Vanguard

Chapter 24

"Intercept"

[Ukio System, Abrion Sector]

In the upper atmosphere over the agricultural planet called Ukio, nearly two kilometers beneath the planetary shields, a small flicker of lighting skipped across the vast blue sky before a large dark blue portal with a pitch black center tore open allowing the four hundred eighty five meter destroyer Vanguard, along with the docked sixty four meter Gozanti-class Cruiser, to come charging out into realspace at a hundred sixty seven knots as it began to approach the surface.

"Slipspace transition complete, confirmed position to be in the upper atmosphere of the planet called Ukio in the Abrion system, and we managed to pass through what seemed to be a planet-wide shielding system."

"Think the Covenant is already attacking the farmers down there?" Tano asks fearing the worst.

Jorge was already climbing into the pelican's troopbay where he sets his heavy machine gun on the floor and calls out "Well we'll never know unless we get moving."

The two nodded to that and climbed into the dropship with him where Ahsoka took her seat across from Jorge and James continued making his way forward into the cockpit where he sits down in the front seat. He looks up and flips several switches, causing the troopbay doors to close up and pressurize the interior, and took the flight controls into his hands.

"Opening hangar bay doors" Percival states through the pelican's intercom systems.

The two large bulkhead doors began to slide open as Longarm engages the pelican's thrusters, housed in four vector pylons mounted as the 'wings' of the aircraft, until the door was opened far enough where he pushes the throttle lever forward launching the dropship straight of the hangar and made its descent towards the surface below.

"Percival, get me a fix on that distress call we retrieved" the SPARTAN pilot demands.

"Several kilometers north, northwest of our current coordinates" the AI replied.

He changes vector and makes a hard dive towards the surface, with Ahsoka and Jorge hanging on to whatever was in arm's length when she asks the big man "Does he do this a lot!?"

"Only when lives are at stake! Just a heads up you might want to lock yourself in incase we come across any homing projectiles!"

"Like what!?"

"Well there's always plasma torpedoes by chance! One hit from one of those and we'll be nothing but free floating molecules!"

"That's comforting!" she replies sarcastically.

James's voice called out through the pelican's intercoms "We're levelling out now . . . we'll be in the AO in five mikes, check your gear and get ready for a hot drop."

Jorge complied with those orders as he stood up from his seat and started checking over his M247H machine gun, going over the ammunition box containing two hundred .50 Caliber High-Velocity, Explosive shells, ensuring the heat cover was firmly attached over the barrel, and running several safety checks before giving himself a nod of approval. Tano eventually stands up afterwards and pulls out her M6C, pulling the slide back making sure the chamber was clean before loading the first round into the barrel, just as James showed her, and then holsters it before standing quietly.

Jorge couldn't help to ask when he saw the hilts "What're those you got there?"

She takes one up in her right hand "This? It's called a lightsaber, a well-recognized symbol of the Jedi Order. Each Jedi has one."

She activates the saber, erecting a bright green blade of energy in front of the two, "Can cut clean through just about anything."

"Reminds me of those covenant energy swords . . . how did you meet James?"

"We met on Coruscant when someone I know found him, since then it's been nothing but fighting for the next several weeks. Between ourselves and others" she replies as she retracts the saber.

"Huh . . . and it looks like you're warming up to him."

She looks up at the towering soldier "Really? What told you that?"

"He did, back shortly after you two found me. We've been through many battles with the Covenant for over nearly three decades, fighting on every front, holding onto every inch of soil. You can imagine how close we are. And if anyone's a friend of his then they're a good friend of mine as well, you can count on it that I'll watch your back so long as you got mine."

"Deal" she replies holding out her hand.

The big man in return holds out his, showing a huge difference in size comparison between the two, and the shook on it as newfound allies moments before their mutual friend in the cockpit calls out "I got visual on a small village ETA one mike, opening the rear doors."

The troopbay doors cracked open letting the wind and noise to rush in, the two saw nothing but acres of crops, some seemed to have black craters in them, and the closer they drew to the village the slower the pelican decelerated, the louder the chaos became. Soon enough they pass over the first small building engulfed in flames and saw innocent people run for their lives, while some took up arms and fight, while numerous Covenant soldiers slaughtered the ones they caught.

Longarm's voice roared out "GREEN LIGHT!"

Jorge was the first to jump off with Ahsoka leaping after him as Longarm began engaging the Covenant with the pelican's chin-mounted 70mm chain gun, spewing depleted uranium slugs down below in fast and devastating bursts of fire, tearing up the enemy where they stood. The eight foot SPARTAN came crashing down into the dirt below and begun to let loose a lethal barrage of high caliber rounds onto a surprised sangheili minor, tearing the shields apart and mauling the body till it was nothing but a purple slag of flesh. Tano on the other hand was light on her feet, gently coming to a landing unlike her heavier companion, and drew her dual sabers before charging towards a pair of unsuspecting Kig-yar marksman, wielding carbines, cutting through them with relative ease before an elite major appears with sword in hand and engages her.

A frightened woman spots Ahsoka engaging the sangheili in a duel and calls out to the others around her "It's the Jedi! They came to save us!"

However a man nearby couldn't take his eyes off of the armored giant, currently reducing the Covenant's numbers at a drastic rate, and asks "But what the hell is that!? Some kind of droid!?"

Jorge ignores the question when he spots two Type-26 Ground Support Aircraft closing in on James's pelican and quickly gets on the radio to warn his friend "Heads up, you got two banshees coming in hotl!"

Longarm briefly checks his sensors and sees the two inbound blips to his left before stating "I see 'em Jorge, hold out until I can take care of them."

"Right, don't keep us waiting!"

Ahsoka quickly deals a deadly swipe to the sangheili before looking up in time to see the pelican take evasive maneuvers as two purple aircrafts approaches at relatively high speed firing their plasma repeating cannons at the large and bulky UNSC dropship. The pelican immediately engages its four thruster engines and takes off like a jet with the banshees in hot pursuit leaving her and Jorge without air support for the time being until Longarm returns.

The covenant forces eventually turns their attention to the eight foot SPARTAN, calling him 'demon' as they charge blindly at him, and her as she quickly puts down a small lance of grunts with relative ease.

Jorge calls out as he engages the alien aggressors ahead of him "This is where the fun begins! I'll cover our front while you handle the flanks!"

"On it!" Tano replied before coming to Jorge's side.

One after another the disorganized village fighters soon began to rally behind the two as they soon started to put up an effective resistance, becoming from something that would be considered negligible to something more firm and defiant against the covenant onslaught, and started their push against the invaders with what weapons they have available. Upon seeing numerous men and women coming to their aid, Jorge begins to make his push steadily walking towards the steadfast alien attackers with Ahsoka becoming his shield as she deflects incoming bolts of plasma with her two sabers.

It wasn't long into the intensifying firefight when James's pelican streams overhead, laying down heavy cover fire with the dropship's autocannon and missile fire from the wing-mounted missile pods before gaining altitude with only one banshee still in pursuit now. With the covenant now suffering heavy casualties from both the resistance fighters and their new allies they were quickly put on the retreat with small Unggoy running for their lives while the Sangheili and Kig-yar falls back in a somewhat organized fashion but the invaders were far from throwing in the towel.

In the distance Jorge could make out a lone Sangheili field master, adorned in its obvious golden armor, giving orders to a pair of hunters before the two giants began their charge to the front lines to which he calls out "I got visual on hunters!"

The Mgalekgolo were fearsome shock troops of the Covenant Empire, and these were no exceptions, with their heavy shields raised to protect their front they charged through their own comrades in arms, plowing through those that weren't fast enough to get out of the way. Jorge immediately switched his aiming from various threats and solely focused his fire on the charging giants, .50 caliber rounds merely ricocheting off of their shields but there were those few that marginally missed the defense and struck into the hunter's main body armor.

The hunters came within melee range, with the first swiftly raising its cumbersome shield over its head and bringing it down like a hammer towards Ahsoka, and the second making an arm sweep trying to knock several settlers aside with a killing blow. Jorge continues to unload high caliber rounds into his target as he slowly circles around it while the settlers continued pushing back the remaining Covenant with what momentum they had.

The young togruta on the other hand was ducking left and right as her hunter continues to swing its overweight shield in an attempt to kill her swiftly but she was proven to be too agile for the lumbering behemoth. She soon slides beneath one last attack before leaping onto the giant's back and plunge her two sabers into its back, killing numerous individual lekgolo worms, causing the hunter to let out a guttural roar in agony. She then dismounts from its injured back and finishes it with a scissor-like slash with her two blades across its exposed mid-section, slicing it in halves thus effectively 'killing' the hunter while any remaining worm slithered away.

Jorge was slowly chipping away at the hunter with his heavy machine gun until moments later when the attacking hunter was immediately engulfed in heavy gunfire raining from above, he takes the moment to look up to see a lightly damaged pelican, hovering over them, firing its chin-mounted chain gun reducing the hulking behemoth to a slag of orange flesh. The gun then swiveled away and began putting 70mm uranium rounds down onto the now retreating covenant forces, mauling groups of them with pinpoint lethality. Between the advancing civilians, aided by the SPARTAN and Jedi, and the floating gunship, the Covenant was losing troops faster than they could run with some getting hit by incoming blaster bolts and high caliber rounds.

It was only a matter of seconds before the last of the alien aggressors were now beyond the village outskirts and the civilians celebrated with victorious cheers while the pelican gently came to a landing in the village center.

A human female, a high ranking member of the community by the looks of it, approaches Ahsoka and gratefully sighs in relief "Thank you Jedi . . . if were not for you and your droid we wouldn't have survived. What is your name?"

Tano gives a gentle smile "It's Ahsoka Tano . . . we're happy to help."

The woman then shifted her eyes to the armored giant standing behind the togruta "And the droid. Where did you acquire such a fearsome thing?"

Jorge sets his weapon down and takes his helmet off "Sorry ma'am, we're all sold out on the market."

"Oh . . ." she exclaims with surprised "I'm so sorry. I thought you wer-"

But the SPARTAN raises a hand "It's alright ma'am."

James soon comes up, his anti-materiel rifle slung over his shoulder, reporting "The covenant are heading east away from here, most likely trying to regroup with another unit or to get an evac back to the corvette."

"Speaking of which, did Percival find it yet?" Tano asks.

"He deployed the wombats to search for it, but nothing yet."

Jorge then gestures towards the pelican "Then let's get back in the air and keep the pressure on them" and begins to walk away with his weapon in hand.

But his friend stops him "That's not going to happen Jorge, those banshees put up a helluva fight. If we keep on them then it's likely they'll send seraphs to take it down. We can't risk losing the dropship."

"Then what the hell are we going to do? March our way to them?"

But that was when the woman steps in "If you're looking for ground transport, perhaps we can help you as a way of thanking you."

Ahsoka turns to the farmer "What do you have?"

Several minutes later and the four approached a large storage building, the woman signals two men to open the large sliding doors and revealed five abandoned clone AT-RT scout walkers. The All Terrain Recon Transport was a lightly armored open seat bipedal vehicle that stands nearly three meters tall and armed with a medium high-powered repeating blaster cannon, capable of piercing the side armor of a droid AAT tank, and is capable of running up to speeds at seventy to ninety kilometers an hour.

"Scout walkers? But this is Republic military equipment, how did you even get them?" Ahsoka asks.

"We salvaged these walkers from the battle between the Republic and Separatist Alliance back in the earlier days of the war, their riders all have been killed and they were left with no owners until we found them. They proved instrumental in warding off pirates and unwanted pests, unfortunately we couldn't reach them when this 'covenant' came out of nowhere calling us heretics and started to slaughter our people."

"You're lending us your walkers?" Longarm asks.

"No, we're giving them to you as a thank you from us. We can manage our own without them, especially with the weapons we're scavenging from the dead now."

The SPARTAN sniper walks up to the closet walker and runs his gloved hand against its durasteel armor plating, cold and rough, he then turns to the woman "We'll only need two."

The woman nodded with a grin "Very well."

He then looks to Ahsoka "C'mon, you can teach me how to use these things."

He catches a smirk from her as she walks over and climbs aboard one of the walkers with him following suit, Jorge states "I'll take the pelican back to the Vanguard, make sure you two have an evac if you need it."

The togruta nods before activating the walker, prompting it to stand on its two mechanical legs, and advises him "Stay safe Jorge" to which the big man nods with a grin and heads out to the pelican.

She then looks over to Longarm who was searching the control panel before randomly pressing a green switch which then activated the walker and stood up, the sudden jolt of activation almost caused the SPARTAN to fall over from unbalancing. She chuckles under her breath before grabbing hold of the two handle bars and push ahead, causing her walker to go into a steady march. She watches him learn from observation and pushed forward making his own walker move into formation alongside her.

It took the two a few minutes to reach the outskirts before they looked up to see the pelican taking off from the center making its way back to the destroyer in the atmosphere.

The two turned their attention back on the plains ahead of them, as they continued to march through the grasslands, when Ahsoka looked over to the SPARTAN next to him and ask "So your name is James?"

"Yeah . . ." he answers politely.

"Got a last name?"

"Just the number . . ."

"So James-121 then. Whatever happened to your actual last name?"

"It's hard to remember . . . guess three decades of war will do that to a person's memory."

"I can't imagine a war lasting that long . . . not for ideals or territories, but just for survival."

James's mind then came back to something long ago "About seven years ago, two years before coming here, I was sent on a reconnaissance mission to investigate an ancient ruin left by a civilization that once ruled our galaxy little over a hundred thousand years ago."

"What were they called?" Ahsoka asks now with full curiosity, always willing to learn more about the SPARTAN's galaxy.

"They were known as the Forerunners."

She then began to listen attentively "The Forerunners were a wise, intelligent, noble people with the belief in justice and peace for all sentient beings in the galaxy. They created artificial worlds of unimaginable size, their ships could travel across the galaxy almost instantly, their military twice- maybe five times that than the Covenant and the UNSC combined, and AIs so advanced that they can command fleets of thousands with ease, something a UNSC smart AI can only do with a single vessel. Their culture revolved around one thing they all held so close to them, the Mantle of Responsibility."

"What was that?"

"I'm not so sure myself about the details of it but there's a saying to it: Guardianship for all living things lies with those whose evolution is most complete. The Mantle of Responsibility shelters all."

"So . . . whoever is the most technologically advanced is declared the guardians of the galaxy."

The SPARTAN nodded "That's right."

"What happened to the Forerunners?"

"Well . . . just like every great empire they had their downfall. During the mission to a Forerunner installation I was met by a monitor, a construct that oversees all operations there. She said that she hasn't seen another living being for a hundred thousand years after the activation of what she referred to as 'the array'. The curious side of me showed and she was all too excited, she led me to a terminal where she told me everything she knew, the Forerunners, the Flood, the war, and Halo . . ."

Ahsoka continues to listen silently "Records have it that the Forerunners were enjoying a time a peace and prosperity when a parasitic lifeform known as the Flood appeared from the depths of space and began consuming their worlds. With the belief in the Mantle, the Forerunners stepped up to the challenge and enacted a galaxy-wide war that lasted for centuries that became a power struggle across multiple fronts. While the Forerunners pushed back on several fronts, the Flood in turn continued to take over worlds in matter of hours and with it their entire populations turning every soul against one another. Eventually the Forerunners, despite their advanced weaponry, ships, and armor were forced on the defensive but no matter how heavily fortified their worlds were with their armada of ships and armies of soldiers, the Flood would always win. It was then in the final days of the war when the Forerunners were about to initiate the final solution, Halo."

"The Halo array consisted of seven ringworlds, each reaching ten thousand kilometers in diameter, and carried the power to wipe out all sentient life in the galaxy. With the Forerunners now badly losing the war, the strategy changed from conventional warfare to asset denial- prevent the Flood from consuming any more lives and starve them out. The Forerunners knew what was at stake and knew what needed to be done, a thousand plans tried and failed, this was their final resort. And finally, a war that lasted so long was over in an instant. Every intelligent lifeform in the galaxy was obliterated."

Ahsoka was having a lot to take in, but in summary she states "They sacrificed themselves in order to bring peace back to the galaxy . . . that's unbelievable . . ."

"I had a hard time believing it too trust me. But the monitor was sure of it and so that was written history . . . After the war a contingency plan was activated through the help of the constructs they had left behind, during the war the Forerunners had collected biological samples, embryos, even live specimens before the activation, and begun to reseed the galaxy with life afterwards. Human, Covenant, everything was placed back where they should belong all with the hope that life will return to the stars and become just as strong as they were through peace."

"Sadly that's not the case anymore."

"No. It isn't. But it was because of them that we're here now, not just you and I, as a species."

The two continued marching through the open plains, looking around them for any signs of the Covenant, until they were several kilometers away from the village when Ahsoka came up with another question "Do you think that's why humanity is here in our galaxy?"

"What?" James asks not expecting another question after the long period of silence.

"You know, humans, is it possible that's why they're here? Because of the Forerunners?"

"Huh . . . guess I never really thought about that. It is possible. And records have it that it's likely some Forerunners did survive when they fled the galaxy after the activation of the array."

"So they could be here as well?"

"It wouldn't surprise me . . . maybe they have a way where Jorge and I can return home if we wanted."

He then notices her expression turned, from curiosity to the sense of loneliness, and states "But. This galaxy seems to hold a whole new adventure for us, all of us."

He quickly caught a small grin from the togruta just before coming over a small hill and look ahead just in time to catch sight of what they were looking for "Contact, five hundred meters out."

Tano looks forward ahead and spots four purple objects moving at relatively high speeds but something didn't feel right "They're not running . . ."

"They're attacking. Ghosts shouldn't be too much of a challenge for our walkers right?"

"Only one way to find out."

On that note Ahsoka pushes forward on the throttle that sent her walker into a head on sprint with James following suit. The two sides were closing in one another, four Type-32 Rapid Assault Vehicles 'ghost' against two AT-RTs, until Ahsoka began firing her cannon once they came within range. The blue high-powered bolts of energized plasma zipped across the landscape and smashes into the glacis armor of the nearest ghost, each round tearing a scorching hole into the vehicle before the plasma drive core became ruptured and detonates engulfing the vehicle and its rider in a bright blue explosion. Longarm then took aim and began to fire away at his own target, though his rounds were narrowly missing the target until finally a single round eviscerates the ghost's left wing causing it to lose control and eventually crash, killing the pilot in the process.

The remaining two ghosts finally came within weapon range and began firing away with their dual Type-2 plasma repeating cannons sending a volley of superheated plasma back at the incoming walkers. Fortunately the walkers were still out of the ghosts' optimal weapon range, which was vastly shorter than that of the AT-RTs' cannons, but there were the few occasions when a bolt struck against the light durasteel armor boiling it away. Ahsoka and Longarm continue to return fire while strafing left and right avoiding the incoming fire, Tano quickly downs another vehicle whereas the SPARTAN was still having issues getting the proper aim on his target.

"Forget this!" he scolds himself before going into a full on charge towards the ghost, firing its cannons in an attempt to stop the walker, until he presses down on the throttle at his foot causing the three meter tall AT-RT to leap into the air and come crashing down on top of the ghost, crushing it and the pilot with ease.

"You should get your eyes checked! Think your superior aiming is starting to wear down" Tano mocks him as she approaches him.

"Ha ha ha you're hysterical" he replies sarcastically before turning his attention back to the wreckage "These were only scouts, more than likely they sent a transmission back to their commanders before attacking, they know we're here."

"Well they're not a problem anymore, what can they do about it?"

As if by cue the two heard a small series of low but powerful thumps in the distance, as if a small battery of artillery just fired a barrage, soon enough Longarm looks up to the sky to see three large bluish blobs of superheated plasma already coming down on them after being fired from a position beyond the next hill.

He only had enough time to yell out "AHSOKA MOVE!" and immediately dash away.

Tano only had a second to react and instantly followed suit just before the bulbs smashed into the ground with devastating effect, dirt and tall grass were thrown into the air while the immediate area of impact was vaporized and burned to glass.

Ahsoka felt the intense heat roll over her before coming to a stop next to Longarm and demand "What the heck was that!?"

"Wraiths! Over the hill!" the SPARTAN responded as he charges up the hill, Tano had little choice but to follow him up.

"What's a wraith!?" she asks just seconds before coming over the hill to see three massive vehicles, each featuring a bulbous purple prow with wings, similar to that of a ghost's but much larger, a small plasma repeating turret just above the pilot's hatch, and what appeared to be a large forward facing plasma mortar weapon mounted on top.

She then catches James dashing in towards the tanks firing his cannon at their armored glacis plate, but the first four bolts were dissipated by an energy shield that surrounded the wraiths. She eventually follows his lead and moves in guns blazing, she sets her sights on the vehicle on the far left while Longarm targeted the center despite receiving fire from the far right.

She continues to put rounds on target until the shields finally fell after the fourth impact, to which the vehicle's automated defense turret activates and open fire with a rapid barrage of plasma fire forcing her to target the turret, and with a few well-placed shots from the walker's cannon the defense turret was disabled.

She glances over at the SPARTAN, who just knocked the center vehicle's shields and begun strafing the tank's armor, before turning back to her target and quickly find the primary plasma mortar aimed directly at her with lights flashing as a sign of a weapon charge up. She immediately dashes to her left, evading the weapon's discharge and the ground she once stood on was burned to a glass-like surface, and begins firing away at the prow but she quickly realizes that the tank's armor, despite being made of the same nano-laminate material, was much more durable than the lighter ghosts with each blast leaving a smoldering dent in the thick plating.

Longarm noticed the togruta was having difficulties penetrating the frontal armor and calls out "They can only aim at the front! Target the core at the rear!" before dashing away avoiding a brief spray of automatic plasma fire.

As instructed, Tano quickly uses to the AT-RT's superior mobility to flank the vehicle, that was too slow to keep track of its target, and quickly find the exposed gyrating drive core located at the back of the chassis. With a two rapid shots from her cannon, the core became ruptured and began to go critical causing the tank pilot to scramble out of the cockpit and flee just before the vehicle erupts in a bright blue explosion.

The destruction of the first vehicle was quickly followed up with a second after James had placed enough shots into the center tank's weaker sides disabling it now only leaving the last tank, which was beginning to fall back and open fire with both of its weapons. Ahsoka quickly charges in with Longarm following her in as the two kept out of the mortar's firing line while avoiding the defense turret's barrage of plasma until it was ultimately destroyed by Tano with another well-placed shot. This granted the SPARTAN to move to the rear and place one last blast straight into the core, destroying the tank and the pilot inside.

Ahsoka comes to a stop next to the SPARTAN and asks "Does the Covenant have everything shielded?"

"Normally not tanks, these models are pretty old compared to the more modern ones I've seen."

"How old?" she asks curiously.

"Back near the beginning of the war old. The first time I've seen them was during the first battle of Arcadia back in '31."

"Well let's keep going, the Covenant can't be too far ahead if they're sending tanks to stop us."

Longarm nodded "Agreed" and the two resumed their march in pursuit of the retreating covenant forces.

[Hours later . . .]

It was around midnight with the two still continuing their march through the grasslands, dark, cold, and seemingly void of life with the exception of them. Longarm was carefully scanning the area ahead of them, vigilantly searching for any movement, while Tano was keeping her eyes forward enjoying the relative silence of the night. For once she was actually enjoying this quiet moment, something the two haven't had much since they first met back on Courscant, and she began to wonder about the story the SPARTAN had told her about the Forerunners as it raised several questions in her mind.

The foremost of all, is it possible that the Forerunners were responsible for human presence in the galaxy, every human she known could be a descendant of beings that were from a different galaxy long ago. There was a lot of speculation but now wasn't the time to dwell on them, not with the Covenant possibly waiting for them or worse attacking another settlement.

Then suddenly she hears James's voice "We should stop and make camp here."

She turns to him, who was stopping his walker and powering it down "What? Shouldn't we keep going and find out where they're at?"

Longarm was already climbing off when he answered "We could but that would be risking some needed hours of sleep. I'll get a fire started."

Ahsoka was about to ask another question but she stops herself, knowing it'll be hard to persuade the SPARTAN otherwise, and she too powers down and climbs off. It didn't take long afterwards to make a small campfire, using stones and some dried tall grass, and the two were sitting around it from across each other.

Tano watched James carefully tend to the fire with a stick ". . . Do you miss it?" she asks.

The SPARTAN-ll looks up at her for a brief moment before turning his attention back to the fire "Miss what?"

"Home . . ."

She catches a small sigh from him before he answered "Well. I suppose there are some things I do miss. Before the war."

"What were they?"

"A lot of things . . . family, my homeworld, a normal life . . . list goes on."

"No friends?" she asks.

"The only friends I had is Jorge and another SPARTAN, Rose, and now there's you to that list."

She took a moment to grin before she asks "Where were you born?"

"A human colony world called New Harmony. It had beautiful cities along with pristine plains just like this, it was also the place where the UNSC won a naval engagement against the Covenant and drove them back."

"You must feel pretty lucky . . ."

"I was, I fought on the ground trying to push them back to one of their deployment zones. As fate had it I ended fighting through my neighborhood I used to live, my parents were still living there."

"Did you find them and were they alright?"

Longarm picked up his stick and began tending the fire "Yes and no . . . I found them both lying in their bed together with self-inflicted gunshot wounds to their heads."

"They committed suicide? How do you know?"

"Because the wounds were made by conventional firearm, not a plasma based weapon, and . . ." he sets the stick aside and reaches into the waist bag located on his lower back revealing a blocky silver handgun with a revolving cylinder in the middle "I found this in my father's hand with two of the six rounds recently fired."

She didn't know what to say, knowing he found his parents after committing suicide during a covenant invasion was breathtaking, but the SPARTAN continues "This a 21st century Smith and Wesson Model 686 Combat Revolver, it fires a 357. Magnum caliber round with enough stopping power to put a full grown Sangheili down on their asses."

She couldn't help but stare at him, wanting to ask him the question in her mind, until he shortly caught on and answers "If you were going to ask, yes it was quick and painless for them. Just as I hoped it would."

"Longarm . . . I'm so sorry . . ."

"Don't be" he replies calmly as he sat back with the revolver in his hands "You had nothing to do with it. It was before your time . . ."

Tano could feel the anger and the sorrow swelling up inside him but it surprises her how well he was able to mask it, the helmet most likely helped. She watched him move his hands around the revolver, spinning the cylinder ever so quietly. She figured now was the good time to let the subject go.

"I'll take first watch, make sure the Covenant doesn't get the drop on us."

Ahsoka didn't want to argue "Alright . . . wake me if you need me."

"Will do . . ."

On that note she finds a comfortable spot to lie down, facing the silent SPARTAN, she continued to watch him inspect the handgun he must've looked out dozens of times before until she turned over and closed her eyes.

The last thing she heard from him was "Night Ahsoka . . ."

"Night James . . ."

Sorry for another LONG ass wait. Between work, friends, and a little project of mine. I haven't been able to progress much through the chapters. But I'm doing what I can when I can and I'm sorry. As always leave your comments and thoughts. Thank you.