed his dislike for John during their first meeting. Master Chief doubted that having saved Griffith's life had changed his disposition much, however. Still, John felt a pang of regret while looking at the injured man. He felt responsible.
"He'll pull through. Radiation should have killed him, though," said a subdued Cortana.
"What happened?"
"You don't remember?" Cortana asked incredulously. She emerged from a holographic emitter, while John stood silent for a moment before she continued, "Well, the artifact we have come to know as 'The Ark' went off, blasting waves of radiation for miles. Nothing survived. Well, almost nothing," she noted, nodding towards Griffith.
"We managed to rescue a few, though. Mostly Spartan-IIIs that had some radiation shielding," Cortana added. "Oh, and that blast was a signal, of sorts, that was magnified and propelled through slipspace by our Moon. Apparently it was artificial – the Forerunners built it to split that signal and send it to the Halo installations."
John remained quiet. "What for?" he asked after processing the ludicrous-sounding information.
"What do you think?" Cortana sneered.
Unbelievable.
At least that is how John felt. After everything he had seen and gone through, all hope was lost. He had failed. The Halos would fire and life would cease to exist throughout the galaxy. The Spartan could not help but think of ways to escape the Halo effects and ensure that humanity was not completely exterminated.
"Cortana, is there any way to – ".
"Doctor, Sergeant Griffith is about to wake up. Shall I inform Johnson?" she interrupted.
Dr. Halsey's voice keyed over the COM, "I suppose. I'll be right in."
Catherine entered, not a scant minute later, with Johnson on her heels.
"How's he doing?" asked the Sergeant with an unusually concerned tone.
"He's alright," said Dr. Halsey. "He lost kidney functions several hours ago, but we luckily managed to flash-clone him a new pair just before they failed. We've grafted skin to replace the radiation burns throughout his body, but he'll need plenty of rest."
John admired the soldier's toughness. He had recovered from terrible injuries himself, but he attributed that to his augmentations. Griffith was one tough Marine.
The bedridden soldier stirred and awoke to a trio of spectators as Halsey finished her diagnosis.
"Who's kidneys do I have and why?" he croaked.
"You're lucky to be alive, soldier. Lucky for you, the best doctor in the galaxy was in town," joked Johnson. Griffith turned and looked at him quizzically.
"Dad?"
"The Prophets betrayed us! They must pay!"
The Sangheili warriors had gathered in continued frustration. Their battle over High Charity had ended in a stalemate, but both sides suffered heavy losses. The remaining Sangheili ships had limped to their homeworld, looking to gather forces and retaliate.
"Indeed, brother," proclaimed another. "The Prophets have betrayed us. But we must not forget our path. Should we repay with bloodshed? Or should we not be striving for the Great Journey?"
Murmuring broke out as the congregated warriors debated those words.
"Brothers!" exclaimed the Elite that stood at the head of the room. "The Prophets have indeed betrayed us, but they were fools aside. The Great Journey is a lie!"
The room exploded with anger and confusion. "Oracle Master, this is madness! How can –"
"The oracle has spoken. The Prophets have spread lies for centuries – Our Covenant was founded on trickery and fear, and their treachery runs deeper than the Rift of Humec.
"They knew of the Parasite, yet they thrust us into their hunger. They plotted the Jiralhanae ascent to power. The deepest of their treacheries, though, was the deceit of the Great Journey. Our entire race shall be wiped out by their lies and folly, but we must temper our vengeance!" bellowed F'enr Gran, the sole surviving Oracle Master and ranking Sangheili.
"What do you propose?" asked an angry Elite in the crowd.
Once the murmuring died down, the Oracle Master continued, "I have communed with the Oracle, and our path has become clear to me. We have sought out the Heretics' renewed allegiance. They were enlightened while we were pawns. I am happy to welcome our brothers back into the fold.
"Our paths shall converge at the Labyrinth of Aeons, a place only revealed to us now. The Prophets knew not of this world. There we shall forge our destinies and destroy theirs!"
A cry of approval was raised and the Sangheili began chanting as F'enr strode out of the chamber.
"You are certain of this?" he asked.
The floating orb propelled itself to face the Sangheili. "Of course. I am programmed to stop the Flood. This is the only way," said a most pleased 343 Guilty Spark.
"Very well. I have convinced the others and arranged for the Heretics' return. We must depart at once, please follow me," said F'enr. His blood boiled at the thought of the Prophets' betrayal and their new guardians, the Jiralhanae. He was determined to change his world's fate at all costs.
"Interesting," said Mizore, "The Resplendent Key is active. We must be nearing our destination."
"Yes, I can sense it too," responded Joyeuse, "Has it revealed our course?"
"Unfortunate, but no. However, one can guess," replied Mizore. "The shield worlds are the most logical locations, though the Resplendent Key may believe that route lost after the destruction of the third installation."
"There is still the Labyrinth of Aeons."
"Yes, that has occurred to me. This very well may be our destination, however I do not sense how fruitful that path may be," lamented Mizore.
"Are your thoughts on 'The Other'?" asked Joyeuse.
"Indeed. Your sister has searched for him several times, to no avail. Have you?"
"No. Cortana is still wary of me, she forbids my intrusion," said Joyeuse.
"We must find him before it is too late. He wields great power with little responsibility. His madness will undo the universe. We must prevent him from joining a host at all costs," expressed Mizore.
"I understand the dire nature of the situation, Mizore. I shall redouble my efforts to find him," Joyeuse assured.
"Good. What of the others?"
"We are still mistrusted by our own masters," Joyeuse reported. "I contain much of the information that is required because I replicated Cortana's memory. There are, however, others who place their confidence with me. The 'Arbiter' has allowed me to question him and glean much information about his race and their broken alliance. We shall be able to use him and his followers to our purposes."
"Excellent. We must be prepared for our arrival. I shall inform Dr. Halsey of our possibilities. Please see to it that Cortana understands our situation."