Summary/disclaimer: Time for another chapter of Drop into Hell. Enjoy the 4600-Word chapter. I don't own Halo, 343, and a few others do.
The HEVs fell, cracking like thunder and falling like the raindrops of some intense hurricane. At least 50 fell to the ground, all too ready to fight, to fall into the city like bombs, they all seemed ready and able to keep fighting again and again.
This would need to end and end before something went wrong for the time being… Which they expected.
"Everyone? Today's forecast calls for a downpour of badasses!" They heard as they groaned.
"Captain? How long are we dealing with this?" One of the ODSTS stated before he cracked his fingers. "We're going in blind… A platoon to go rescues a company? That's not something we should normally deal with." He heard as he sighed.
The soldiers all looked to the ground, unsure of what to say and do. They watched it burn all around, slamming into the ground, unsure for now.
"All right… Here's the job, Helljumpers." They heard as they gripped their weapons and exited the pods for the moment, hissing them open.
"We're pulling the 68th marine company out of the damn fire… Captain gave us the order to find them and then push them to the landing zone which means fighting damn tooth and nail." They heard as he sighed.
"Captain Ramsey?" The lead ODST said before he looked downwards. "There's 2 albatrosses and a pelican or 2 coming to get us, right? That means we got at least 250 men we can evac…" One of them said.
The lead ODST hummed before sighing, well… One of the squad commanders, unsure and unable to try and figure it out as he looked downwards at the ground.
"I get it… Bring our boys and girls home then we get to talking… Helljumpers? You're going to see some nasty stuff… The rest of the civilians are busy escaping… 80% of the planet? They… Didn't make it, they're probably going to be in the way." He heard as he sighed.
"Sereno? Let's get going." The squad leader heard as he nodded, gesturing his men forward.
"All right. Massif Squad? Let's move!" He yelled far louder than he had to.
The few members of the squad nodded as the ODSTS all spread out, splitting up to cover as much ground as possible. The few who remained looked up to see an explosion coming from the top of the mountain.
The archer missiles turned the base into scrap, exploding into the atmosphere as alien cries and shrieks lit up the comms then vanished into nothing. It was clear more than anything that they had been spared the Covenant army's wrath for now.
Perhaps it was to be correct to see it this way and perhaps it was best if they didn't let anything slow them down. Massif Squad advanced forwards, sweeping their weapons around as they walked through the broken and desolate road.
They were new to the ODSTs but as marines, they had seen a LOT of death and chaos, so much it would drive someone mad as they walked through the town.
Sereno turned, glancing at a car shop, a building roughly equal in size to a small apartment and equally as wide… All wiped clean of life, there was a boot by the window which slowly transformed into the ground as he sighed to try and figure it out.
He hummed to which the others would continue to try and deal with… Knowing something that bothered and disturbed them to no blasted end. This wasn't going to end well sooner or later as he clicked his tongue for now what he tried to figure out for now.
The ODST next to Sereno looked at a burned-out police station, several dozen burned and charred bodies with the bodies of a brute and its squad with them.
"We ever get an op that isn't crappy?" They heard as they looked downwards at the ground.
They all looked at him as he shrugged, making them nod as they moved further in. They were well aware the man was trying to lighten the mood but it was clear the joke only managed a dry laugh for the moment.
"Thought you got it, Garth," Sereno said before he sighed. "Command? Please confirm the coordinates. Escorting a squad of 10 marines to the evac point Charlie 6?" Sereno asked as there were murmurs.
"Yes, Massif actual… We're preparing your pelican now." Sereno heard as he hummed, looking downwards at the ground.
"Sir? Gorilla up ahead." Garth stated as the 6-soldier squad split up.
"We're not shooting them. Let them pass." Sereno said as he checked his weapons.
His M7 lay in his hands and he felt his br55 hanging against his spine as they waited. Garth, the sniper marksman of the group turned on his VISR and scanned the street, showing at least a dozen Covenant soldiers, the two big ones being a pair of brutes which made him raise his gun.
Sereno turned to him, making the older ODST look at his younger commander. He held up two fingers and then made them turn to look at the group.
Sereno could only shake his head before elbowing his squadmate, making them turn as he held up his hands as fists and then opened them.
His squadmate, a soldier with a few sketches on his helmet and chest plate… Mainly of an explosion of shrapnel and skull and crossbones, nodded and pulled a pair of M9 grenades from his belt.
"Garth? You better not miss like your crappy jokes." Sereno quipped before he gripped his BR and holstered his SMG.
Sereno seemed to pop from cover before he opened fire and then he cracked his radio before he snapped to life.
"NOW!" Sereno roared as he popped from cover, opening fire upon the group of covenant soldiers.
There was a roar of surprise followed by shrieks of monkey like alarm from the grunts as the grenades rolled into the midst of their ranks, exploding in a ball of shrapnel and fire which was cutting through their bodies.
Sereno put a burst through the helmet of the other brute, rewarded with a roar of anger and annoyance for now… Before a bullet from Garth's sniper lanced out.
The bullet slammed through the brutes' skull, causing it to crash to the ground, pushing the concrete barrier backward as the group stopped to blink.
Sereno fired another burst through the tank of one of the other two grunts, causing it to spin and explode like a small top before detonating in a cloud of sparks, finishing the fight as Garth hummed.
"Had more hot air than I do," Gath said as Sereno rolled his eyes.
"Keep going, we both know there's more," Sereno stated before he turned to Garth. "You acted like you could hit both in 5 seconds," Sereno said as the squad headed up the broken street.
They ignored the scream of banshees above, engines wailing as they headed towards their goal. They knew damn well what would happen and Sereno knew that it wasn't their problem.
"Remind me why the hell we got to be here?" He heard as he looked upwards at the sky. "This is the crappiest job we got while the covenant is busy kicking our teeth in." He heard as he sighed.
"You know why, Emelia," Sereno stated as he shook his head.
"I don't know why I have to take orders from a rookie straight out of ODST training." Emelia sneered as Garth rolled his eyes.
"Who put a stick where the sun doesn't shine on you?" Garth asked before Sereno blinked.
"Down, wraith ahead!" Sereno stated before they turned and retreated to the side of a crashed phantom.
Sereno looked at the mortar tank before sighing as he looked to his side, almost entirely ready to try and issue orders as he thought of something.
"Ok, anyone got a REALLY big bomb?" Garth joked before looking at the fourth member of the team. "Hey, James? Why don't you politely tell them why they should move?" Garth asked as he looked at him.
A massive brute of a man who was at least 6FT tall, wearing a UA version of their armor which held a flaming dog upon the chest plate and at least a dozen quotes from a forgotten religious book the squad knew of.
"I don't like using this gun, you know," James said before hefting his M41, resting it on his shoulder.
"You think we can take it out without shooting both? I'd like to at least take down a banshee if we need to." Sereno said before he slowly yet surely watched James tap his back.
"I got a full load, sergeant," James stated before he looked at the wraith. "First one will take the armor off and expose the pilot, Corporal Garth can shoot the pilot out. That is one option. The other is we make it turn and I fire a rocket which will pierce the power core and set it off." James said as Sereno hummed.
"I'll draw its fire, James? Take it out. Everyone else? Get up there and get those boys to the landing zone while we take it out." Sereno said as he turned to James. "I need you to tell me when you're ready, that thing isn't going down easy… Sides, we both know they have a lot worse the closer we get… And we're still half a mile or so from where we need to go." Sereno ordered before he hummed.
The others nodded, Emelia only sighed and hauled herself up the mountain as the two ODSTs stopped. James looked at the smaller soldier with interest for now as both seemed concerned.
"You don't think there's anyone left, do you?" James asked before Sereno nodded.
"You're a man of faith, James… You think a single marine managed to last 12 hours against the Covenant army?" James heard as Sereno hummed.
"No, sir… Don't think even a single soldier is alive… But I'm a man of faith as you said. I believe in miracles, mostly Garth getting better material." James said as Sereno hummed.
"Don't see much of a damn out…" Sereno muttered before he put a hand to his radio. "Sir? What's the time on our bus ride back? We've got a wraith here; the rest of the squad is headed uphill to get the men to the evac… We're going to clear them a path." Sereno said before he turned to James.
"Still got the fancy gun?" Sereno asked before getting a nod as James shrugged. "Think you can hit it from here or…?" Sereno asked before he raised the thing.
A small, insignificant bomb flew from the device attaching to the carapace of the vehicle, latching to it with a small little click informing them it was ready.
"That thing explodes with the rocket and everything explodes?" Sereno asked as James nodded.
"Yes sir," James said before he looked downwards at the ground. "Going to need you to turn it around for it to deal with," Sereno said before he sighed to himself with much more to try and figure out what to try and deal with it all as of the moment, they had a lot more to try and figure out.
Sereno sighed and simply darted out and into the open, knowing damn well the monstrous machine would round on him, canon ready to turn him to ash and smoke. If for no other reason than sheer luck? He rushed a lot faster.
The mortar rushed out from the canon like a massive flowering grenade. He sprinted faster, hoping it wasn't the type to have the automatic canons that he and his squad dealt with at least once.
As plasma fire ate up the road around him? He realized damn well that it wasn't, the canons wouldn't have missed… Sure enough?
The metal monster had a grunt trying and failing to cut him in two with plasma from the weapon, all of it continued to remind him that he was still unsure as of now, something to be unsure of at the end of the day for each little twist at the moment sadly.
He barely rolled behind a broken-down bus as the massive alien like battering ram seemed to slam into the bus only for a familiar explosive to come flying into the back of the wraith's power core.
The wraith broke down, the armor peeling and boiling away as the mortar tank seemed to split open like a walnut. He sighed to himself as it still tried to start forwards once more.
"Ah… Damn it." Sereno muttered before he rushed towards the wraith, pulling on the knife on his armor.
he rolled to the side, tossing the knife towards the grunt, the object piercing its head and causing it to slump forward, going limp in the seat as Sereno gripped the hull. The elite pilot roared and tried to grab him.
the vehicle lurched forwards as the reptilian soldier gripped him by the throat.
Sereno gulped and tried to reach for his knife which was still embedded in the head of the gunner.
The elite growled and activated its armor blade, going to impale the ODST on the blade as he gasped for breath.
That was before James leaped from the top of the vehicle, grappling the alien soldier, and wrenching him away as Sereno tumbled towards the edge. He turned to see his friend grappling and struggling with the soldier.
Sereno gripped the knife before he pulled it free and stabbed it into the throat of the elite, making it choke before James gripped its throat and twisted it to the side.
There was a snap as the elite went limp and the wraith dropped to the ground, no one piloting it.
"Thanks," Sereno stated before he hummed and rubbed his throat, and sighed. "I hate wraiths," Sereno said as he paused to catch his breath, he hummed once more as he clicked to try and figure it out.
They had a lot more to try and figure out what to see and do at the end of the day as he clicked his fingers once more.
He sighed and then seemed to try and figure out what to understand at the time… He had a lot more problems, for now, unsure, and uncertain of it all.
James and Sereno seemed to try and look up the hill, ready to see something at the end of the day.
The two ODSTS looked up the hill, watching a Pelican fly overhead, making them all share looks.
"Hey, sarge? We're done… Wasn't any leathernecks here… Small little squad, 10 people, sir." Garth stated before he heard Sereno sigh.
"Roger, Corporal, get things done," Sereno said, sitting on the damaged wraith as he sighed, knowing for a fact that the problem wasn't going to try and see it all done.
Sereno looked at James before he slowly started to try and understand as he seemed to grasp once more. They had a lot more problems to deal with, either way, this wouldn't be the last of it for now, no, certainly not with it all swirling around them.
He had fallen silent, a hushed breath in his throat as he went to pull his weapon free. He was utterly silent as he thought of what to try and see next… All of it bothered them for now.
"How many battles do you think are going to go this smoothly?" Sereno asked before he sighed as he looked upwards.
The clouds of banshees, filling the sky and streaking on alien engines which shrieked across the entire planet reminded me this wasn't EASY, it was just them coming in to pull out of a pyrrhic victory. Any wins over the Covenant were ruined INSTANTLY the second one thought of how many soldiers and other ships had to die for it to be that way.
Every little loss? Every soldier? Every ship? It brought the UNSC closer to splintering, shattering again and again yet they continued to fight, knowing what was coming at the end of the day when it was all said and done at the end of the time.
"Don't know… There's always going to be something terrible down the road, sir. It's the end times for now." James said before he sighed to himself once more.
He managed to relax knowing it, managed to keep himself all too intact as the engines of the craft slowly started to descend upon them.
"Doesn't mean it will stay that way, Corporal," Sereno said before the pelican landed in front of them… They had a VERY large amount of insanity to try and handle and yet here it was.
"Captain? We've got them and we're headed back to the ship. You all good up there?" Sereno asked as he sighed and slowly started to try and imagine what to see and do about it.
The second they made a stand? They'd all be crushed for now under the Covenant's boot. The sooner they managed to get out of here? The better.
"Busy trying to direct all the comm chatter… All teams are reporting in." They heard as they sighed. "Massif squad? You're getting ship off after this, the mission came in and they need an ODST group and you're the one…" They heard as the pelican slowly yet surely seemed to land, ready for them both to try and figure out.
"Sir? Say again?" Sereno asked as he blinked, unsure of what to say and do for now.
"You're getting reassigned, every other squad we have is busy and they need the best of the best, sending you all there is just a really good conscience." They all heard as the back hatch on the Pelican sealed its hatch and slowly yet surely seemed to float forwards.
Sereno said nothing, watching as the other 10 marines settled into their seats. The pelican slowly managed to try and figure out what to try and figure out what else needed to end at the moment, a mercy that could not be relaxed once more.
This wasn't going to be something easily dealt with, not anytime soon. Not even for a second that they could believe it for now as the pelicans slowly yet surely flew towards their mothership.
They all shared looks, unwilling to think of what would happen if they were the chosen party.
"No damn way they are desperate enough to need us." He heard as he snorted.
Emilia wasn't someone he agreed with often. They were both very different soldiers, her trying to do everything by the book and him being willing to take feedback from his men… But he agreed, they had to have more to this tale.
Yet? Sereno wasn't going to question his orders if they were given to them for now and yet it seemed to be a measure they couldn't afford.
The soldiers only seemed to relax, slowly yet surely sitting down in their seats as the visage of the Charon class light frigate drew closer.
Perhaps it seemed as if they were going to hell but he didn't know… Couldn't tell.
"Covenant forces are going to glass the world in 2 hours… Everyone who's here is getting off world, for now, Sergeant. Report to your quarters." They heard as the craft docked with the frigate, closing the doors behind them for now.
All it did was make them silent, watching the metallic doors slam shut as each pelican and the albatross docked with the frigate which began to move away from the planet.
"So… Anyone want to ask how damn much this is going to work? We've got to be screwed if they're sending us back to good old Earth, the only reason they'd send us there." Garth said as Sereno hummed.
"I think we should look inwards rather than outwards," James said before he clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth, something repeated by Sereno.
"Cut the book crap, Corporal," Emelia said before James turned to her, leaning over Sereno to look her in the eye.
"I am a man of my faith and a man who has seen far too much death in this galaxy, Emelia… I will not cut anything more than the throats of our enemies and even then? I will pray they go somewhere better when they hit the ground." James stated before Emelia huffed and walked towards her quarters.
Sereno sighed and pulled his helmet from his head, revealing a face no older than 27 or 28 with hair as black as the night sky. He simply sighed and ran his hand through his buzz-cut hair before looking at Garth.
"Talk some sense into them before they wreck something," Sereno said, blinking his ocean blue eyes as he sighed and then looked downwards at the ground.
What he did do next? This wasn't going to end lightly and he knew it, he knew damn well that whatever was dealt with next? Oh, it wouldn't end anytime soon, for now, something that kept bugging them.
"Sereno?" He heard as he turned to see the commander of the company and saluted. "At ease, soldier. I should tell you the command came down the wire. They asked for fresh recruits and they got the greenest squad in the corps." He heard from They walked through the frigate's halls.
"Why us, sir? We're nobodies as far as the corps is concerned. I'm fresh out of boot camp more or less… Damn near run ragged." Sereno said before he sighed.
"They're putting together a squad for a ship called the In Amber Clad. Needs a good crew and fresh soldiers, seeing as how the Covenant wiped out thousands of soldiers. They scraped the barrel and decided to put you all among the ODSTS on her." They heard as he huffed.
"Thank you, sir." Sereno heard before turning to walk back to his room. "I'll get my things packed up for when we get there," Sereno said, tucking his helmet under his arm as more crew arrived to try and deal with the influx of new soldiers.
Garth stood post at the door, leaning his rifle against his arm as the two UNSC soldiers walked towards their quarters.
"So, how crappy a talk it goes?" Garth asked to which he got a roll of the eyes.
"We're being assigned to a new ship, UNSC in Amber Clad," Sereno stated before he looked downwards at the ground.
"Huh, think I've heard of it… Frigate, little one." Garth said as he shook his head and looked at the ground.
"How do you know?" Garth heard as he shrugged.
"You hear chatter in the mess when you're off the clock, boss." He heard as he looked downwards at the ground.
"Hear anything else?" Garth heard.
"Some fancy officer is being assigned… Daughter of Captain Keyes I think." Garth stated with a shrug.
"Commander Miranda KEYES!?" Sereno questioned as Garth's eyes widened.
"Oh… I forgot. Yeah, that's what I heard. She's taking a LOT after her dad, you know. Last I heard? She blew up a destroyer that was attacking their fleet, and saved half the fleet at Gamma Pavonis." Garth said as Sereno hummed.
"Son of a…." Sereno muttered before a clearing of the throat cut off his curse.
"They'd also going to be doing some staff recruiting… Meaning that the rest of the squad is due for some promotions down the road." They heard as they shared looks.
Both of them turned to see James who was busy with something before looking at the duo, shaking his head at their options.
"I don't think that's what is going on," Sereno said before he sighed to himself. "No way we're getting promoted at all from the higher ranks. I'm fresh out of camp and barely finished officer training… I'm not exactly cut out to be an officer yet." Sereno said as he sighed and placed his helmet under his shoulder for now.
It was true and he knew that… But part of him simply didn't know what to do and what to expect next from this path.
There was far too much at stake anyway with annoyance for now and yet it seemed to be odder and odder at the moment, something about it all managed to keep going onwards and onwards at the end of the day.
He had a managing amount of mercy while he relaxed to try and figure it out. This isn't going to be odder and odder as she seemed to look downwards, utterly unsure of what to see and look downwards
He sighed once more as of the time being and then looked downwards at the ground before he cracked his fingers and yawned once more as he seemed to fall silent.
He cracked his fingers as the trio leaned on the walls, he was unable to try and figure out what to try and understand what to see and do at the moment… They had a LOT more to see and look downwards at the ground.
"So. Everyone knows we're going to die on this next mission, right? Being on a ship like that? The first covenant cruiser we run into is going to blow her in half." Garth stated before Sereno sighed and clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth as he yawned and then seemed to try and figure out what to do next.
Sereno hummed as he thought of what to try and figure out what to see and do next before he yawned. He had a LOT more to try and figure out what to try and yawn while he looked downwards at the ground.
"Are you going to be, ok?" Sereno asked before he raised an eyebrow and then looked downwards at the ground before he looked downwards at the time being.
They had a LOT more to see and do, something about it all… Whatever their problems were? They'd deal with it.
"Massif Squad does what we're asked, nothing more and nothing less. The next mission is going to be something insane." Sereno said before he sighed, looking downwards at the ground.
He knew exactly what was coming, what to expect from it all at the end. If they were getting put on a weird ship? This would certainly be the end of it for now.
"Let's get going. Sooner we get to the ship? The better we can relax for now, waiting here isn't going to do anything at the end of the day." Sereno stated before he clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth.
They had a LOT more to try and figure out what to seem at the end of the day.
He yawned to himself as he looked downwards at the ground and hummed once more, unsure of what to see and do at the end of the day. Something about it all would continue to end a certain way… A way they weren't comfortable dealing with.
Perhaps he had to see the light a different way to try and figure it out once more… A measure of mercy he wasn't at all used to.
Author Notes
Phew. Another chapter is done! I want to point out that the next chapter will be in 2-10 months and will be 900-6500 words and will set up Massif Squad boarding the IN Amber Clad and set up the crossover. Until then, Lighting Wolf is out!