Chapter 8
A few minutes later, Axel kicked a limp grunt body into a large mound of them, all dead.
"See? Told you it would only take a sec!" she said to Zeta proudly. Zeta looked at her with a frown.
"Yeah, but if you haven't noticed, we're stuck in the middle of a frozen tundra and we've got important places to be!" the A.I. hissed in an annoyed voice. Axel looked at her surroundings, and for the first time since landing on the planet she realized that it was completely covered in snow. It was also really cold too, and she sneezed a few times. Zeta looked at the chilly Spartan.
"If we do stay here too long, you'll probably freeze to death. This whole planet is literally a gigantic snowball, and most structures are built underground in order to keep its inhabitants alive," she informed.
"Well, now we've got a huge pile of grunts, and a huge pile of gas," Axel pointed out matter-of-factly. Zeta snapped her holographic green fingers.
"You're right! I'll instruct you on how to extract it correctly," she said, clapping her hands together excitedly.
A few minutes later, the Mongoose had miraculously started.
"That was extremely lucky. It doesn't even seem physically possible," Zeta went on, complaining that it didn't make sense. Axel turned to her.
"Well, it's working now, so let's go before it stops," she instructed, hopping onto the now-functioning vehicle. The engine whirred to life and the wheels spun. The spartan and the A.I. took off through the frozen tundra, leaving behind a sparkling trail of snowflakes.
After about an hour of endless driving, Axel began to hear Zeta's voice. She refused to reveal her holographic self because she didn't want to get "caught in the snow," Axel didn't understand why though, surely holograms couldn't actually get stuck in stuff.
"I'm looking at a map of the area, and we're finally getting close to the facility," the A.I. informed. "Apparently there's a better connection up here than where we were before," she added. Axel struggled to hear her at first as she got used to the wind slicing passed her ears. However, the helmet helped a bit to block out the loud sound, along with the cold chill.
"Is it always this cold?" Axel suddenly asked. Even through her armor, she was still freezing.
"Yeah, pretty much. This planet is pretty far away from any heat source, so there's nothing to keep it warm," Zeta explained. FInally, a large hill came into view.
"Is that it?" Axel questioned, pointing toward the large mound. Zeta took a moment to scan the hill, then spoke.
"Yup! We're finally here! Although, when we get there, I don't want to be the one to explain that the covenant blew up our ship…" she replied shyly. Axel rolled her eyes inside her helmet.
"Fine…I'll do it…" Axel groaned with a frown. In a few moments, the pair had reached the large snow mound. Axel turned off the Mongoose, then hopped off. Zeta appeared beside her, seemingly glad to not be moving anymore.
"So...how do we get in?" Axel questioned, tilting her head to one side. Zeta looked at the giant lump.
"Um...maybe try knocking on it?" she suggested, shrugging her green shoulders. Axel rolled her eyes. However, she decided she might as well, since they had no other option. She walked close to the snow structure, then gently rapped on the edge. Astonishingly, a small section caved in to reveal a now-open doorway.
"Oh. My. Gosh. I can't believe that actually worked," Axel mused.
"I. Can't. Either," Zeta exclaimed, a surprised expression on her holographic face.
"Well, we're in, so…" Axel trailed.
"ONWARD!" Zeta cried suddenly.
"Onward," Axel replied with a smile.