Spirit of the Fox
(Helos VI System – Two days before Covenant Attack September 26th, 2531. 8:30, Local Time)
Three ships exited slips space and into the current system. Cutter had to admit, he was quite amazed by the efficiency of the FTL drive now, in mere half week, they had spanned a thousand light years. He glanced at the two ships which were now named "UNSC: Field of Hope" and the other "UNSC: Contingency".
Cutter knew full well of new displacements Naruto had built for weapons. From what he could tell, the blind was vauge on the weapon in question.
"Serena, status report on Helos VI evacuation" he turend his attention to the holotable and walked up to it.
Serena appeared on the holotable "Last refuges are estimated to leave by the end of the day," she informed him with her scanners "Over Three divisions of the Marines are here. Spread at specific points of the planet" she explained "Major concentrations are being done in the major to smaller settlements, however, it is likely that Red Team will be deployed at the city of New Rome.".
New Rome was a sprawling metropolis and a city that compared to New York back on Earth. They'd have to fight inch for inch against the enemy when they arrived. Cutter nodded "What about existing Naval forces in the area?" he asked next.
"Three Halycon Class cruisers, they will arrive by half day" Serena picked up what she could from FLEETCOM.
Cutter nodded, thinking this was a good chance to get back at the Covenant. He sighed aloud "Call up Red Team, they'll want to get a sitrep with soldiers on the ground".
(Training Room)
A combat knife thunked against a metal sheet as Douglas whistled at the piercing effect "Trinium encased combat knife with a milinch layer of Titanium-A? Lethal" he commented at the end while Jerome nodded his agreement with that statement.
"You made these?"
Naruto shrugged a little "Testing was over first week, but seeing these in the hands of Spartans…" he trailed off, whisking one off of the table and threw it blade first against the metal sheet with a thunk that made it shudder.
"Huh. Something tell me this will pierce a Brute's neck nicely" Alice piped up, testing the weight and found it incredibly light.
Naruto merely smiled at the fact his minerals he brought in had made quite a differrance on UNSC tech. Which was going to be lethal to the Covenant. Red Team each took the offered Combat knives as Cutter's voice sounded out "Red Team, report to bridge, I repeat, report to bridge".
Naruto arched a brow before nodding to Jerome who did the same in return. He took up his helmet and slipped it on with a hiss and click sounding out, the team quickly left the room until Douglas noted something.
"Do you guys feel…lighter?" questioned 092 as Jerome and Alice had confusion until they nodded their agreement. Naruto's metallic chuckle got their attention "Weight seals, essentially your armor is now lighter, asked Halsey and found out Mjnoleir weighs up to a ton. It should now be at least to four hundred to five hundred pounds tops".
Jerome blinked a few times then sighed "Tell us when you do things like this…" he murmured as the team entered the elevator. He was beginning to have a feeling that his shinobi nature would affect them a lot later.
"Of course" he caught the slight tip of Jerome's helmet "Sir" he added cheekily while Alice and Douglas shared glances of amusement under their helmets. A new team dynamic was going to be interesting.
(Spirit of Fire-Bridge)
Naruto sighed after a long walk of ignoring looks of awe and fascination that accompanied Red Team, particularly the shorter member, having a rather dark and intimidating look. Naruto was irritated slightly but was amused at the whisperings of a new Spartan brought into the fight.
It ended when the entered the bridge, Cutter saw them straighten their backs but ordered "At ease" their stances relaxed as he began "We've got 48 Hours until Covenant forces arrive, I'd like you to run defensive outposts in New Rome, we already have a few ODST squads gearing up to assist in other parts of the planet due to economic areas and outlying cities that don't have such back up".
Jerome nodded as did the rest of Red Team while Cutter paused for a moment "We'll give the Marines and ODST in the city a briefing, one that will be done by Naruto" he looked at the figure who gave a nod.
"He's already come up on a plan due to the information we have on colonies, it's a sound one by me, but I'd rather he run it by you first" he explained, drawing nods of understanding before they left the room. Douglas arched a brow "You never do things half way, do you?" he asked rhetorricly as Naruto scoffed "I like keeping myself busy" he remarked curtly, glancing at Douglas while Alice arched a brow under her helm.
"Simply put, if we can win this battle here. We can bring up the moreale of the UNSC, I can only guess things have looked quite grim since the Harvest Campaign" Naruto commented, starting a conversation as they approached the armory.
"Too right…" murmured Douglas, agreeing with that. Jerome only sighed, it was true, the only reason morale increased was due to the presence of the Spartan IIs, they were mainly needed on the front lines and behind enemy line ops as well too. Nothing seemed to increase the spirits of the Marines and ODST that fought in the war.
Naruto sighed to himself, he felt as though he were doing a replay of when Pein invaded Konoha. Only for the ruins to be destroyed by Covenant plasma torpedoes. He shook his head at the memories before taking up an MA37 along with several clips, he glanced seeing Douglas favor an M34 Shotgun, he put some rounds into a pouch at his side that was his utility belt.
Jerome took out a DMR along with an M7 Caseless Machine gun at his side, lastly Alice had selected a SRS 99C-S2 along with two M6D pistols at her thighs. With that, Red Team vacated the armory.
(Spirit of Fire – Hanger)
Marines and ODST alike geared up for their deployment on Helos VI. Some were nervous but what struck the new recruits odd was the fact they saw the Spirit of Fire's crew was that they looked confident and even a bit prideful. Eyebrows rose over this, usually when it came down to defense against the Covenant, they were overrun in space and naval battles they were slaughtered.
Paul Lopez smirked a little at their confused looks, even dumbfounded ones from time to time. He himself had confidence in Red Team and that Naruto kid that had joined the UNSC, he was rather flabbergasted to learn that he had joined Red Team, and honestly he couldn't disregard his skill after watching him take on an elite in sword combat.
Red Team entered the vicinity and were given nods or glares from ODST members, Paul rolled his eyes a little, they were fighting a war and the other ODSTs cared more about a little nit pick of a fight then against the Covenant. Shaking his head, he got out a silenced M7 Caseless Machinegun before getting on a Pelican that was going to go planet side.
Surprisingly, Red Team joined the mix of ODSTs and Marines that Paul was on. Said man gave a nod to Jerome, he honestly couldn't care more or less about what made the Spartans what they were, they were in a war and they needed all the help they'd get.
As silenced reigned during the entire ride, the occasionally cough was heard or muttering of a prayer. Naruto had opted to go to the cockpit, his eyes scanned the stars for a moment but turned his attention to the planet as they entered the atmosphere in less then a minute and a half. He saw fields used for farming as well as the occasional settlement that accompanied it. Then came the sprawling metropolis, Naruto didn't show any surprise due to the fact he read up about most of the colonies that had existed in UNSC space. He broke off his gaze and felt the Pelican rumble as it came to a stop. On his back where the magnetic strip was, his DSR was there as well too.
Stepping out, they had landed on the outskirts and Naruto stepped as did Red Team. He glanced as the Pelican took off, his attention reigned on some trenchs that were dug around the city, a perimeter defense, some barriers were set up with slits holes to fire from with a weapon.
Naruto heard Jerome pipe up "Alright, lets get to work. Douglas help out with turret positions and Anti Air guns" he ordered, said Spartan nodded and headed for the first of buildings "Alice, see what you can do for mine positions for the Wraiths that'll arrive".
Alice nodded before Jerome looked to Naruto "Scout out possible landing locations in case the CCS class cruisers get past our defensive lines".
Naruto nodded before flickering out of view with the Hirashin, startling a few experienced soldiers.
(Debriefing, Amphitheater. Three Hours Later)
The chatter was loud in the theater which was crowded somewhat, Douglas looked at Jerome, doubt in his body language "You think they'll listen to Naruto?" he asked, Jerome glanced at his teammate "Sir" he added as an after thought.
"He has a plan, per usual" given that Naruto was highly perceptive, he could plan ahead by years it seemed. Said Team member shrugged a little "I'll resort to "Alternative" methods of persuasion" he gave a slight shrug of his shoulders before he observed the design of the amphitheater, it appeared to be in a square in design and had a circle stage, with a holo table in the middle of the stage, some Marines and ODSTs were watching from the balconies or the sitting areas.
"Sides, I'm a shinobi. Innovative" he ended before walking down the aisle, the looks and whispered, he ignored the banter and walked down to the middle of the stage, as he rose his hands to take off his helmet, people leaned forward to see what the presumed Spartan was like.
As he finally took it off, sharp inhales of air were in the room while others stared incrudeously, th kid looked no more then sixteen by their observations "What the fuck.."
"The hell.."
"Is that a kid?"
Naruto ignored the random mutterings before it was broken by a Private Marine "Hey kid, you lost!" he cackled along with the rookies while others like the more experienced soldiers noted the look in his slit blue eyes, he had a serious look much like an ODST would.
*SCHWING!*
The Private found a trinium combat knife embedded near his foot, Naruto had his left arm outstretched and smiled calmly "Oh, sorry, my finger slipped a little" he stated rather casually while the Private went pale as a sheet of paper as Naruto looked around.
"Do I have your utmost attention?" he asked, turning his piercing gaze around the Ampitheater. No one answered as he nodded in acceptance "Good" he stated simply before pressing a button on the holotable "Now, despite my age, I have fought against the Covenant and have survived against them, if you have any problems with my being sixteen" he saw eyes widen at his stated age "Protest to Captain Cutter" he ended just as a hologram of Helos VI came up. "The defense grid will consist of Three Halcyon Class cruisers, One Phoenix refitted colony ship, two Astraeus class ships.." he saw confusion on their faces at the last listed ship as the holograms of the ships appeared (Think Halo Wars).
"Against three Covenant Super Carriers and two CCS Class Battle-Cruisers" he finsiehd while concerned murmurings and whispers were eminent in the amphitheater "Captain Cutter will be manning the defense while Red Team is backing up the ground invasion" he saw relief on some faces while slight concern dotted others "Our objective will be to Repel the invasion-"
He was cut off by a scoff, the blond glanced to the left and spotted a Corporal at the age of twenty two lean forward "Repel? Fuck that, the Covies invade, glass, and swat away our ships. What makes you think a new line of ships will do against them?" he asked with a shrug while Naruto merely smiled.
"Simple. Stay and watch" he ended before showing a map of the city with raised topography, he ignored the man's look that clearly said "Are you crazy?".
"While the Covenant may out maneuver us technologically" he heard Douglas snort quietly before glancing over his shoulder with a slight glare while he quieted the next few moments "We know our area in New Rome" his explanation began "Using guerilla tactics via the sewer and alley ways, combined fire teams should be able to eliminate entire patrols if we take them by surprise" nods were agreed and saw the possibility happen, guerilla tactics were mainy used in urban environments, it allowed them to hold off the Covenant for a limited amount of time however.
"However, in the outskirts" he ghosted his hand through the hologram and brought an open field to attention (Think Tom Clancy's Endwar).
"We will have trouble with deployments by possible Scarabs, Wraiths, artillery bombardments…" he listed before explaining "Mines along with Rocket fire teams will be deployed here and split in two to compensate for the cityscape." He looked around seeing no reactions other then focused attention "Scarabs however, have one natural weakness if we can get our tanks behind them" now that got their attention, the only way they would take down Scarabs would be due to a Spartan or airstrikes from Longswords.
"At the back is the generator, if more then a few rounds are deposited, they can be taken down swiftly" he ended before he got to the end of his explanation "And in the event we do have a CCS Class Battle Cruiser, or Corvette enter airspace…" the hologram zoomed in on a high building top "A Mass Driver is currently being installed on top the Valencia Business building." He saw grins or smirks on their faces at the thought of punching an MAC round through those babies.
"All in all, our bases are covered as best as they can be. Report to your battle stations and good luck, I am now able to field any questions you may have."
One ODST raised a hand, he had a Sargent insignia on his left shoulder "What is the ETA of the Covenant ships?" he asked, Naruto responded crisply "Forty Five hours as of now" he saw a frown of concern but nodded in acceptance.
"What about Red Team's deployment?" asked a Marine up on a balcony. Naruto paused for half a second in thought "Mostly to New Rome, vital sections such as the economy sectors including the shipyard" he explained while the Marine nodded understandingly, the output of the metals on Helos VI made it valuable to the UNSC.
"Other then that, any other questions?"
"I've got one" piped up Paul, stepping forward. Attention was between Naruto and him as he started "What's your role? We've got ours" he pointed out, wanting to know the current agenda of the blond.
"Mine is the defense of New Rome, an ODST Battalion is being deployed at specific areas on Helos VI" he explained "So, we will have some form of experienced veterans against the Covenant" he assured while Paul nodded in understanding, he had already seen Naruto in combat and knew to trust his knowledge and experience. He shuddered inwardly at the thought of being on a planet for a year that was Covenant
occupied one.
"And besides that…." Naruto trailed off, his gaze shot to the entrance of the Amphitheater as in a blink of an eye, he shot his DSR and fired several times, a roar that was all too familiar in the ears of the Marines of ODST.
It was a Zealot, charing at Naruto with an energy dagger, the blond flicked out his combat knife from his collar bone and threw it, piercing it's temple. In less than second, it slumped to the floor dead with the hilt buried up to the hilt as it skid to a stop at the stairs to the stage. The personnel backed away, weapons pointed at the corpse as Naruto's DSR smoked.
"When the hell did you see that?" asked Dogulas, coming out with Jerome and Alice. Eying the now dead Zealot warily with weapons ready.
"Well, at least ONI's reports were right for once" the blond remkared, ignoring the question. A Marine Private, got out as he shook from the surprise of the fire situation "S-sir, what do you mean?".
Naruto glanced at him before going to the zealot, he pushed over it's corpse turning upright as the Marines and ODST listned "This Zealot was trained as a spy, we've been catching their armor configuration on other colonies. Seems he was about to report on our debriefing" scowls and angry mutters were present as Naruto took something from the Elite's hands.
"What's that?" asked Alice, Naruto took it in his hands and observed it, the object was half an inch risen upright and had a purple sheen with blue tipped ending.
"Communication device most likely" he replied as he stated "I'll have to take a look at this later, perhaps I'll be able to tap into their Battle-Net given the chance" at this, looks were skeptical at this, given ONI have never been able to reverse enginner Covenant technology.
He stashed it away as everyone was dismissed from the debriefing to prepare for the Covenant onslaught.
(Forty Eight Hours Later, 6AM)
The sound of clicks and reloading was heard as the morning was still dark. Fire teams were reorint ing and vehicle crews murmured their positions into their radios. Reloading was done on turrets for Anti-Air defenses were being set up while the Mass Driver was hidden on the tower, kept from the view of the enemy when they arrived.
(Spirit of Fire – Bridge)
Captain Cutter licked his lips nervously as he heard Serena report "Sir, slip space ruptures detected" his eyes gazed to the AI as she continued "Over a million kilometers away, our enemy is coming in and closing. Three Super Carriers and Two CCS class Battle-Cruisers".
Cutter eyed the other ships on the Holo-table, set up in an arrow defense line with two Halcyon class cruisers placed, the last one was hidden behind the moon that orbited Helos VI, as a way to flank the enemy when their attention was focused on the new ships.
"Your orders, sir?" she asked with a witty smirk about Serena's features.
Cutter paused and straightened, he spoke four words that ignited flames of hope in the crew on the bridge.
"Let's go to war"
Authors Note
Man…I am really building up the tension here people. Next will be the spacve battle and then the ground engagements. Please review and if you don't like this, I can rewrite. Also, I have had ideas of how to still do the events of Reach, from Naruto's percpective with Noble Team. Please don't flame me on this idea, but I will put some detailed thought into this idea before considering any action.