Chapter 13
The trip back to Destiny was long and uneventful. Every few minutes Drake would glance at his side to see the blurred silhouette of Tz'eal sitting uncomfortably in the passenger seat of the Warthog. Everything was balancing on the few moments they had to get out and get to the brig before Tz'eal was spotted by any personnel of Destiny.
The light rain and murky water from the previous storm splashed onto the windscreen as they continued to drive to their destination. The radio crackled with static every so often as the pair rode in silence until a message was broadcast.
"Wayfinder one this is Castle Actual. We have you on our sensors. Kilo actual has informed us of your need to return to rest and rearm. We have assigned you bay 5 as per Kilo Actuals request. If you need anything before your return please advise. Over."
Drake glanced down at the radio as he slowed the Warthog down.
"Roger that Castle Actual. Keep the bay clear of all personnel. I don't want anyone getting hurt. Over." Drake replied as he keyed his transceiver built into his helmet.
"You're running some hazardous material Wayfinder one?" Castle asked over the radio. Grinning Drake glanced at his side once again at Tz'eal before responding.
"That's an affirm Castle. Very hazardous. I'm in sealed gear and need people to stay back from the bay as far as possible. Can you manage that?" Drake asked as he slowly swerved the warthog to avoid a large rock he almost drove clean in to.
"We'll do our best and will have a hazmat team there for collection." Castle replied.
"Negative. I have the material and will be transporting to a secured location. No need for Hazmat. Just clear the way. Over." Drake argued as his heart rate spiked. Hazmat would almost instantly know something was not as it seemed if they approached for a hazardous material to find nothing of the sort. He really should have thought before saying something to make the lie worse.
"Roger that. How are you feeling?" Castle asked, sounding a little concerned.
"Slight hit of dizziness. But it's nothing I haven't dealt with before. Keep them on standby and clear the area. Should be alright to transport myself. I'll check in with medical right after the handover has been made." Drake replied with a fake cough as he cleared a hilltop. The metallic structures of Destiny shining in the afternoon light.
"Roger that Wayfinder. We'll keep everything on standby for the time being. Should something happen let us know." Castle replied as Drake watched the front ramp of the base slowly lower in the distance.
"Wayfinder copies all. See you guys soon. Wayfinder one. Out." Drake replied as his radio clicked and disconnected from the frequency.
"How will we navigate your base? Without being detected?" Tz'eal asked quietly as he hunched down even lower.
"I have an idea. Don't worry about it. Just do what I say, when I say it and we'll be fine." Drake replied confidently as he navigated the damp fields to the entrance ramp to the base. Inside there was a clear path that had been made for him. As far as he could see, heads turned towards him as he slowly drove through the path towards his bay.
"Just keep your head down. Move where and when I say and try to avoid hitting anything." Drake said quietly as he nodded to some of the people he recognized who were keeping their eyes on him.
Slowly, the Warthog rolled into the bay and came to a stop. The bay was clear of everyone as per Drakes request and his path forward was in his sights. A small closed door to the side of the vehicle bay which led into the engineer halls. With those he and Tz'eal would be able to navigate the base with little interruption and get to the brig, hopefully, without anyone seeing them.
"Alright, leave the 'Hog as I do. Try to balance the weight as we leave to avoid drawing any attention to us. We've already got enough eyes on us as it is." Drake explained as he sat upright and grabbed the top windscreen of the Warthog. Glancing over his shoulder Tz'eal did the same as he did. Slowly they both climbed out of the 'Hog, balancing the weight as much as they could. It wasn't perfect but unless someone was paying very close attention to the difference they should be fine.
Feigning his mission, Drake slowly made his way to the passenger seat and fumbled around inside as he whispered to Tz'eal.
"Behind you there's an opening in the wall. A small console is next to it with a red light. When I move, follow me there." He said as quietly as he could as he faked picking up a dangerous case and slowly turning around with it.
"I will follow behind." Tz'eal said quietly as he began to pace behind Drake, making sure there was nothing he could potentially disturb as he moved. The Pair managed to get to the opening Drake had pointed out and the door hissed open slowly. Smiling Drake tilted his head quickly at Tz'eal who stepped inside first. Drake took a step forward but was stopped as someone called his name out behind him.
"Drake! Good to see you're back safely." Jay, Drake's Marine friend called out.
"Jay? What are you doing here?" Drake asked, sounding surprised as he stepped into the doorway completely, trying to block Jay's view into the hall.
"I heard on the comms you were coming back today with an asset so I wanted to see you, make sure you were safe and well. What's that?" Jay replied as he nodded and pointed to the box.
"The Asset. I need to get this to Shap ASAP so I'm going to need you to step back. This area is off limits until this is safe." Drake tried to explain as Jay looked at him skeptically.
"Oh please if it was something radioactive the alarms would be blaring right now, it's not that bad clearly." Jay said confidently as he glanced around the room at the other personnel, shaking his head at them.
"It's not this exactly that isn't safe. Trust me, you'll find out eventually but I can't say more." Drake said quietly as he glanced around. Other people had noticed Jay was close and were starting to talk.
"Oh come on. You've told me things I'm not supposed to know. You can tell me this one." Jay said confidently as he nudged Drake in the side with his elbow.
"This isn't something I can tell you. It's classified." Drake said under his breath.
"You've told me classified things before. Come on, who am I going to run to?" Jay asked with a chuckle as Drake continued to look at him with a concerned expression.
"This is ONI level classified. If I tell you we could both be killed for it. Trust me. You'll find out soon. Hopefully." Drake confessed as he turned his back to Jay.
"Go. I'll tell you about it after once this all settles down." He finished as he stepped through the doorway. Jay continued to stare back at Drake as the door hissed closed. He swore he could see something standing in front of Drake in the mist but brushed it away as he turned on the spot and returned to his duties.
"He seemed like he knows you." Tz'eal commented as the door finally hissed shut. Drake exhaled and shook his head.
"Jay and I have been friends for a long time. He's a good soldier. Perhaps likes to dig a little too deep at times but other than that he's alright." Drake explained as he squeezed passed Tz'eal and led him onwards. The red lights of the engineering hall illuminating the halls before them slightly. Enough to lead them to their destination.
"What did you mean by: You will find out soon?" Tz'eal asked as he slowly followed behind once again.
"If Shapiro listens to you and trusts you're not going to stab us all in the back then you'll probably work with us to fight the Covenant. So he'll find out about you somehow." Drake explained as they reached an intersection of the halls. Closing his eyes he tried to remember his way through the base and which turn to take.
"And if he does not you will do what you can to ensure I leave here alive." Tz'eal repeated as Drake opened his eyes, turning down the left hallway.
"You know it. Come on, it's this way. We've not got far to go." Drake said with a smile as Tz'eal continued to follow behind him.
"Just be careful. We've got permission to be in here from Shapiro but the engineers still wander around here when they're doing their thing." Drake explained as he walked through a cloud of mist. Right into an Engineer.
"Two things ODST: One, what are you doing here and Two; who are you talking to?" The Engineer asked as Drake took a single step back.
"No one. Talking aloud. Sometimes when I need an expert opinion I ask myself." Drake lied quickly as he shuffled to his side, trying to block the Engineers view of Tz'eal.
"Well you know you're not supposed to be here. How did you even get in here?" The Engineer asked as he continued to look at Drake suspiciously.
"CO gave me permission to skip through here. Have something that needs to get to a secure location. I'm taking it there." Drake replied as he lifted the small case to shop the Engineer.
"I've not heard anything from my CO. I'll need to contact Castle Actual to get confirmation." The Engineer said as he stepped past Drake to access a console on the wall before he froze.
"There's no need for that. Just let me go, continue with what you're doing and everything will be alright. Alright?" Drake suggested with a smile and a nod. However the Engineer wasn't listening. Glancing past the Engineer the silhouette of Tz'eal was displacing the mist of the hall, clearly showing his form through his camo.
"Okay I know this looks bad but you need to listen to me." Drake said quietly as the Engineer reached for his sidearm.
"You're bringing an Elite into the base. You're a traitor. You're going to kill us all." The Engineer whispered as his hand wrapped around the grip of his sidearm.
"No. He's the one turning. He's here to help us. Shapiro is aware of this and I'm taking him somewhere safe so that Shapiro can talk to him." Drake continued to explain as he slowly shuffled to get between Tz'eal and the Engineer.
"I don't believe you." The Engineer said, his voice shaking with fear.
"Listen. I don't want to hurt you. But if you compromise my mission I'll drop you where you stand." Drake threatened as he wrapped his fingers around the grip of his own sidearm.
"No. You will not." Tz'eal said quietly as he placed a hand on Drake's shoulder.
"I mean you no harm. I will go to the brig and await questioning from your Commander." Tz'eal explained. The Engineer shook as Tz'eal spoke. His gaze shifting from Drake to the figure of Tz'eal behind.
"We're doing this for the benefit of Destiny. Don't ruin it by doing something stupid." Drake said quietly as he let go of his sidearm and raised his hand.
"How do I know you're telling the truth?" The Engineer asked.
"You are alive. If Drake had betrayed you like you think he has, you would be dead." Tz'eal admitted.
"Yeah. You think we'd leave you alive to spill our plans of treachery to everyone on base?" Drake added with a chuckle. The Engineer smiled and let out a single laugh himself as he began to relax.
"Let us pass and try to keep quiet about all of this." Drake said as he placed a hand on the Engineers shoulder and gently moved him to the side of the hall. Nodding the Engineer stood aside as Drake walked passed him and continued on the path to the brig. Tz'eal stopped before the Engineer and looked down at him.
"Thank you, Human." He said quietly before he followed behind Drake as they finished making their way to the Brig, where Tz'eal would await questioning by Shapiro.