Chapter 12

The world was dark and cold. Everything seemed to hurt. Was this the afterlife? Was this the 'ascension' Tz'eal was promised by the Prophets all those summers ago? If it was he was very disappointed. However a glint of light caught his eye. Something seemed to be calling out to him. Before him the light slowly grew more intense as a voice broke through the muffled silence. Calling his name.

"Tz'eal!" The male voice called. It seemed familiar. But he could not quite place it.

"Tz'eal! Get your ass up. We have to go!" The voice called out as the light flashed in his eyes. The world coming into view before him. The sky shone bright orange which flashed with patches of white as lightning struck the ground. The landscape around him burned as smoke billowed into the air. Rolling onto his front Tz'eal glanced to his companion Drake who was kneeling beside him.

"You're alright. We need to move. Now." Drake said calmly as he looked around. Tz'eal had seen the look of concern on Drake's face before. When the planet they had met on was glassed. Was this happening again? Taking Drake's hand Tz'eal got up, grasping his weapon as he did.

"Check your weapon and ammo. We've got Brutes coming in close and we have a long way to go. We stay here, we get glassed." Drake said quietly as he checked his weapon.

Tz'eal nodded slowly as he remembered his latest training. Ejecting the magazine of his DMR he made sure it was fully loaded before pulling the charging handle back. There was a round in the chamber. He was fully loaded and ready to fight.

"Where do we go from here?" Tz'eal asked, glancing around at the destruction surrounding the pair.

"We move to the spaceport. See if we can catch a ride on a Longsword or Pelican and get off world. I can't believe I'm getting glassed again." Drake replied with a sigh as he looked around.

"We can survive this. We could find a Seraph fighter that has landed nearby, or perhaps a Spirit. They are able to travel through space, with a Seraph we can leave the system. A Spirit we can travel to a nearby planet to rest and regroup." Tz'eal suggested as the wind began to kick up around them.

"Maybe. We'll just have to figure it out as we go. Improvise, adapt, overcome right?" Drake replied with a smirk.

"Correct. Lead the way." Tz'eal replied with a nod as the wind began to whistle around them, growing more intense. Looking to the sky two spotlights shone down upon them as a Spirit descended from it.

"Ah crap." Drake uttered as he looked to Tz'eal. "Get to cover. Time for a fight." He said confidently before running to a nearby tree. Nodding Tz'eal followed suit, ducking down behind a large rock. Peeking over he spotted the tell tale silhouettes of Kig-Yar approaching with their energy shield gauntlets powered, accompanied by Unngoy. As their enemy approached there was a crackle of static as Drake keyed their radio.

"Hold your fire until they're just ahead of us. We open a kill zone and shred them all as quick as we can." Tz'eal heard Drake suggest as he glanced in his direction. From where they were their enemy would almost be between them once they attacked. It would be dangerous.

"Be careful. Check your shots and watch your flank. We can get through this." Drake called back, almost reading Tz'eals thoughts. Confident the two of them could deal with any threat Tz'eal settled his nerves and prepared to fight.

The squeaks and chitters from the Kig-Yar and Unngoy grew louder as they continued to approach. Once they were in range, a single beep from the radio signaled the attack. Setting up, Tz'eal rested his DMR on the rock, taking aim down the scope. Thirty rounds were expended between the pair, one magazine each. The shell casings echoing as they hit off of each other when landing on the soft ground.

"Reload then push to contact. Make sure they're dead." Drake called over the radio as Tz'eal glanced over. He was already up, locking a fresh magazine into his own DMR and moving to the pile of corpses. Tz'eal followed behind, fumbling with the small box of ammunition as he reloaded his weapon. Drake slowly swept through the pile, kicking some of the bodies he thought had moved before finally turning back to Tz'eal.

"You'd think it'd be more difficult than that." Drake commented with a chuckle as he looked up from the corpses. Tz'eal continued to glance around at their surroundings. Something wasn't right.

"It should have been. Where are the Sangheili?" Tz'eal asked.

"What do you mean?" Drake asked, sounding confused.

"Kig-Yar and Unngoy are led by a Sangheili. Where is he?" Tz'eal asked as he focused on their surroundings. The air was quiet as the two scanned the area, looking for any kind of disturbance. The Sangheili active camo was good, but not perfect. The blur of the air around them would expose their position.

Several minutes passed with no sign of movement. Drake relaxed his weapon as he walked slowly over to Tz'eal, his weapon still raised, scanning around.

"We're okay. It seems to be clear." Drake said reassuringly.

"No. We are not alone here." Tz'eal growled as he continued to look around. The air was stale and smelled of death. He was sure there was still a threat in the area.

"Come on. Relax. We've got a long way to go and we can't be stopping at every potential threat, if we do we die." Drake said as he placed his hand on Tz'eals shoulder. Tz'eal took a deep breath as he began to relax, clicking his lower mandibles as he looked to Drake who smiled back at him.

There was a sudden glow of blue-white light beside them accompanied with a dull hiss. Drake grabbed Tz'eal by the front of his combat harness and threw him to the side as the plasma grenade exploded. Both of them getting thrown into the air before crashing onto the softer ground, tumbling over themselves as they eventually came to a stop.

Groaning Tz'eal pushed himself over onto his back, pain radiating through his body. His shields took the brunt of the blast but not all of it. Plasma burned over his right side, his combat harness hissing with burns. Raising his head he glanced down to assess the damage. His hearts struggled to pound as he looked at his body. He was going to need Drake's assistance if he was going to get out of this alive.

"Drake. I need your-" Tz'eal began as he glanced over to his companion. The visor of his helmet had shattered, his body was charred and smoking while his eyes stared back at Tz'eal lifelessly. "No…" Tz'eal murmured to himself as he lay back down, staring at the dark sky above him.

After a few moments he heard the soft crunching of the ground approaching him, rolling his head to the side he spotted the ground being disturbed as the cloaked Sangheili approached him.

"Make it...quick." Tz'eal said between breaths as he struggled to stay awake. His vision darkened.

"Quick? I do not think so. I will enjoy this." The Sangheili said with a proudful voice. He kneeled over as he deactivated his camo. His maroon combat harness shining brightly in the glow of the burning sky.

"Your family has been disgraced. Your name will be cleansed from our history. Our Covenant will continue on the path of the Great Journey while you are forgotten as a Heretic." The Zealot continued as the ground was bathed in a soft white glow as he ignited his energy dagger.

"I will die...knowing I fought….for what is right…" Tz'eal struggled to say as he locked eyes with the Zealot.

"At least we agree on one thing: You will die." The Zealot said with a growl as he plunged the dagger into Tz'eals chest. The white hot blade piercing through one of his hearts. Tz'eal coughed, blood spurting from his mouth covering the Zealot in his own viscera as his second heart struggled to beat.

The Zealot removed the dagger, raising his hand to strike again.

"Determine….right and wrong...yourself." Tz'eal said quietly as he closed his eyes. He felt a sudden strike of pain in his chest before the world flashed before his eyes, bathing him in white light.

The night had passed quietly as Drake continued to watch the cave entrance. He had continued to glance over to Tz'eal who was sleeping soundly for the most part until the most recent hour. His concern began to rise as Tz'eal tossed and turned in his sleep. Something Tz'eal was seeing was causing him stress, something Drake wasn't able to help him with.

The sunlight began to shine through the entrance as the sun rose into the sky. The temperature inside the cave began to climb slowly as Drake continued to keep watch. He had been awake for over 24 hours now and was beginning to drift in his watch before he heard a yelp from behind him. Bringing his BR55 around he aimed towards Tz'eal who was sitting upright, his two daggers engaged. He was looking around frantically breathing heavily before he locked eyes with Drake. His expression began to relax as he lay back down.

"You alright?" Drake asked as he stifled a yawn.

"I am. It was merely a dream." Tz'eal replied with a sigh as he stared up at the ceiling of the cave, the light glinting off of the rock above him.

"A nightmare more like. Anyway it's morning. If you're ready we can head back to base and let the shit hit the fan." Drake suggested as he slowly stood up, swinging his arms and kicking his legs as he stood up, trying to ease himself into moving again.

"You are sure your people will accept my turning?" Tz'eal asked as he got up, grabbing the fabric that was placed over his shoulders, dragging it to Drake.

"Probably not. But my Commander is at least willing to listen to you, like I said. Just so long as you stay invisible there shouldn't be an issue." Drake said reassuringly. Nodding Tz'eal passed Drake the fabric which Drake stored away in his backpack before getting slinging it over his shoulder. He nodded to Tz'eal as he escorted him outside to the parked Warthog outside.

Grabbing and removing the covered tarp, the water that was once snow splashing onto the ground, Drake climbed into the driver's seat of the 'Hog and turned the engine. Roaring into life the warthog was ready to go as Drake checked all of the systems making sure everything wasn't damaged. Comfortable everything was going to be functional, he tuned the radio to the correct frequency and keyed the radio.

"Wayfinder one to Kilo actual. Come in. Over." Drake said as he glanced over to Tz'eal who was looking at the passenger side seat.

"Good morning Wayfinder one. Did you manage to get the asset?" Shapiro called over the radio.

"That's an afirm Kilo Actual. Asset secured and ready for transport back to Destiny. You're prepared to take me yeah?" Drake asked as the Warthog bowed down on the right side as Tz'eal climbed into the seat. As he sat he shifted his legs around trying to get comfortable, his leg structure not fit for human vehicles.

"We're waiting for you Wayfinder. I've gone out of my way to get everything set up for you myself. Once you're home make sure to escort the asset to position Bravo and secure them. How copy?" Shapiro replied over the radio. Drake glanced up to Tz'eal who was listening to the conversation.

"Move asset to position Bravo and secure. Wayfinder one copies all. I'll be home in a few. Wayfinder One out." Drake said as he closed the comm link.

"What is position Bravo?" Tz'eal asked as he finally got as comfortable as he could in the awkward seating position.

"The Brig. Someone in base will be listening to our comms. Commander wants to make sure no one is aware of who you are. Better to be safe than sorry after all." Drake explained.

"You are sure I will be safe?" Tz'eal asked again.

"Like I said, there's no guarantee something bad isn't going to happen. But I'll do what I can to keep you safe. You have my word." Drake said reassuringly as he shifted the Warthog into gear.

"I trust you. Drake." Tz'eal said quietly as he engaged his active camo, blending into the Warthog as the two made their way back to Destiny.