An expanse that stretched en infini.
Racing further and further into the farthest reaches of what we as living beings can yet grasp as existence.
Space, a canvas of raging stars, crushing black holes, comets darting and racing, asteroids floating about like derelict vessels.
Yet, home to astral bodie, planets. Many, sprawling expanses of rock, mineral, and other such things that shall never hold life within it.
However, some are home to oceans that team with life, dashing and splashing about. Lush forests team, crawl, and squirm with life. If every living thing in it gave off light it would shine brighter than a supernova. Or deserts where hardy flora and fauna have fought for ages and learned to adapt to not only survive, but flourish.
Indeed, these planets that seemingly by miracle, found themselves in the position to foster life on or in them.
Captain Oswald "Oz" Graveheart stood on the observation deck of the orbital construction platform that orbited the one he called home.
Earth.
He had decided young, while working on the rarified individual farms, that he wanted to explore that great expanse above, to walk in the glow of this distant stars.
To adventure forth and bring back the incredible secrets that it hid, to Earth.
To his home.
The UNSC was his greatest chance to achieve this feat. He dreamed of taking command of the mighty vessels, whose ascent was marked with great pillars of clouds, and arrival was heralded by slip space ruptures.
However, as he grew older and stronger and smarter, tension in the universe grew. People who had been born in the light of other stars, no longer felt a kinship to their Mother World, and grew bitter in perceived servitude.
Oz's goals shifted from exploration to peacekeeping. How could humanity bridle the universe if it was bucking against its own share of the yoke, he reasoned to himself.
Unable to convince his mother and father to let him part a year early, he waited until he could choose to sign himself. In tears his mother hugged and kissed him goodbye. His father, eyes glistening, shook his hand and drew him close. As he hugged his father back, it further cemented his desire to do right by this home.
For years he served under the command of others, earning regard, and medals, and respect. Known by all of his peers as a true brother in arms. His commanders saw him as an example, an officer in good standing. The men under his command, regarded him with respect and admiration.
His goal was never accolades or personal glory, yet these came to him regardless. All he wanted was to find peace and finally be able to explore with his own ship and crew.
There was no peace to be found here, but a ship and crew were his to set out and bring it here.
Oz turned his head to watch as the UNSC Stalwart Class frigate "Crimson Reign" as it was being prepped for its maiden voyage. The youngest officer to ever to be in command of a vessel of this caliber. It was time for him to join it and oversee its final preparations.
He began walking towards the hangar that held the Pelican that would carry him to the ship.
His ship, he reminded himself once more.
His ship. His crew. His mission. His responsibility.
Should he fail, his mistake.
But if he succeeded, the reward would be everyones' to reap.
A yellow line, marked with the word "Hangar" marked his path. He just kept following that line until he found it. Once in the hangar he found the coordinating officer and requested a shuttle to take him over.
The officer began tapping and perusing a hand held screen, "Actually sir, you have a pelican from the Crimson Reign here to take you aboard. Dock number four."
He gestured towards Oz's left and then came to attention and gave a salute.
"God speed, sir." The Officer wished him, his face stern.
Oz returned the salute and thanked him.
He strode towards the dock, excitement in his strides. But as he neared the dock he composed himself and calmly walked around the corner.
A voice shouted out,"Group! Attention!"
Three men stood before him, arms at their sides, feet together, and heads forward..
A man in an officers dress uniform addressed him with a salute, and spoke with a thick accent.
"Commander Maciej Napeirlski, reporting in sir!"
Oz returned the salute and looked to the next person, decked in flight rig. He was a tall individual with olive toned skin and black hair that was just out of regulation enough that you could counsel him for it. But it was close enough that it made the process seem superfluous.
"Wing Commander, Lt. Le Phong, reporting in sir!" A crisp salute and clear voice betrayed the initial lackadaisical image he had put forth.
Oz once again returned the salute and turned to the final member.
A hardy man wearing marine combat armor stood tall, an interesting achievement since he was a full head shorter than the other three in the room.
"Staff Sergeant Tyler Ramm, reporting in sir!" His voice was strong, just as his demeanor and salute were.
Oz returned the salute and ordered them at ease.
His eyes went from man to man. These would be his cohorts. His advisors. His brothers in arms for the foreseeable future.
He wasn't sure how much work was going to be needed to turn these commanders and their divisions into a single fighting force, but Oz's confidence did not waver.
He gave them a closed smile and then addressed them.
"Gentlemen, it is an honor. However, I will not waste your time with longwinded speeches. We have work to do, and a great many depending on us. Lets move." He spoke firmly, encouragingly. He began walking towards the Pelican and motioned for them to follow.
Their flight was short, but during which Oz began working on understanding the individuals among them. He found that they had all worked or trained with one another to an extent already, no matter how big the UNSC was it always seemed to be just small enough to know almost everyone.
He was the only one on the out. Until he earned their faith and good confidence, too direct an approach too soon could breed resentment.
In addition, if he allowed them to operate with a semblance of free reign it would allow him to see their uninhibited capabilities and weaknesses.
They landed and the ramp to the pelican descended. A contingent of ODST's and Marines stood, saluting with their weapons.
Together they marched towards the helm. Marines, pilots, and crew would stop to salute as he passed and he would stop to ask their name and where they were from. Why they fought.
He got responses that spanned Earth, the inner colonies, and even a few who came from the outer colonies.
Some joined to be a part of something. Some joined to get away from something, though they didn't say that directly. They hid it behind a poorly veiled excuse, but Oz didn't think less of them. When the world started to push them away, they ran away but still protect it from afar.
It was admirable even.
The majority however fought for things they loved. Family, friends, children, wives, husbands, Earth.
Home.
Oz listened to them all. Smiling the whole time. He would send them away with a word of assurance and onto the next.
So many soldiers. So many people. So many lives in his hands.
Napierlski, Phong, and Ramm all diverged at separate points along the path to inspect their respective responsibilities.
Eventually, he reached the helm. His staff there rose for his presence but he quickly ordered them back to their stations. There were too many preparations to finish for him to waste their time. Besides, all the speaking with others had drained him of his patience for the spotlight.
A large command table sat in the center of the room. Ringed around it were the different terminals that displayed data from in an around the ship. Everything hummed with life, not loud but very much alive.
He walked to the table and delicately placed his hand on its still, black surface. As soon as his hand made contact it blazed to life. A holographic map of the Crimson Reign orbiting Earth, nestled within the mother fleet.
He felt his commander's interface implant at the base of his neck begin to synch with the system. He could do more than see the ships on the panel and out the window. He had been briefed on what to expect and how to interface, but it was nothing compared to what he felt now.
He could feel it all. The ship becoming an extension of himself. He closed his eyes and just focused on the feeling. He felt he could reach out for forever. He saw the moon, the frigates, the smaller craft as they darted about like birds in flight. The orbital defense platforms like a bastion on a mountain. He felt all of Earth, as if it sat in his palms. It seemed to be a living contradiction. So small and brittle, yet defiant.
He became aware of another thing as the sea of new sensations swept over him.
He wasn't the only one.
He tried to search for the presence, but he felt sluggish when he tried narrowing it down.
A few moments of what could be compared to swimming in a river with only your arms, he found it. It was right next to him. The real him.
"Hello there, captain!" A chipper, female voice called out, startling him, as soon as he had spotted it.
He opened his eyes and saw the digital avatar of the shipboard AI waving at him.
She was tinted a color of purple that reminded Oz of the fields of lavender that he had seen growing on Earth. Her hair was so long that it fell to her thighs, but instead of falling straight down, it floated and curled as if it were not held by gravity. She was dressed in what appeared to the the second skin that Spartans wore beneath their armor, form fitting but protective.
Oz was taken aback by her, not having expected something so….well, he wasn't even sure how he would describe the AI.
"Awesome." The AI stated matter of factly.
Oz was once again shocked, but much more so this time. Had she heard his thoughts?
"Yes, yes I did." The AI said, cocking her head to the side."Don't worry, active thought reception is only activated for the first few moments of us meeting. Its for me to determine that you are who you say you are. Don't want to accidentally hand over the ship to the wrong person."
"Ah, well, I must say that I don't particularly enjoy knowing you can hear everything I think." Unease creeping into his voice.
"I understand, with your permission I can just sync us and I will get out of your head. It is lovely in here, you do have so many sweet memories." Her voice sweet and innocent.
A moment of terror filled Oz, she was looking at his memories!
"Only kidding! Sorry, couldn't help myself." She laughed.
Oz was immediately unsure of her.
"Oh dont be like that! We are going to be working together for a long time, we gotta have SOME fun." Then she spoke a bit more to herself, "Jeez, I thought only the Spartan AI had to deal with the serious ones."
"Maybe you are funnier when I am not at the brunt end of your jokes, bur for now I will be withholding the word funny from how I describe you." Oz retorted, trying to match her banter.
"Oooh, maybe not as serious as I thought, huh? So be it, beginning sync." She said as she snapped her finger.
Everything Oz had seen before flashed before him, but there was so much more this time. He also saw inside the Crimson Reign. He saw its equipment stores, soldiers, crew, critical systems and their conditions. The surge of knowledge felt like it would overwhelm him. Sweeping his mind away and burying it at the bottom of an ocean of new data and feelings. But then all at once it became peaceful and muted. The last thing his mind was able to snag onto was a list of all the names of those who served aboard the Crimson Reign.
Her name also appeared, he could tell because it was the only name among the throngs that only had the first name.
"Apologies for the discomfort, but I have now muted everything aside from what inputs that I think you are interested in. I will keep tabs on everything behind the scenes and keep you up to date. I will also be providing you assistance whenever you need it in any other tasks related to our mission. I will always just be a call away." Rather proud of herself, she stood proud and looked to Oz expectantly.
"Thank you, Fiona." He said, a smile creeping into his own features. Her good humor, albeit somewhat concerning, was infectious.
Finally feeling like his mind was his own, he walked to the observation window and stared out at the fleet, Earth, and the infinite expanse that stretched beyond.
First he looked with his eyes, and then he looked with his new sight. He could see everything that was under the protection of the UNSC, all the inner colonies, shipping lanes, outer colonies, expedition craft, science outposts. Everything deemed to be of worth.
He took a breath. It was a lot.
But he knew he was not alone to bear the burden.
"Fiona?" He hailed her, they had to get everyone ready to leave. Their campaign began soon.
"Yes, captain?" Her figure on the table perking up.
"Inform Lieutenant Napierlski that I want him to report to the bridge as soon as possible to help me oversee launch procedures. Also, contact Wing Commander Le Phong, I want all his birds checked and on standby to make for the jump. Finally, have SSG Ramm get all his equipment secured and his men into cryo. No sense in wasting their time." He ordered.
"Right away, sir" She replied.
Oz would walk in the light of distant suns, and find the peace that seemed desperate to abandon humanity.