1841 hours, November 12th, 2542 [MILITARY CALENDAR]/ Feloot System, In orbit over Planet Hower, UNSC Surragate
We drop off the Scarab with little troubles, even though we almost get blasted by the base's defences. After we leave the vehicle in their hands, we are shipped to the UNSC Surragate and are told that we are going back into cryo-stasis for a three month long trip to Reach where we'll be stationed until further notice.
We are given an hour before we are to head to the cryo tubes which gives us an hour to talk about our first mission and how it went. We should be too professional for this, to compare kills. But we were young, only teenagers. Even though we were professionally trained soldiers, our younger side did sometimes show.
Once back in our assigned room, we begin talking about the mission. It first starts out with Kia teasing me about my new scar, and then 211 explaining how he got stuck under the rubble, and it eventually ended with me talking about the kills on the Scarab.
"Scarab? What kind of name is that for a vehicle? it looks nothing like a bug," Kia says. "Hey, I didn't name it. I just retrieved the offical name. The UNSC name anyways," I say with a shrug and peel off my sweat shirt. "Nasty." I toss the shirt on my bed and lean back on the mattress. "I'd say the mission went well, what do you think?" 211 asks. "You kidding? Everyone died. We didn't acomplish our mission, plus we got owned by a Glassing Beam!" Kia exclaims angrily. "But at least we got out alive," I say with some heat. "If everyone dies and you can't do anything about it, then you have to focus on your team. If your team dies, then focus on yourself. You hear me? Don't get mad about what happened. Take it as a learning experience. Learn that the Covenant mean business, that they're strong and ruthless. Learn to protect those that cannot protect themselves."
Each Spartan grins and 211 jumps up and snaps a salute. "Sir, yes sir!" he replies with energy. Kia does the same and parkson follows. "Sir, yes sir!" Kia echoes with a grin. 211 mirrors that grin, and Parkson wears a smile that shows the fight that burns inside of him that words can no longer utter.
We pass the hour by laughing and chatting, waiting until we get the call to head down to cryo-storage.
Once we get the order we leave our barracks and head down the spaceship's large hallways to the cryo-storage rooms where we shower and strip down to our underwear. We are assigned cryo-tubes and are accompanied by doctors as we climb into the tubes. As I pass one of them, I see the face of one of the crew members who is asleep.
I pull myself into the tube and put the small yellow glob onto the roof of my mouth and lay my head down. I watch as the tube's hatch is lowered over me and my view from the outside area is cut off. The tube grows cold, but I don't feel too much of it as I soon fall asleep.
TIME UNKNOWN, January 23rd, 2543 [MILITARY CALENDAR]/ Hovorta System, near planet Juve.
[ALERT. UNKNOWN CONTACT OFF STARBOARD BOW.
ATTEMPTING COMMUNICATIONS
COMMUNICATIONS FAILED. HOSTILE CONTACTS CONFIRMED.
SITUATION COMPROMISED. INITIATE COLE PROTOCOL.
THAWING BLUE TEAM]
I sleep for about two months until I am awoken very suddenly and with no warning.
The tube is dark, and it's fairly cold still. The hatch hasn't opened and no one is outside. I hear nothing and see nothing. My mind is still groggy and my throat is horribly dry and caked with something nasty tasting, no doubt the cryo gunk. I move my arms which respond sluggishly and push against the hatch. It doesn't budge, so I push again, harder this time. The hatch breaks off and slams into the low ceiling which is truly a shelf. I shove off the hatch which had disconnected and climb out to find the room pitch-black, except for a slow red pulsing light. I recognize that light, it's the emergency light that is activated only when the ship is in dire trouble.
I take note that the room is hot. I feel that it should be of more alarm, but I dismiss it. I find my team's tubes and deactivate them, trying to avoid looking at the other cyro-tubes as I wait for them to awaken.
They crawl out in a daze, 211 complaining about the darkness. "Something's wrong. We're not supposed to be awake yet," Kia says as Parkson crawls out as well. "Life support is failing. Can't you guys feel the heat?" 211 notes. I nearly facepalm, cursing my stupidity. "Something went wrong. We need arms. Lets head down to the armory to gear up," I say. "Shouldn't we head to the bridge first?" Kia asks. "I have a feeling that the bridge won't be much help," I say and go to the door at the end of the hallway.
I catch sight of one of the cyro tubes, and hate what I see. "Well...that'd be why we are awake," 211 says grimly.
The person in the tube is thawed, but they're dead. A burn of sorts has been seared into their forehead. Their eyes are open, suggesting that they were awake when they were killed. The hatch is halfway open, as well as a couple of others.
"Covenant, no doubt," Kia says. "I have a feeling that's the fate of the rest of the ship," 211 says. "No doubt. Lets get moving," I say and open the door that leads to the outside hallway.
A body falls forwards as the doors slide open. A large plasma burn covers his entire back. He wears the uniform of a coms officer from the bridge. His face is frozen in an expression of terror and agony.
We jump back as he falls, but soon realize he's dead. "No doubt about it now," 211 says, stepping over the body.
We double time it through the dark corridors and make it to the armory in time to avoid being caught. We easily find our armor stored in the hanger but find out that we can't access the weapons. "We'll have to find our own weapons," I say to the others.
"We need to find out where we are. Parkson, Kia, you go find the interstellar map. Me and 211 will go find the nearest planet," I say and nod to 211 who follows me as I take off down the hallway.
We head down to the mapping room and find two Jackals inside. I motion to 211 who quietly flanks right as i go left. They are staring up at the mapping projection, no doubt trying to find Earth. Luckily, the Cole Protocol was put into act right before the Captain was killed and no information was available
211 converges on his target and I do as well. We seize their heads and jerk them sharply. We are rewarded with snaps as their necks break. The bodies drop and I move to the console. "The AI has been destroyed, the ship is flying blind," I say as the system comes online.
A system of planets is shown, each different in its own way. This system used to be home to a remote colony of humans. The UNSC had little to do with them, and just wiped their planet off of the maps when it was glassed. "The nearest habitable planet is a little ways away. An old colony. We'll have to steal a ship to be able to reach it," I say and look to 211 who is watching the door intently. "A patrol is coming. They might see the bodies," he says. "Grab a pistol, we'll fight them. Any Elites?" I ask him. He listens a moment before shaking his head. "Jackals and Grunts," he says. "Flank the door, we'll take them down as they enter," I say. We grab the two Jackal's plasma pistols and make for our positions.
Within a moment, we are waiting on either side of the door, hidden in shadow. The room is dim, the only illumination coming from the console screen.
The shuffling and snorting of the Grunts comes first. By the sound of it, there are five. The clicking of the Jackal's feet follows as well as their chatter. They are relaxed, their guard is down.
I look to 211 who nods and gets ready to fire.
A few seconds pass and the patrol gets closer. The Grunts stop and say something to the Jackals who pick up their pace. They enter the room, their bird-like frames walking right past us. They find the bodies...and we open fire.
Green bullets erupt from each of our guns as we aim at the aliens. Their screams can be heard ringing through the air. Within seconds, each of the aliens are dead.
"Crap," I hiss. "Didn't think about that," 211 mutters. "Come on. We need to find the others," I tell 211 who follows me through the ship to find the other Spartans. "Kia, where are you?" I call out over a secure TEAMCOM channel. "We're in the mapping center. I'll tell you more when you get here. Something's got the Covies riled up," the female Spartan says. I wince once she says that. "Copy that. We're on our way," I say and cancel the channel.
We make our way quickly through the dark corridors and meet up with the rest of the team in the mapping center.
"We came out in an unknown sector. Once the ship came out of jump, they were ambushed by something called a 'Supercarrier'. It sounds bad. There is a single ship outside, but this ship is swarming with Covenant. We will be able to escape to the nearest planet, only a few minutes away. We can hide out until the Covies leave and contact the UNSC. We're still within radar range," Kia says, working at the controls. She closes it out and turns to me, crossing her arms. "What were you thinking? Using weapons? Luckily you got out in time...but now they know there's still someone alive on the ship. Security will be tighter then before. We have to get out soon," Kia says. "I know. That was a stupid mistake. But lets focus on getting out alive," I say and lead them out of the room and into the hallway.
We make good time to the hanger where we find a pelican prepped and ready. Two marines lay dead on the ramp and a second lays dead in the cockpit. "Can you fly this thing?" I ask Parkson who nods and helps drag the bodies out. "We leave in five," I tell my team.
We scour the hanger for anything we might need. 211 finds a radio, and Kia finds a sort of hacking device which she puts into the pelican's storage compartments. We fill up on biofoam canisters and all of the ammo we could find. Just as we begin loading up, the door opens and two Elites and a whole compliment of Grunts enter. A hunter lumbers in after them, roaring as it sees us. Its plasma cannon raises to fire on us, and a Grunt suffers the rage of the Hunter by being squashed into the floor by its foot.
"Go, go!" I shout to Parkson as they enter. Plasma bullets rain hell on the hull as Parkson retracts the ramp and rises slowly off of the ground. I can see him working the controls as he turns the bird to face the open space. "Hold on to something," he says.
Each of us grab onto the panic bars above our heads and brace ourselves as he brings down the shield door protecting the hanger from the vaccum of space. There is a roaring sound as he activates the rear thrusters to keep the vaccum from slamming us against the wall. All of the noises are cancelled out, however, when the shield deactivates and swallows the hanger.
Soon enough, the thrusters come to life again and shove us out into space, beyond the hull of the ship.
This is the part I hate. Waiting. You are unable to do anything as you put your 100% of trust into the pilot to keep you safe. It's not like I distrust Parkson, it's just that the lack of control is disturbing. And for good reason.
The ship jerks around as plasma fire thuds down the side of the hull, sizzling audibly as Parkson opens fire with the chin gun which vibrates the entire ship.
"Parkson, forget our tails. Get us down to the surface!" I shout as Kia reports a massive target very close to our position.
The chingun cuts off and the thrusters activate, swinging us around...to bring a most unwanted sight into view.
There are circular viewports behind the seats. Its barely enough to see out of, but its enough to see the looming ship which glares at us angrily.
It's massive! It dwarfs the Surragate as if it were a chew toy. Its purple hull and swooping look gives its identification as a Covenant ship, but I've never seen such a ship before.
"We've got contacts! Ten closing in on us!" Kia reports. "Parkson, get this thing going faster!" I tell the Spartan.
Plasma fire begins raining down on the hull as the Banshee's, Phantoms, and another type of vehicle begin firing on us. Banshees begin making bombing runs but most of the bombs miss. But one of them slams into the space between both of the wings, leaving a huge dent. Plasma fire thuds into the Pelican as Parkson desperately tries to get down to the planet.
"Almost there," Kia says as she watches the proximity to the planet. "Entering outer atmosphere."
The planet fills the first view viewports, it surface a temporary welcome sight. "Parkson, aim for those mountains. We'll try to lose them in there," Kia tells the Spartan piloting the ship.
As we begin entering the atmosphere, the Pelican jerks and an impossibly loud explosion can be heard from the rear thruster. "Right thruster is down!" Kia exclaims. Parkson grunts as he attempts to straighten the bird out. "We've lost more then half of them. Only three are following now," Kia reports.
211 grips his seat tightly as the large mountainous area comes into view. Its sharp peaks a very dangerous welcoming.
"There! A valley!" Kia says to Parkson who controls the pelican enough to steer towards the valley. "Harnesses on! We're in for a hard landing," I tell the others. Kia, who was standing behind Parkson, gets back and jumps into a seat and pulls the harness over her chest. Me and 211 do the same.
The floor of the valley comes into striking detail, and the treetops of the forest come into view as we crash down towards them. "Lock your armor!" I exclaim just before we hit.
There is an impossibly loud crash as we slam into the ground. We stay straight, but the pelican nearly comes apart as it takes out a large line of trees and branches. We must run into something, because the pelican comes to a sudden stop and my head slams into the hull, knocking me out cold.