Ch 8
A long burst of gunfire was heard, as a jury-rigged 20mm chain gun mowed down the covenant attackers.
"Keep up the fire, Wash!" North shouted, as he shot a brute in the head.
"No kidding!" Wash replied.
"We have a problem!" Carolina shouted.
"What kind of problem?!" Wash shouted, as he reloaded the chain gun.
A loud roar was heard, and agents CT and Wyoming were sent flying against the wall, the simulation branding them as KIA.
A brute chieftain appeared, holding a large gravity hammer.
"Oh shit!" Wash shouted, as he yanked the mini gun off the sandbags and rolled out of the way.
York appeared behind the chieftain and shot him in the back with his shotgun. The brute fell dead, only for a phantom dropship to appear over the atrium and hose the area with plasma fire.
"Oh shit!" York shouted, as a plasma round hit him, knocking him out.
"Damn it!" Carolina growled, as they entered the elevator and headed down a floor.
"If you're trying to reach the pad, you're too late. Covenant bombed the hell out of it. Cargo port is impassable on foot, rooftop evac's a wash. We could use the executive landing pad, 'cept there's no easy way to get there. A group of ODST specialists are working a plan... they might appreciate some backup."
The elevator stops, and the 3 freelancers walked out.
"On the other side of the hall there. Right past the triage."
The three walked out the door and saw some ODSTs firing rocket launchers at the banshees.
"There they are."
"Radio's buzzing about you, freelancers. Feel like jumping?"
The three grabbed jetpacks and joined the ODSTs as they jumped from one platform to the next.
"I hope these banshees don't get us." North said.
Arriving at the port, a brief firefight occurs as the freelancers and ODSTs engage the covenant forces. Instead of facing brutes, they now face more elites.
"What the fuck's with these bastards?" Wash asked.
The elites hosed the battlefield with plasma fire, being more of a threat than the brutes. Carolina threw several grenades at the covenant forces, clearing a path.
"Hurry! Before more of them arrive!" Carolina shouted.
"Behind you!" North shouted, as an elite major appeared, brandishing an energy sword.
"Really? A sword?" Carolina asked, as the much larger alien approached her. Raising her rifle, she pulled the trigger and watched as the alien's shields easily absorbed the gunfire. The elite held his sword in front, blocking the bullets.
Carolina pulled out a knife, and charged the alien, only to end up with an energy sword in her chest. She dropped to the floor, also KIA. The sword wielding alien approached the remaining two freelancers.
"Oh god!" North shouted, when Wash searched the battlefield for anything that could be of use to stop him. He grabbed a plasma pistol, covered with blood, and held down the trigger.
"What are you doing?" North asked.
"This!" Wash shouted, and released the bolt of energy at the elite. He stumbled back as the energy drained his shields. North put a round in the bastard's head, killing it.
"Grab a plasma pistol. It'll come in handy." Wash advised.
The two freelancers headed to the top of the tower, where a firefight was occurring.
"North, get that sniper!" Wash said, as he fired at the grunts coming down a stairway.
With the grunts killed, the soldiers headed up the stairs, only to find more covenant soldiers, and two grunts wielding fuel rod cannons.
"Get the grunts!" an odst shouted, firing his DMR at one of the grunts.
"North, use the grenades." Wash advised, as he primed a grenade and threw it at the aliens, killing a few.
"Finally, we're at the pad." North said.
The soldiers entered the building, where brute chieftains directed a large contingent of infantry.
"Clear that pad, freelancers."
Wash grabs a shotgun and heads on the upper level, shooting a brute in the face. He walks forward, shooting more aliens and walked to the main level, meeting with North. The two walked onto the pad, and stared down the barrel of two fuel rod turrets, and two hunters.
"Oh son of a-" All four enemy weapons unloaded high energy plasma at the two freelancers, killing them.
'Simulation ends.'
Six walked onto the holodeck, and watched as the freelancers weakly stood up.
"Yeah. I fought in that war, against the covenant not just on Reach, but also on other engagements, before the fall of Reach. What you experienced, is just a fraction of the entire human covenant war." Six said, as he walked back onto the observation deck, followed by the freelancers.
"What you're about to see, is combat that I've been through. Combat against the covenant." Six said.
The holodeck changed to another formation. It showed noble six fighting the covenant in a desert setting. He tore thru the aliens like they were nothing. The freelancers could barely keep up as he moved like a flash of light.
"Can anyone be a Spartan?" Wash asked.
"I've recently heard about a fourth Spartan program. Weather that works or not, is up to anyone's guest." Six said.
"You don't think it'll work?" Carolina asked.
"Time will tell." Six said.
In the bridge, the director chuckled as he watched the whole debacle.
"You're laughing at this?" the Alpha asked.
"Alpha, I had the feeling six wouldn't kill or seriously harm them. In fact, this may help the freelancers. They might show more respect towards him." The director said.
In the barracks, six was laying in his bunk when Carolina came in.
"Hey, Spartan. Can we talk?" Carolina asked.
"Sure thing." Six said.
"I have to admit. I'm a little jealous. I was the top freelancer, until you and Tex showed up. Especially you. Come fresh from the war, and you plow right through the innie's like they were nothing. Of course, it helps that you're an augment." Carolina said.
"True. But I was an augment after my family was murdered. When I was 4 years old, the Covenant attacked the planet I was on. We barely escaped with our lives." Six said.
Carolina couldn't answer. That explained his rage towards the covenant. The augmentations only helped.
"I don't know what to say." She said.
"There's nothing to say. The war is over, or so they say. I wouldn't be surprised if some splinter group is still out there, causing havac." Six said.
"So, you want some lunch?" Carolina asked.
"Sure thing." Six said.