Whew! Another summer over, which means back to school and publishing! Speaking of which, here's a new chapter--many thanks to Tiger Tank for his assistance (even if it's not as realistic as he'd like :P). Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own Halo.
Chapter Twenty-Four: Answers
July 1, 2558 1114 hours
Forerunner Planet: Stronghold
Unknown System
It had been a constant firefight for the past several hours, practically ever since they'd set foot into the science facility—it felt like an eternity to the battle-weary group. From the minute they'd sent foot into the facility, they'd been attacked by disgusting, dusfigured demons that could only have come from someone's worst nightmares—and that someone would have needed a twisted imagination in the first place to create anything that even remotely resembled the Flood. The entire group was exhausted, especially Laura. I shoulda taken the armor, she thought as she dodged a swipe from a Combat Form's tentacled appendage; she'd been running away and popping shots at it for a while, and hadn't had much luck. Nearby she caught a glimpse of a plasma grenade detonating, and saw Fred and Kelly pumping bullets into a crowd of infection forms. To her right, Ash and Tom were alternating battle rifles with shotguns against oncoming combat forms, and Linda and Mark were on higher ground somewhere near the back, employing both range and their sniper rifles; Olivia, true to form (which Laura had finally figured out was stealth—the girl had an almost unnatural ability to blend in), was nowhere to be seen, unless you took the time to trace the various exploding corpses (which she did—Olivia was in the middle of the fight). Unfortunately, the brief moment of inattention came close to killing her—Laura only just avoided a swipe from the combat form's tentacles. I really need a break here. Pivoting quickly, she dodged another swipe and kicked out, finally catching it in the chest and knocking it back long enough to pump it full of lead and kill both it and the infection form in its chest; once she knew it wasn't getting up, Laura hurled a frag grenade in Olivia's general direction and called a warning—she noticed Olivia move back only just in time. The detonation was impressive: most of the Flood it hit turned into flying greenish body parts. Most impressive, not that it really made much of a difference, she thought as the monsters kept coming. The sound of gunfire was deafening, and her ears were ringing from the gunshots—making her wish she had a helmet and its included aural dampeners—and yet, even the rattle of bullets, the whine of plasma rifles, and grenade detonations couldn't drown out the squishing and slimy noises of the Flood. She came close to wetting herself listening to the inhuman screams and howls from the unending wave of horrors—this was terrifying to any sane human, let alone a Spartan, but somehow she managed to keep her weapon firing and herself fighting.
"We need to get a breather!" she shouted over the gunfire, throwing a spent magazine at an approaching pod.
"How?" Tom shouted. "There's nowhere that's not crawling with these things!"
"There is a room near here where you can rest. There is only one entrance, and the door can be sealed from the inside and reopened when necessary."
Thanks for the tip, Laura thought. "This way!" Firing like a madwoman, she led the group in the direction Alaya's echo (for lack of a better term) indicated. There was a door, and next to it was a computer terminal, complete with data port. Trying the mechanism, Laura found the door locked; apparently the computers in this place locked all the rooms the minute the Flood got loose, some sort of safety measure.
"Cover me!" While Tom and Lucy did just that, Laura pulled the chip from her 'wristwatch' and slid it home; within minutes, she heard the door open and motioned for the group to get in. "Lorienna, shut the door!" As soon as the door was halfway down she dove under it, almost colliding with a pair of metallic green boots.
"Whose shoes?" she quipped, rolling on to her back and breathing heavily. The armored figure squatted down next to her, and she instantly knew it was John—the others wouldn't necessarily be getting so close and personal.
"Care to explain what that was all about?" John growled.
"Not much to explain, really." Sitting up, she looked around at her surroundings. "Looks like a storage room of some sort." The tables and equipment were coated in dust, and it appeared that it hadn't been touched for millennia…well, almost: there were multiple sets of large, non-human footprints in the dust on the floor, and a few tables were moved, indicating that someone had searched the room. Covenant, most likely, and apparently they had no Engineers in the group, which in itself is bizarre. But, since our ugly pals the Flood have taken over, we won't need to worry about the Covenant hiding in here with us. Though why the Flood weren't in this particular room was a mystery; she guessed that since the room had been locked before their arrival, the Flood had been barred entry. Laura scanned the room, noting where everyone had ended up. The group was scattered around the small room, erecting tables and moving equipment to form barricades, except for Tom and Lucy who were watching the door with rifles cocked.
"How'd you find this place so quickly?" Ash asked. Laura cocked her head and smirked.
"Guess. At any rate, this gives us a place to rest and regroup for a little—goodness knows we need it." Looking around for a computer terminal, she was disappointed when she didn't find one.
"She'll get in touch when she can," John reassured her.
"I know, but it'd still be nice to have the intel." Laura got to her feet and checked the room, making doubly sure there was nothing as far as the Flood were concerned. The only tracks in the room apart from theirs were Covenant, whose tracks showed them coming in and out of the room, and it appeared to be as Alaya's echo had said: the Flood weren't going to get in here for a while. "Anyone hurt?"
"A few bruises, nothing more," Ash reported, and Kelly confirmed it. "You're the one who needs to worry, really, since you're the only one without Mjolnir armor." Ah, the all-powerful Mjolnir, Laura chuckled inwardly. A Spartan's best friend, apart from his gun.
"I've been fighting without it for too long, kid," she replied, eyes closed as she tried to pull some semblance of calm around her. "'Sides, we wouldn't've had enough time for me to readjust to Mjolnir, and the last two times I was in it I damn near died—I think it's jinxed for me." Though third time's the charm, they say, she thought to herself, but it came as no surprise when she thought about it: she wasn't too keen on change, and when she found something she liked or that worked, she tended to stick with it.
"You would cripple yourself simply for a false sense of security?" The low, bass-like tones could only come from the Arbiter; Laura opened her eyes to see him regarding her solemnly. "You are strange, even for a Demon."
Laura shrugged. "Strange or no, it works for me. There've only been a handful of times I've been seriously injured, and most of those would've happened anyway whether I had Mjolnir armor or not. I prefer having less bulk on me—which makes it easier for me to squeeze in tight spots." Speaking of which… "Anybody got motion sensor readings on the outside?" Fred moved up to the door and slipped a fiber-optic probe under the door crack; the entire room watched him stiffen, which meant it wasn't good news.
"There's a small crowd around the door," he reported. "Looks like hiding out here wasn't such a good idea after all—we're trapped here."
"Maybe, maybe not." Laura closed her eyes as she felt Alaya's consciousness tugging at her.
There were security drones on Stronghold, as on every world. Perhaps your construct could draw them here.
Except for one slight problem, Alaya—she's out there and I can't get to her to tell her.
What of her housing, the one you wear on your wrist? Can you use it to contact her?
I'd need to take it apart and interface it with a computer terminal, but I don't have the tools or the time to do so.
Tools are easy to come by, if you know where to look. And you will not leave this room until you destroy the Flood outside. Laura felt the echo trying to take over, and decided to allow it—all in all, she didn't have much choice, and decided to take a leap of faith.
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John watched as a blank look crept over Laura's face, and guessed that she'd once again allowed Alaya to take control. She's starting to trust her, I think. Laura—or was it Alaya?—stood up and crossed the room, rummaging for something and eventually coming up with what looked like a repair kit of sorts. Going for the wristwatch she wore, Laura took it apart and began pulling wires out with almost robotic precision: the next thing she did was disconnect the door control and tie in the dismantled device.
"Never would've considered that idea," Lorienna's voice suddenly echoed through the room. "Though how're you gonna fix it?"
"Repairing the device is the least of your worries at this time," Laura replied in distant tones—if John had had any doubt as to who was in control of Laura's body, they were dispelled as the Forerunner language flowed off her tongue. "Can you find the program for Stronghold's security drones?"
"Yes, that's easy to find. Not as easy to access though, but I can get in." The AI sounded cautious. "Why do you want me to go there, though?"
"The Flood are crowded around this room, meaning Laura and her companions are trapped inside. If you can send the drones here—"
"Then I can draw them away, at the very least," Lorienna finished, an understanding tone in her voice. "Just make sure you let her out once the gunfire starts."
"I will." Alaya disconnected the wires and proceeded to repair both the door connection and the wrist device; it took a few minutes, but after awhile each was as good as new. She turned and regarded the group of Spartans with something like amusement.
"You fear for her, do you not?" she questioned softly. "I will not harm her."
"Sorry if we don't believe that right off the bat," Kelly commented, a bit of an edge in her voice. "From our perspective, all those memories of yours are driving her insane—and borderline suicidal."
"That was my fault, and a misunderstanding. I communicated too strongly, and unwittingly caused harm. Now, though, I understand the stresses involved and have scaled back accordingly. She is as safe with me as she is with you." A small smile appeared as she turned her gaze to John. "Well, maybe not as safe."
The sound of weapons fire on the other side of the door got everyone's attention, distracting them long enough for Alaya to vacate Laura's mind; when they looked back Laura stood there, cocking her battle rifle and checking the sights.
"Relax, guys, this time's me," she smirked. "Now let's go cap off some Flood."
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Laura slammed the door on the Flood invaders, literally: as the door had come slamming down, an infection form had been caught between it and the floor, and she had been splashed with green pus-like blood and a stench that made her stomach churn. Oddly enough, this room was completely empty, though there were lots of places where Flood could be hiding.
"Anything on motion trackers?" she whispered; something about this large room made her afraid of talking too loudly.
"Nothing yet," Fred replied. "Though that doesn't mean they're not here, those things can pop out of nowhere."
"Damn straight," she agreed, and noticed John tense. "Something up, Chief?"
"On Delta Halo, and on Earth, there were spores everywhere where the Flood were located. There's nothing like that here."
"Were there any on Halo-04?" she asked.
"No, which I never quite understood either." John shook his head. "This makes no sense, why is there a difference each time?"
Lorienna interrupted, having tapped into their comlinks. "As far as Halo-04 is concerned, I believe the Flood weren't out of confinement long enough for there to be any spores in the air. On Delta Halo, the Flood had apparently been loose for so long that there were spores everywhere."
"Neither scenario explains our current situation though," Fred pointed out.
"Does anything involving the Flood make sense?" Laura pointed out. "Let's just keep moving for now. We'll figure out the mysteries later."
Taking point, Laura moved forward, walking with a deceptive confidence, her booted feet making much less noise than the Spartans' armored soles—while she had to admit they were stealthy enough, she'd learned over time just how to apply pressure as she walked, and had had enough practice that she could walk over crackling brush with barely a sound. Alaya's consciousness was quiet, but she could feel the dead woman's shock in her own mind as she surveyed the area—for the first time, she could see evidence of a Covenant presence having preceded them. There were blood smears everywhere, a few torn and mangled bodies—mostly Brutes, but a few Jackals and Grunts as well, and all too battered for the Flood to use—spiker rounds embedded everywhere and scoring on the walls.
"Plasma burns," she muttered to the others. "Looks like the Covenant put up one hell of a fight." Amazingly that, some chunks of greenish-white flesh, and a few green pus-smears were the only indication of the Flood being here: as John had noticed, there were no spores floating around, and no one came to greet them. Something's really screwy here, she thought, her grip tightening on the battle rifle.
"Not surprising," John replied, watching her with concern; he knew it might only be a matter of time before she lost control. So far Alaya had kept her word and only taken over when absolutely necessary, but John still didn't trust the echos of a long-dead Forerunner.
"So what exactly are we looking for, do you know?" Tom asked from the rear; Laura didn't answer him right away, just kept looking around.
"I don't know…yet. Just keep your eyes open and your rifle cocked." She hefted her own rifle, wishing for her knives, a pair of plasma swords, or even the blades her brother had given her for her birthday. Granted, they'd be useless for the most part, but I'd still feel better if I had them.
A faint whine filled the air, and Laura stopped to listen: it sounded like it was coming closer. Sentinels, she thought, remembering how they were used as all-purpose mechanoids—sentries, workers, weapons, the flying drones could do it all. Let's hope they're on our side. An echo flashed through her head: an override code for the Sentinel's programming.
"Lower your weapons," she whispered when she saw an oblong metal object heading their way. Not even looking to see if the others had listened, she stepped forward. As she'd hoped, the Sentinels targeted her.
"Protocol override Z-10105. Target only Flood forms, protect non-Flood sentients." The words came to her mind as easily as breathing, thanks to the override code Alaya had given her, but the Sentinels responded and formed a protective, floating circle around the Spartans.
"Let's keep moving, the Sentinels aren't going to bother us. The sooner we find the archives in here the better."
"Archives?" Kelly asked from the rear. "You never mentioned any archives."
"I just remembered they were there, like I just remembered the override commands for the Sentinels." Her reply was sharp, but Laura wasn't about to apologize. If they're gonna be that dense…not my fault the memories are sporadic.
"Do you remember what this place was?" John asked. Bless him, at least one of them understands this.
"It was a science facility, specializing in biological materials—pretty much the only thing on this planet, which is why it doesn't have a name of its own, just went by the planet's. Alaya never knew for sure what was going on here, but there was something important being researched here before it fell. I'll bet we find some records in the archives; if nothing else it's a good place to start looking."
The group reached an open archway, or at least as open as the force fields allowed it to be. Hovering just in front of the archway was an older woman with graying hair and a sad expression. The hologram was disconcertingly real, and a cry of grief escaped Laura's throat before she could stop herself.
"Myrnia…" she whispered, a few tears trickling silently down her cheeks. The hologram must have heard her, since it turned to study her more closely. A voice recording played as the holographic woman spoke.
"It is rare for love and war to mate." An old joke between herself and an old friend…no, between Alaya and a mother figure. It was getting harder to separate her own memories from Alaya's, something that could easily be bad news down the road.
"But when they do, their child is great." The figure nodded and blinked off, followed by the force field's deactivation. Laura moved forward, then stopped.
"I have to go on alone."
"Why?" The question was John's, and Laura didn't need to know him well to know he was worried.
"That message was meant for Alaya, not for any of us. Who knows what might happen if anyone besides me goes through that door?" Laura gestured behind her to the doorway. "I'm not willing to take that risk."
"And yet you allowed us to come this far with you," Ash pointed out.
"Not really, no—you guys insisted on coming along. I was going to go solo regardless, remember?" Laura's dark eyes silently asked them to understand. "I have to do this."
John walked forward and placed one hand on her shoulder, the closest the two ever got to displaying affection in the open: as a rule they tried to keep their relationship under wraps. "Be careful."
"As careful as circumstances allow," Laura nodded, smiling gently. Turning to the rest of the group, she called, "Keep the door open for me, will ya?"
"Will do. Good luck, Blade." Laura nodded to Fred, shouldered her rifle, and walked through the doorway. She heard the forcefield reactivate behind her, and the faint whine of additional Sentinels coming towards her.
I remember a time when I used to walk these corridors, Alaya murmured inside her head; she sensed both sadness and nostalgia coming from the dead Forerunner.
Good, that means you can tell me which way I should be going, Laura thought back.
I can do better than that. With that cryptic comment, Alaya's entire presence vanished. Shocked, Laura looked around frantically, unused to suddenly having her own mind back; the closer they'd gotten to Stronghold, the stronger Alaya's presence in her mind had become.
It is as I thought, Alaya's voice echoed from her left. Laura spun around to see a ghostly image before her, a translucent woman in a green gown. The ghost looked exactly like her, and smiled knowingly.
As I said before, my strength has grown, and enough so that I can manifest a form. Alaya chuckled, the sound echoing as though from a great distance. I believe it is a relief to you to have your own mind back, yes?
"Somewhat." Laura lowered her rifle and nodded to the ghost. "So which way?"
Alaya led her through the winding corridors, a layout that reminded her somewhat of a labyrinth, to what looked like a computer terminal. Even Laura's brief glance said this was an isolated area, one Lorienna couldn't get to unless she were hand-delivered.
"Wonder what's here?" Booting up the terminal, Laura saw the login prompt: asking for the name of the greatest healer of all. Since this was meant for Alaya…Laura quickly typed in a name: FARA. The files were open to her.
'I leave this here in the hopes that someone will find this. We are doomed, the monsters have closed in around us, and all our security forces are useless to stand against them. Even as we fight we are consumed. The worst part is, we have done this to ourselves.
'Our communications relays are down, and there is no means available to us of sending this data to the rest of the Empire. I fear we will all fall to the product of our own genius. It is my hope that soon, someone will come looking for us, and find this data. Please, when you find it, bring it to Alaya of the science guild—she will know what to do.'
Laura scanned through that one file, her dark eyes widening in horror. In her own head, she could sense Alaya's horror and shock—apparently her strength had given out, and her apparition had faded and retreated back into her mind. She saw how the scientists here had tampered with a parasite found on an exploration ship, how they had genetically enhanced it to cope with any environment, how they had found a way to accelerate its evolution. Even as she thought they could do no more, Laura saw how they had introduced it to Forerunner soldiers in an attempt to create the perfect weapon—a weapon that had turned on them and somehow escaped the facility, only to spread throughout the Forerunner Empire.
"The Gravemind," she whispered in horror, realizing that the origins of the nightmarish creature John had described were right before her eyes.
No, this cannot be…Myrnia…all of them…they created the Flood?
"It would seem so," Laura muttered. Finding her datapad, which she had brought along for this very purpose, she quickly downloaded every file she could find in the terminal. I can go through and sort it out later. A touch of a button scrambled the data inside, and her own password would hold the encryption. Let ONI crack this!
Stowing the 'pad in a small pouch at her belt the minute the encryption was complete, Laura deactivated the terminal and stepped back. Without warning she felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up—someone, or something, was watching her. She could feel a menacing, almost malevolent presence watching her, almost as if it were sizing her up. Chills ran up and down her spine under the scrutiny of this awful intelligence—it was intelligent, of that she was certain. Slowly, making sure to not make any sudden movements that might spook whatever was watching her, Laura turned to face the new threat, one gloved finger cautiously moving toward the trigger…