Me: Okay, so here's the new chapter. Sorry for breaking down at the end there. I actually started to cry while writing, and was sobbing like a little girl after re-reading… But, what can you do?

Thel: Oh no, we're still here…

Rtas: FRUQOT! I WAS ENJOYING MY FREEDOM!

Master Chief: Deal with it, freak. We are trapped until this story is done…

Me: Disclaimer time! Thel, you still have that paper from the prologue, right?

Thel: Yes… Reader does not own Halo, only his OCs…

Me: God, you're gloomy… But you're still kickass.

Chapter Fourteen

Rose stayed with Hyak the entire time the Phantom was moving. She was barely holding back the tears, holding the boy's head in her lap. She hadn't felt a pulse once, and he hadn't even moved a finger or an eyelid. The marines were silent around her, not attempting to flirt as they normally did to get over death and grief. It made the craft feel, empty. Gilc looked back from the cockpit, sighing. He had made no attempt to comfort Rose, and neither had the marines. They just left her to grieve for the body.

A small piece of debris hit the side of the Phantom, most likely part of a destroyed craft that was suspended in the void of space. It was quiet for what felt like years but was simply minutes before anyone said something.

"Earth is in an hour of your time ahead of us," Gilc muttered, barely breaking the silence. The marines broke it the rest of the way, muttering to one another. Rose simply stared into the face of the human elite, her expression blank. A tear fell at last, but she made no sound, her body unmoving still.

Rose had experienced loss before, even of friends and family. She shook her head as another tear fell and hit Hyak on the cheek. Why is he different from even my parents? The thought brought her back to her parents' funeral. She hadn't shown signs of a single tear as they were lost to her forever.

A slight movement caught her attention as more tears fell, starting to soak Hyak's face like rain. She looked to the source of the movement, but the hand remained still. It had probably just been the craft moving that caused the twitch.

She looked down once more, and a sob locked in her throat as she shut her eyes, not wishing to see the body any more. Hyak was dead, and that was the end of it.

One of the marines finally had the guts to approach her. Placing a hand on her shoulder, he sighed, a deep frown carrying from his expression to his very stature. "Sergeant, I'm sorry for the loss of your friend. I lost a wife and an unborn son a few years ago. I know how you feel." His hand rubbed ever so slightly, and Rose finally let out the sob, something she had sworn never to do, even before her parents died.

The sob created a strange chain to begin. As soon as the sound escaped her, the marines were looking in every direction, tensed up. A small twitch attracted attention to Hyak's hand, and the marine at Rose's side let go of her shoulder. Eyes opened, pupils narrowed in rage, as an overly powerful hand grabbed the marine's throat, starting to crush it. Weapons aimed at Hyak as he laid there, teeth bared like a feral beast, waiting to kill its prey.

Rose blinked for a moment as everything registered in her mind. The marine pried the boy's fingers from his neck and fell back into a seat, rubbing his bruised throat. Hyak looked around, the rage still visible, but his eyes returning to the humane icy blue shade they normally were.

He looked up, registering Rose's face in an instant, and reached a hand up to wipe salty tears from his cheeks. His expression turned neutral as he looked up at the girl.

"Where am I?" It was a simple question, but one that made the sergeant break down even more, a smile replacing the grief that had been held for several hours. "Rose, what happened?" Hyak sat up and grimaced, clutching his gut in pain. He pulled his hand away, staring at the blood that polluted his white armor. "Oh."

Rose looked up, ignoring the marines that were around her, forgetting where she was and what was happening at the moment and had been happening for many years. She wrapped her arms around the taller teen, causing him to wince slightly, and rested her face on his armored shoulder.

"I thought you were gone." Her mood turned, and she slapped him hard enough that, even though he wasn't watching, Gilc shivered at the impact.

"What was that for!?"

"You had me scared to death! Don't get so badly injured, or I'll make sure you don't wake up next time!" Another slap left both of Hyak's cheeks beat red, and he glared at her.

Gilc chuckled from the cockpit. "Kids these days."

"You're the same age as us!"

Me: Okay? That kinda reversed my mood for the previous chapter... But that was a funny way to end the chapter! I think I'll probably wake up laughing in the middle of the night!

Rtas and Thel: Ugh... So awful...

Me: (looming over them darkly) What did you say?

Master Chief: That it was awful.

Rtas: Traitor!