Requiem of a Noble
A226
Jun-A266, Warrant Officer and Sniper for Noble Team, sat in the troop compartment of the second Pelican from ONI Sword Base. He was at the moment staring out the front view port of the work horse behind all UNSC air operations. Dr. Halsey, who was flying the bird on a course towards CASTLE Base, was being assisted by yet another AI this time name Kalmiya. Jun had never liked AI's, and being ordered around and reassigned by them was certainly not helping his opinion on them.
If one was to look past his helmet, they would see a face all but made of stone, devoid of any emotion. The sniper's mind however was another matter entirely. His mind was going over twenty different thoughts at the same time, none of them good. Were the Commander, Emile, and Six still alive? Did they accomplish their mission? If they did could they make it to CASTLE Base on their own?
Was he the last Spartan of Noble Team?
The last one gave him a sickening feeling in his gut. First Jorge, the Kat. Noble had already lost two of its members in only a few days. Jun did not want to think of the team going from six just a month ago, to only one man now. So, in order to take his mind off its troubling path Jun began to talk with the doctor. And the AI as well unfortunately.
"So. Could you check if the Pillar of Autumn escaped yet?" He directed the question to Dr. Halsey. "Or maybe it can?"
"First off, her name is Kalmiya." The doctor answered coldly, eyes turned half a degree in his direction and giving him a glare. "And the answer is yes. Captain Keyes and his ship successfully left the surface and entered slip-space approximately one hour, and thirty five minutes ago."
"Wonderful. Our last shot at escaping this hell hole is gone, along with an AI that supposedly holds the 'latchkey discovery' that may well turn the course of the war. Excuse me for getting too excited." He said sarcastically. In truth Jun knew all of Reach's defenders had done their duty. They had fought the Covenant as long as they could, had killed at least several hundred million of the bastards, and stalled them from reaching Earth for at least several more weeks.
It may not have been a cause for celebration, and drowning in alcohol but it was better than nothing. It was a small comfort to the knowledge that humanity had failed. Noble Team had failed…. He had failed. Jun closed his eyes as memories of Alpha Company passed through his mind. He, Carter, and Emile had all been pulled from the company before Operation: PROMETHEUS. Before his first team and family was slaughtered. He failed them, and although he had not physically witnessed their deaths he saw them. Every moment he fell asleep, every time he allowed his mind to drift off towards the past. Every time Noble had lost a member.
Next to Carter, and Kat, Jun was the oldest Noble Spartan. He had been a part of Noble team for nearly seven years. In that time there had been five other Noble Spartans aside from the team that had fought together just a month ago. Each of those five had died during his seven years. Lost in his private thoughts, Jun barely noticed that the doctor had said something to him again.
"Its not just her you know. She has been partn-"
"She? No disrespect Ma'am but I refuse to call them anything other than 'it'. They're not alive doc." Jun interrupted her. He had lost count of the number of missions he had been sent on to ensure the Cole Protocol had been enacted and AI he was ordered to wipe. To him the talking computers were just as much trouble as help. He only worked with them as needed, he trusted his fellow Spartans above all else. Especially AI.
"You're free to your opinions Warrant Officer, but I would appreciate it if you did not interrupt me." The doctor said as she sent him another glare. Noble Three raised both his hands in mock submission, earning a pair of narrowed eyes from Dr. Halsey.
"Sorry doc. Got my word I won't be interrupting you anytime soon. Would you kindly continue?" After shaking her head slightly the doctor began to speak once again.
"She, Cortana, has chosen Master Chief Petty Officer John-117 as her partner. I assume you know about him?" The way she asked him almost offended him. Everyone in Special Warfare Command had heard of the commander of the Spartan-IIs and his track record.
"Quite possibly the most highly decorated soldier in the UNSC, also the one with the highest groundside body count, holder of all Military awards aside from one, and let me guess. Humanity's last best hope?"
"That's the one Noble Three," She said turning her gaze back towards the front. In the distance the silhouettes of several Covenant warships could be seen. Being that the aliens were too busy glassing Reach, a single lone Pelican would not be paid much attention. After all, he thought darkly, What threat do a couple of humans pose, when their strongest fortress has already fallen.
"They better be worth it doc." He said quietly, almost to himself.
"You say something Spartan?" She asked picking up on his sour mood.
"I said they better be worth all of this," He said gesturing to the view screen with a single hand before he turned to look at her, "We lost so much, just to give Sierra 117 and your AI this chance. This all meant nothing, if the same happens to Earth." The doctor nodded her head, a serious look on her face replacing her annoyance at him.
"Do you want to know why I choose him to be a Spartan? Why Cortana choose him to be her partner?" Jun shrugged his shoulders in confusion, confusion which doubled as a smile crossed her aged face. "We choose him for the same reason. Luck."
B312
Leo opened his eyes as a strange sound came to his ears. On pure reflex he rolled onto his front pushed himself off the ground, pulling out his M6G in a single fluid motion. Scanning the area in front of him quickly he quickly ran to the nearest available cover, the side of the MAC launcher he had used to destroy the Covenant Assault cruiser. Looking at his motion tracker he saw there was a small flicker of movement.
He stared at it for an additional half-second, it was strange. Instead of the large red dots for hostiles, or the yellow for friendly. Instead it was the white for neutral contacts, which considering the course of the battle was surprising. What could still be alive on Reach that wasn't likely Covenant, or the occasional human? After he had re-holstered his M6 sidearm, Leo reached for his knife and quietly slid it out.
Despite knowing he would die soon Leo wanted it to be on his terms, not theirs. They had surprised this world's defenders, they had ambushed many convoys of survivors trying to make their way to the Pillar of Autumn. The Covenant had killed too many humans by using the element of surprise and their superior numbers to overwhelm them time and time again. When he died, he would turn the tables on the alien bastards. He would ambush them, he would be the hunter and they his prey.
And just like the Guta he and Jun had seen just days before Jorge had died, he would be overwhelmed. The indigenous monster had been a freak of nature, fully a full three quarters over the average size of an adult male. Standing at about 500 centimeters the towering giant had dwarfed him and Jun in size. The two Spartans had witnessed the creature lay an ambush for a Covenant patrol. It had waited until a pair of hunters had passed before launching its attack.
It had used its two nearly seven foot long tusks to swipe aside one hunter before it had pulled the other into two separate halves. The rest of the patrol opened fire but plasma bolts could not penetrate its thick skin far enough to strike vital organs, needler rifles failed to cause large enough explosions, and the few plasma grenades thrown failed to do much damage at all. In fact it was only when the first hunter had fired its Fuel Rod cannon that the Guta was injured. The instant after the beast had nearly toppled over a Zealot had jumped on its back and plunged its energy sword into its neck, only to be crushed when the creature rolled onto its back.
The beast had survived but ran from the patrol. In its wake were dozens of dead Covenant Grunts, Jackals, Skirmishers, and Elites. Leo doubted that the Guta had survived its injuries, or if it had that it was still alive. The forest it had retreated into was likely glass by now. Still, it would do him no good to remember things such as that from the past. Slowly walking out from his cover Leo held the knife in front of him, thumb pressed on the bottom of the hilt, blade pointing outwards.
He expected something small, but not what was seemingly staring at him. Standing on the railing before him was another indigenous resident of Reach. A Greater Archaeopteryx, a birdlike reptilian, the creature was a rare species native to nearly every continent on Reach. The fact that this creature had managed to stay alive for so long was impressive to say the least.
This particular specimen had red and white scales that covered its two set of wings. The rest of its body was a mix red, white, black scales all in strange patterns. One pair long curved talons were scratching its eagle-like head. Fiery orange eyes locked with his visor and it stilled. The talons previously near its head returned to their perch on the railing.
Lowering its head closer to its chest, the reptile spread its wings outward revealing a set of specially evolved claws. Claws sharp enough to cut through steel at the right angles. Despite this Leo was still surprised. The creature was roughly forty-seven centimeters tall, and nearly fifteen centimeters longer than that. Leo slid his knife back into place before taking several short steps towards the Archaeopteryx.
His entire life, at least as far back as he could remember that is, he had always had some sort of connection with wild life. Even on Onyx, the few living creatures the world possessed had easily warmed up to him. Leo had no idea why he had this effect on animals, but it always brought him a sense of peace that had always been rare in his life.
"Hey little guy. How did you get here? How are you still flying the skies anyway?" He asked as his left arm came up slowly, elbow bent at a ninety degree angle. Hesitantly the flying reptile quickly leapt of and then landed on his outstretched arm. Slowly Leo lifted his opposite hand and moved it closer to the Archaeopteryx's head, the creature chirped its high-pitched whistle as his gloved fingers touched its beak lightly. "You're a lucky little thing aren't you huh?"
Beneath his helmet, hidden by its visor, a smile came to his face. This was what he needed to truly relax, to enjoy his last hours. The effect of other life that was not trying to kill them could have on human, it was a truly amazing thing. Still, he thought, you have a chance at living for a few more days away from me little one. With a lightning fast twitch of the arm, the Greater Archaeopteryx was shaken off his armored forearm. Noble Six watched as the reptile flew away in the opposite direction he intended to go.
Leo continued to follow its flight until it had passed out of sight. He briefly wondered what was the most the creature could survive. He knew the Covenant would send some ships to chase after the Autumn, they rarely let survivors escape without giving chase. The Spartan estimated that there were at least a hundred warships of varying size, and calculated the amount of ground a single ship could glass in an hour. Adding in the size of Reach to the lone soldier came up with a reasonable estimate.
At best it would take the Covenant two to three days in order to completely turn Reach into a dead world. At worst, only a single day. The moment he came to that realization he felt something he had not felt for many years, he felt complete and utterly useless.
At that exact moment there was nothing he could do to even give Reach a few extra minutes of life. He could not destroy a Covenant warship, protect what few civilians were left, nor even avenge his dead team in a truly fitting way. Useless. Now he could truly sympathize with those who were left behind on worlds to be glassed. Death assured, life in minutes, the will to live drained.
He felt his hands curl into fists and tighten with enough force to dent the Titanium Armor plating used on the most heavily armored human warships. There had always been something he could do, some way to bring a glimmer of hope, to remind everyone that the Covenant was not invincible. Now, there was nothing. Some small part of him wanted to deny the aliens the right to one more dead Super-Soldier. To end his life in a way that would certainly be less painful that what the Covenant would guarantee.
No. Using all his will power Leo pushed that thought away. So what if he could do nothing to defend humanity any longer? What did it matter that he was going to die. It was not like he or any of the other Spartans had any reason to live aside from defeating the alien empire. Why should he even care that his body and armor would soon be glassed like the world he had fought so hard to save?
The answer was he did not care one way or the other. A Spartan was first and foremost a soldier for humanity, just like all the men and women who had died in this war. They had fought the Covenant tooth and nail for over twenty seven years, how many other races had lasted so long against the so called "chosen of the Gods"? At that moment he felt all the fear, the slight nervousness, the controlled rage, the animal instincts that illogically told him to run and live, all disappear.
His mind was clear of all such distractions, and he was truly a Spartan once more. Leo felt a his lips grow into a slight smirk. Fear held no place for him, that should be reserved for the entire Covenant. He would fight until he was overwhelmed, would force the aliens to pay dearly to end a single life.
As a Spartan-III super-soldier, as a member of Noble Team, and as a human, he would make them fear attacking Earth. Leo would become their nightmare, the demon that kept them from feeling a moments rest. When their leaders would question them about their victory at Reach the Elites would hesitate for a moment, memories of the death and suffering he and the other Spartans had brought upon them rising to the surface. They would never forget him. Whatever word they had in their strange tongue for the Spartans would forever become tied to death, destruction, pain, and demon.
After they had killed him, and he was truly beginning to welcome that idea, without a doubt in his mind they would regret ever finding Reach.
He turned towards the ladder he had used to climb back to the MAC launcher, and slid to the bottom. The moment his feet touched the ground he was already searching for his weapons. There were plenty to choose from, the Brutes had brutally killed most of the remaining humans who had chosen to stay and guard the Autumn. The damned bastard apes had become his most hated member of the alien army. Barbaric, sadistic, primitive, and just as insane of the suicide Grunt units. He sincerely wished that whatever force the Covenant sent for him would have a good deal of the devils. He'd enjoy ending their lives.
Coming to a Trooper he bent down and began inspecting her kit. The lieutenant soon found a bandolier of grenades after he set the body straight. In addition he took her M6G and all her spare clips. Pocketing the ammunition in the set of pouches that rest on his chest place, Leo moved on to the next pile of bodies. He found a replacement M392 Rifle for the one a Brute Chieftain had smashed with its hammer.
By the time he was ready he had enough fire power to take on an entire hostile company. Hefting a DMR in his right hand, and a MA37 in his left, Noble Six looked around his position one last time.
So much had been sacrificed to defend this one facility. To give humanity one final chance for survival. Despite the death of his team, and his own imminent end, the lone Spartan felt some slight pride in that. Outnumbered, outgunned, outmatched, and the Covenant still weren't fast enough to stop them. Just goes to prove, he thought wryly, humans are too stubborn to go down with out giving as much as we got.
With a swift nod Leo turned and faced north east. The graves of his fellow Spartans were all behind him. For a moment he could almost feel their presence one last time. Could almost hear them calling out their encouragement. Then he broke into a fast jog in the direction he had been facing, the light reflecting off his armored body.
He knew exactly where he would make his final stand. The last defensible place near Aszod, the sight of another team of Spartans last stand. He and Emile had spotted it moments before entering the ship breaking yards. Spartans never die, if only that were true. But they would be buried together, and he would honor their sacrifice as well as his own team's in his own way.
Drenching the soil in Covenant blood.
A226
Jun place his helmet on one of the many consoles in Command Room of CASTLE Base. The Doctor and her AI assistant had left to begin setting up the entire facility for OPERATION: WHITE GLOVE. The destruction of perhaps the final operational UNSC facility left on Reach. With its destruction Reach would truly be the Covenants own rock.
He took in a deep breath, inhaling the cool air that filled the installation. Jun had always wondered where he would die. Inside an ONI base with only an old lady, and her AI, as company had been one of the few possibilities he had never thought up. Still, he mused, he had hoped to add a few hundred more aliens to his body count before the end.
Pulling up a large container, the Spartan sat down and took up his new found mission. Staring at hundreds of cameras just waiting for the first of the Covenant to show up. Then he was to contact Dr. Halsey who would in turn activate the facility's destruction. The final part of the plan was to ensure the Covenant did not obtain any top level intelligence.
Despite her attitude towards him and the rest of Noble, he was not looking forward to that last bit. He had killed other humans before, Insurrectionist cells on several worlds, but killing a civilian , and one who had the total respect of Jorge at that, was not something he would ever feel anything other revulsion. Orders were orders however, and killing the one to ensure that the millions would have a bit more time was certainly an unspoken order.
With all the focus, dedication, and patience he displayed when searching for targets, Jun began to observe every little detail he could see from the dozen or so screens with him. Flipping throw the five dozen individual cameras he saw nothing aside from some of the last vestiges of normal Reach. Plants, trees, the occasional animal, the darkening sky.
What would soon become the last live part of Reach, gave him nothing but the familiar feeling of defeat. Reach would fall, the Doctor was proven correct. Suddenly he picked up something on Camera A-5/64. Bringing the image up to the main view screen he focused the view to the small movement his Spartan eyes had spotted.
A single eyebrow rose in surprise before lowering as he better focused the image. Swift, all but no movement of foliage, shapes that even his enhanced vision and mind found moving with lighting speed. He knew of only one group of life forms in the galaxy that moved like that.
A slight smile found its way to his lips. He stood up and reached for his helmet. Placing it securely over his head, Jun turned and picked up his rifle before activating a communications link.
"Doctor Halsey, I think I found something you will find most interesting."