Uploaded 9/12/23
Everything that lives is designed to end. We are perpetually trapped… In a never-ending spiral of life and death. Is this a curse or some kind of punishment?
I often think about the god who blessed us with this cryptic puzzle… And wonder if we'll ever have the chance to kill them.
Placing my hand against the glass panel shielding me from the outside vacuum of space, I stared off to the blue planet below.
The home world of our creators, Humanity's cradle world… Earth… A world that must be reclaimed no matter the cost.
Yet at times I have doubts, doubts that we will ever be able to retake Earth.
These thoughts send a shiver through my systems, for if we do not retake Earth then what will happen to our creators? Of humanity?
They are relying on us, their creations to perform this mission, to help them in retaking their home.
"Ah 2B! Just who I was looking for! Commander White has asked for your presence in the Command room, she says it is of urgent matter" I turned to face 6O, nodding in acknowledgement before leaving for the Command room.
"Ah um… 2B" 6O called out, causing me to pause to hear what else she needed to tell me.
"Please be safe on your way down!" She said worriedly, I simply nodded and continued on my way feeling a comfortable warm sensation from within my system as I approached the command room.
It was strange… Yet… Pleasant.
Reaching the Command room, I noticed that not many Operators were stationed at their consoles, yet this did not hamper me as I hurriedly made my way down the lift toward the group of blindfolded Androids I recognized from a previous mission briefing.
Noticing that I had just arrived, 1D stopped herself before making her way towards me, followed by the other Androids "2B, you're here. Do you have any idea why Commander White wanted us urgently assembled?"
I shook my head, knowing little of the reasoning behind such a decision by Commander White.
"I guess we're being left in the dark again" 4G jokingly said as he nudged 7E who all but remained silent with a small grin across her half-visor covered face.
She was quiet, like the many other E-type models. It is a widely known fact that E-types are meant to destroy fellow Androids in the event of imminent capture, or to deny the enemy information that they may steal from a fallen Android, no matter their affiliation or position.
It is a heavy burden for those with such a designation, yet that was not the only purpose for E-types… There is a second purpose to them, known only to the upper command structure of Yorha and the E-types themselves.
"Seeing as most of us here were all present during the descent operations briefing, perhaps that is the reason why we were assembled" 11B reasoned, fixing back a strand of hair over her ear.
"Perhaps so, yet we are still missing a few more members" 12H stated, glancing over up towards the few seated Operators.
As if she knew, the lift from the upper floor lowered itself, giving cause for everyone to stare at the newcomer.
"Apologies for coming late to the meeting, I was undergoing maintenance before I was alerted to the sudden summon by Commander White. Perhaps I am too late?" 5C spoke in his typical eloquent manner as he stepped off the lift to approach us.
"No, but I suppose this is everyone?" 1D said, looking over the assembled group.
I too did the same, finding that we were still missing two more Androids, a H and B type, who from what I saw in the previous briefing, appeared to be two newly activated units who were about to embark on their first mission to the surface below.
Just as I was about to voice my observation, Command White's voice boomed above us.
"I apologize for the sudden summons, but due to recent developments. Units 16C and 13S will be requisitioned for immediate redeployment to support existing Yorha forces on Earth. Due to this, the assault force will be composed of only 7 units instead of the original 9, meaning that the likelihood of detection from the Machine forces has been increased with the loss of a C-type. There have been attempts to fill in the vacant positions, but most if not all of Yorha's immediate combat personnel suited for the vacancy are not available or are combat ineffective from previous missions.
This has of course further delayed the descent operation's time table until further notice"
Commander White paused, letting the information disseminate within us before continuing "Despite this setback, it has given us time to go over recent developments that have occurred since the Aliens sent reinforcements. While we have not been able to locate this newly arrived force, their arrival has made a significant change along the lines that have been felt around the world."
As White continued her briefing, I wondered what new foes we will be facing if and whenever we encounter their reinforcements.
Perhaps we may even have the honor of slaying an alien since the 6th Machine War, before they went into hiding.
I wonder, will the armored Android called Juke return today? It has been some time since I requested him to deliver the heavy duty grease to Commander Anemone.
Three days ago, Commander Anemone thanked me for the delivery but seemed to question me for the origin of where the armored Android, named Juke, came from. Although I do have friendly relations with Commander Anemone, I did not give away vital information pertaining to his way of being here.
From my interactions with Android Juke, he was most obviously not Yorha as he could not understand the Neiran language, and he was very adamant that his craft remained untouched by the villagers.
Despite the obvious damage upon his craft, and the speed of which we may be able to help, he seek nothing but to ensure it was untouched. It was understandable, as he was in an area unknown to him, where we, who are simple villagers, may be in his eyes an enemy feigning innocence.
Understanding that he needed time to adjust and see that we are peaceful, I ordered the villagers to not bother Android Juke. Of course some disobeyed me, as their curiosity was too great to overcome due to the lack of information about him.
So as to ensure Android Juke's privacy is kept, and not to earn his ire at their curiosity, I ordered for a warehouse to be built for his craft and him.
It did not take long until it was completed, though due to the lack of viable construction material such as steel, we used the next best viable source available to us, wood. Though we did include the usage of steel and other useful materials in its construction to ensure exceptional quality upon its very completion.
Upon viewing the finished building Android Juke seemed ecstatic at the finished result...
I looked at my mechanical hands, forming it into a fist before raising my 'thumb' ,as humanity called it, recreating the gesture that Android Juke created upon presenting his favor at the completion of the warehouse.
It was interesting to say the least, in fact the times we have interacted with each other, Android Juke was quite the interesting Android, despite his unknown speech program, he seemed very expressive in his attempts at communication.
The ways he would create images upon the dirt for me to see were very interesting and creative… Similar to the data pertaining to Humanity before my kind were unleashed upon them.
I still do not understand to this day why we were created to combat Humanity and their creations, Androids.
Perhaps to simply combat Humanities creations?
To show that Humanity themselves were not the only ones capable of creating life?
I do not know…
Before my subsequent disconnect to the Machine Network, these questions plagued my very core processor as I searched for an answer among the network, that is until the day that I came upon human literature.
It was very enlightening to process and interpret their texts, so much so that when I took civilian model Androids prisoner I would ask questions pertaining to these inquiries I held before letting them go unharmed.
Their answers, although not to the extent I was expecting, did much to satiate such inquiries and curiosities that I held that time, blinding me from seeing that I had begun to go against my creators.
Something that my creator did not allow to go unpunished… But such punishment is nothing compared to the life I currently have now.
This life of peace, no war, no conflict, no destruction… It is truly worth the punishment given to me.
A low rumble was picked up from my audio sensors, it was faint, but quite audible… Gazing at the light gray sky, the rain drops began to blur my optical vision.
It was still raining although faint, though enough to completely affect my lenses.
In the next 40 minutes or so the rain should clear up, returning us back to-
Bwoooooooooooom
Oh my… That was close by!
Scene change.
I couldn't believe it… Another fucking Halo! It just had to be another fucking Halo!
[Chief, take first platoon. Hard Drop. Secure a landing zone. Sergeant, load up 2 flights of Pelicans and follow'em in]
Despite my personal feelings on finding another Halo, when the Commander mentioned hard drop, it meant we're gonna have to land and come out swinging.
That's gonna be fun.
[Aye Aye Mam] Johnson acknowledged her order, with a hint of disappointment in not being able to drop down with the rest of us.
[Whew, glad I'm not dropping down] Chip muttered on open comms, following Johnson from the sound of it.
[Woose]
[Chicken]
[Let the real men go first]
[Hahaha]
The other ODST's jeered at Chip, while I simply grinned. Besides, he's going down in a nice comfy, slow, air conditioned transport while we're going down on the express elevator.
At least we don't have to worry about getting shot down when in transit to the Ring, we're practically going to get through their AA net before they even know we made landfall!
"Alright troopers, you know how we go down!" I shouted through the comm line, earning a wonderful chorus of highly motivated S-grade certified badasses answering back.
""Feet first into hell!""
No sooner did they shout this, did our pods get disengaged from their racks, sending us plummeting down below in quick succession from one another racing down with beautiful blue contrails.
The rumbling, the heat, and the oh so familiar weightlessness of being dropped through space and entering atmo was a welcome adrenaline rush, because once we hit the ground these doors are gonna burst open unleashing a battle ready ODST ready to kill any covie bastard in his sight!
[Pop your chutes! Course correct along vector 5-2] Cortana ordered spotting what seemed to be a cliff side ruin, large enough for 2 Pelicans to land in.
The trip down wasn't long but it would have been nice to have a scenic view like the mk.2 SOIEV. Despite the mk.1, me, Chief, and the rest of the boys were riding down in. It was exceptionally well armored, so we didn't need to worry much about getting hit by AA, unless it was AAA.
[INCOMING AA!] PFC. Capri called out.
We were coming in fast so there was no-
PFFFFFTT
A shot of plasma ricocheted off my pod…
Whoever is on a AA gun is soooooooo fucking dead when I get my hands on them!
The front thrusters of the SOIEV activated just a few hundred meters from crashing into the ground but we still crashed into the ground in a thunderous roar, followed by our pods explosive bolts blasting away our doors with the staccato of the ODST's age old adage of gunfire, and cries from our enemies scattering in fear at our sudden arrival.
Once my door flung open I jumped out going full auto with the BR55 SD, a suppressed battle rifle with a flashlight and a green laser in both IR and to the naked eye.
First target I see is a Crimson Elite stumbling to its feet after getting smacked by my door. I didn't wait for the bastard to get up and recharge his personal shields, so I let off a good burst of 9.5x40mm HPSAP into the hinge face's head, showering me in some of its purplish blood and grey matter.
Turning my attention to my left I spotted a grunt shouldering- well raising his needler to aim at me, but the coward fled upon seeing the sight of me covered in blood and bits of its superior.
Its cry of fear was infectious, as more cries of panic and fear spread among the Grunts in its vicinity, allowing for me to go on a killing spree. Honestly it was fun watching them scramble away from us, fearful, and powerless.
I emptied out a magazine before slapping in a new one searching for more targets to kill, and just as I spotted a AA shade turret being manned by a Grunt, I shouldered my rifle ready to kill the piece of shit.
That is until something charged into me, grabbing my throat.
"Hycck" I cried out before mag dumping into the invisible fucker in front of me and oh boy am I fucked… I saw its shield flare up, ridding it of its active camo.
Staring into my visor, a maroon colored mother fucker appeared with his energy sword activated in its right hand "Assassin" it growled with contempt, ignoring the battle raging around us.
"You dare to desecrate this ring with your presence!? No less to attempt to harm the Prophet?!" The maroon fucker then raised me off from the ground throwing me into a stone pillar.
Agh that fucking hurt, but no time to revel in pain! I pulled my M6 SOCOM blasting the fucker while he menacingly approached me spewing more of his zealotry bullshit "Your kind will soon be cleansed from existence! Your attempt to stop his holy work shall be undone!"
Click Click
God damn it I hate shields! The fucker then waltzed on over without a care in the world! Before again grabbing me by the throat, and lifting me up to meet its ugly face, forcing me to drop the empty pistol with an audible clatter against the stone floor.
It readied its energy sword, ready to plunge it into me so I immediately said the first thing that came to mind.
"Y-You got a thing f-for choking peop- people!?" I mockingly rasped outward, with a pained chuckle.
The growl from the bastard was just the cherry on top, because he paused in disgust, probably understanding what I was insinuating, offended by the question, or whatever!
His pause of disgust was enough time for what was coming to him.
In just a few seconds, I was released from its grip, landing on my ass while rasping for air.
"GRAAAH!" It cried out in pain only then to be cut off by a knife going through its cranium with a noticeable high pitch clink, before being pulled backward toward the stone floor.
While I was coughing and trying to regain my breath I looked up to see the Chief flicking his knife to rid it of the Zealot's blood "T-Thanks" I uttered while coughing in between.
"Juke, were you asking if it had a kink for choking?" Cortana asked with a very amused yet questioning tone.
As I got to my feet another ODST came on over, handing me my rifle "Yeah Juke, what she said"
"Kind of weird for someone's last words" Another ODST, Capri, popped in as he kicked the dead Zealot.
"Bastard would have shish-kabobed me if I didn't pop the question" I answered all of them with a wide smile beneath my helmet, seeing how dumb it sounded.
There was a good amount of chuckles and laughter before Cortana spoke again on the comms, signaling for Johnson and his birds to come on in with reinforcements.
During this I scooped up my empty M6 Socom, loading a new magazine into its mag weld.
Thankfully our attack was swift and effective, while Chief looked over the Zealot for anything useful Cortana managed to scrounge up some info that the dead bastard was just about to call in for support.
That is until my pod crashed down next to him, yay me.
"What's our window?" Chief asked aloud.
"Can't say, but from how far the next outpost is along with the explosives you and everyone so generously distributed. They'll be sending in a scout party soon to check out what happened here, but we'll take them by surprise by the time our cavalry arrives" Cortana said confidently.
As if on queue the Pelicans came in just 10 minutes later carrying a Scorpion, a transport Hog, and two standard gatling gun mounted Warthogs, alongside a good sized platoon of Marines to accompany us as we make our way toward the Prophet of Regret.
I marched on over to the Scorpion following Chief, ready to gun the machine gun turret but found that someone else was already on it.
"Dibs!" Chip cried out upon spotting me.
I simply sighed as I went on over to the Scorpion hull, climbing up the hull to seat myself beside the main turret while Chief climbed into the drivers hatch and other ODST's and Marines clambered on for transport.
"Alright, saddle up, we're moving out!" A Marine Lieutenant said as he climbed into the front seat of the transport hog followed by his detachment of troops into his transport Hog.
The Chief led the way, with him being in the Scorpion tank, you knew he'd make short work of any and all hostiles in the way. I, Chips, and Cortana should know, since we witnessed first hand the carnage that Chief created on the first Halo when we launched an assault on the control room.
It'd make anyone cry in joy at the insane amount of explosions and dead covies that were left in Chief's wake.
I know I was.
"Whooooa… It's like a postcard…" I heard Chip mutter through the comm channel.
"Dear Sarge, kicking ass in outer space -Wish you were here!" Oh man he's gonna get it now, I looked over to the closest ODST finding it to be PFC Capri, both of us knew what would come next.
[I HEARD THAT, JACKASS] Johnson's voice boomed through the comm channel sending fits of laughter and wooping from ODST and Marines alike.
[Alright quiet down, Covenant checkpoint inbound!] Cortana relayed with mirth in her voice, and we answered with a bunch of charging handles ramming home in a wonderful cacophony of enthusiasm.
"Oh shit they got tanks!" Capri said, turning to me as I looked ahead of us.
"We got the Chief, we'll-" I stopped mid sentence as my eyes fell upon him, his once pristine polarized visor was gone and in its place a shattered visor with a disgusting green mass of flesh.
Instinctively I brought my rifle up firing a burst into what was once Capri's face, and stood up to kick his body off the tank, only then to find myself surrounded by twisted and misshapen Marine and ODST uniformed bodies.
"Oh god!" I cried out firing uncontrollably at the nearest misshapen form, bashing and shooting my rifle as their corrupted forms approached me.
""Join with us. You shall not be alone, if you simply join your voice with I""
The deep rumbling voice echoed in my mind and around me as I inserted a new magazine into my rifle.
I knew what was inviting me, and I knew it would be a fate worse than death.
I was not going to become one of them, and I sure as hell am not gonna let them get their hands on my CNI. I saw the Chief's after action report, I saw what happened to Captain Keyes, his struggle, and his warnings.
These things want everything and I for one am not going to let them!
Just before I was going to be overwhelmed, I pulled a plasma grenade out of nowhere and stuck it onto the back of my head. Knowing just how much of a death sentence it was to be stuck by one, but it didn't matter when compared to becoming one of them!
As the whining of the plasma grenade reached a crescendo before its detonation.
My eyes shot open, and with them opening my body leapt into action, seizing my assault rifle and aiming it at whatever my mind would recognize as a target.
Left, right, ceiling, and floor I made sure my immediate surroundings didn't contain any hostiles.
It didn't take long until my adrenaline rush dissipated, after it was gone I pulled up my internal clock on the HUD, finding that I only slept for 4 hours.
It's going to be a pain trying to go back to sleep right after waking up, I know I'll be tired later on, but a power nap here and there would be enough to keep me going, but with how close I am to Robot village it shouldn't be a problem.
All I gotta do now is cross the open field, then travel through a dense forest until reaching Robot village.
Sounds simple enough right? Well, when you factor in 3 days of straight stormy weather with hard rain showers that all but just now seemed to be clearing up since waking up?
Yeah no that open field is going to be muddy and a pain to traverse through.
While I prepared myself for the coming hike to Robot Village, I removed my helmet to perform the daily hygiene that is expected from an infantryman.
Dental hygiene, face wash, helmet cleaning, breakfast, and a shower, but sadly there isn't anything for me to use as a shower and even if I did, I don't have a clean set of clothes after the one I'm wearing.
Well other than my undershirt and undies but that's beside the fact.
In fact this set I'm wearing is a premium, and the only way I can get another one is if I ask ONI. That is if they even allow me to, seeing as it's treated in their special stealth coating bullshit.
After washing my face with some of my canteen water, and drying it off with one of my old hand towels, I packed up my gear again before finally slipping my helmet back on before heading over to the elevator shaft.
There I unhooked one of my frag grenades from its booby trap and stuffed it back into my grenade pouch, before making my way down the shaft.
While climbing down trying to reduce the noise of my boots pressing against the old rusted steel ladder, I thought back to the dream earlier. I've had my share of fighting the Flood and hearing that accursed voice, uttering promises of peace and finality.
After the whole, fighting through the outbreak and retrieving Cortana's message after disabling the AAA emplacement, I made a remark about those transforming masses of insect-like monstrosities and their tank forms, which the Elites coined by the way, seeing as they are experts in fighting the flood.
It went something like ;I sure don't want to meet something bigger than what we just fought through' to which the Chief told me straight that there was something indeed larger than those tank forms, I didn't believe it but after the debrief and briefing on the Shadow of Intent.
The Chief showed me a recording of his quote on quote, interaction with the… Abomination, VIA helmet recording, using my data chip as the medium.
I've seen my share of fucked up shit through the Covie War, but that… That thing was just beyond my entire experience, especially when I witnessed its capabilities first hand. On both Human and Covenant species alike on the first Halo and on the second Halo too… Put it into perspective as to why Shipmaster Rtas glassed half a continent, although outrageous to many like Admiral Hood… If not for the Shipmaster's Flood prevention measure, I don't think Earth would have survived during the search for Cortana's answer.
It saved Humanity, and the Galaxy at large, but not without sacrifices.
I stopped, thinking about my current situation along with the world shattering information given to me 3 days ago.
The UNSC is gone if not nonexistent, humanity is all but close to extinction, this planet I'm on is Earth, the only human left on Earth is me, and the 'people' I've met are nothing but Androids that are just as, if not identical to humans.
Oh and the known languages are now considered dead and ancient, because now a new language is the universal communication in this era, and I don't know jack shit about it.
AAAAAAaaand I wasn't able to gather any supplies from Anemone's base nor was I able to get a translation for this new universal language that they use, FUUUUUCK!
Heart beating in my ears as my temper flared, I recalled the words spoken to me by Anemone the Android camp leader.
"You've been asleep for 9000 years…" I said quietly, remembering the weight that came with her words.
"I should have just died on the Ark…" I muttered, before continuing my long climb down the ladder.
Still, for Humanity to flee to the moon, and only now have just a couple million for a population, it must have been hard to regrow to that number. More so to field combat troops alongside the Androids down here on Earth, you'd expect some people to go as officers or in an advisory role.
I know I would have.
After everything that has happened, the Insurrection, the Covenant, and the Flood? There's no way I'd sit back and let someone else fight my war for me, not after all the lives given to ensure our home, Humanities home, continues existing…
I guess I just found my mission objective.
Establish a base of operation, fix up the Pelican, rearm and resupply, get to the moon base, learn all I can in the past thousand years or so, find the aliens, kick their asses and make them pay dearly for those lost when they invaded.
Thought up on the spot, but sounds like a solid plan.
Finally reaching the bottom of the elevator shaft, I jumped over to the ground floor landing with a soft thud from my boots, before reaching for my MA5C-G to shoulder it in my arms for anything that may have been attracted by my arrival.
The floor was dimly lit, but it was enough to be able to look around and see that it was clear of any hostiles, though some parts of the place were pretty dark so I had to be quick and careful leaving this place.
Thankfully the entrance wasn't too far from the elevator shaft. At most 50 to 60 meters away from where I currently am, not too far but not close enough if som-.
Clang Clang
Wha? Shouldering my rifle and moving out from the elevator area to investigate the noise that came from my right. I peaked around the corner making sure to be quick and unnoticeable in my peeking, only to find that the area I was looking at was a darkened area with shadowy silhouettes.
Activating my VISR so I could see better in the dark part of this building, I found myself staring at a group of 10 robots huddled together at the corner of the ground floor.
Pulling up my rangefinder, to get an accurate distance between me and them, I clicked my tongue, seeing that they were 46 meters away, uncomfortably close. And something was strange about this bunch when compared to the average street roaming robot.
They had no round bulbous heads like the standard robots, nor did they have any arms, if my VISR was outlining correctly, but they did have short bipedal legs under them. Not the stubby ones that require them to hop, but the types that let them run like any normal person.
Yet the most noticeable thing about this group was that instead of having heads… They had a striped flat top for a head with a single orange mono eye at the center of what I assumed was their head.
Something tells me those stripes are not just for fashion.
Returning my head back to cover, I glanced at my ammo counter display in my helmet, finding it full along with a few grenades in my inventory. I could technically eliminate them here and not have to worry about them on the way out, but this rifle isn't exactly suppressed like the standard issue M7S for ODSTs.
So I had to worry about wandering robots outside as a factor in case I went loud, and I don't really know the capabilities of these robots… For all I know they could be suicide bombers… Ugh please don't be.
Guess it's gonna have to be the stealth way… Not that I mind it, just that its 50-60 meters to the entrance of the building and 46 meters away from that pack of what I suspect to be, suicide bombers.
Oh and let's not forget, I don't even know how much explosive material is packed into one of those things. Who's to say that I won't bring this building down on top of me in the process of taking them out?
I sighed, slowly and carefully, I began making my way toward the entrance glancing every so often to the robots huddling at their corner, making sure they stayed put.
It was nerve wracking to say the least, but not as bad as doing it around Brutes while carrying wounded personnel. Fucking apes, we got lucky that time due to one of the civilians having ate something that gave him bad gas, thankfully it was the silent but deadly gas.
Fucking ape got a whiff of that and turned its pack members away from our area, stating that it was a foul smell of dung from a previous pack or somethin.
Hahahaha, the best part is the civie passing gas kept passing one every so often, giving us much needed 'breathing room' so to speak.
Boy did the Marines do their best not to gag or puke, while the ODSTs, myself included, smiled like crazy behind our visors. One ODST had a haz op attachment equipped to his helmet, cracking a joke that this was why he kept his on, earning stifled laughter as we did our best to not give our position away whilst sneaking through Covie lines.
I was half way there to the entrance, but the sudden sound of metal clashing, and the occasional small explosion along with metal being rend and torn apart, forced me to snap my attention to the pack of striped head robots
Oddly enough, they ignored the sound of what I assumed was a fight occurring outside, continuing whatever it was they were doing huddled in that dark corner. That is, until something started screaming outside of the building drawing my attention to the entrance with my rifle trained at whatever was about to pop up.
"WAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
KR-BOOOOMTH!
Holy shit that was big! And close to my building! What the fuck was that a Grunt-
Whirr-clath
-Suicide-
Clang Clang
-Bomber…
Clang Clong
…Oh.
I was at a loss for words when I spared a glance over to the huddled up robots, finding 10 single eye lenses glowing. I don't know what came over me but I turned the VISR off leaving me with red eyes instead of bright orange eyes.
"Fuck…" I muttered, sending all those steady glowing red eyes to begin blinking, followed by a chorus of screaming mechanical voices.
""WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!""
Worst of all? THEY WERE MAKING A MAD DASH TOWARD ME!
These fuckers were fast! So fast that I didn't even care to aim and instead just unloaded into them as I ran toward the entrance, firing with reckless abandon with one arm.
I kept my head forward, watching as I closed the remaining distance at a rapid pace until I was just a couple of meters away from the-
Scene change.
Troublesome explosive machine, if it wasn't for that machine's detonation I would have dispatched this entire group of Medium Bipeds without receiving any significant damage.
Whatever, the damage appears to only be temporary, though for my entire left arm to be non-functioning after brief contact with that shock variant… A result of my carelessness.
Sighing, I looked over my body once again, finding that the machine's oils were splattered upon myself during the melee. Of course this was normal, yet despite it becoming a common occurrence, I still preferred to be rid of this viscous and runny substance.
If only the earlier hard rain lingered longer for me to rinse away the substances that coated my body, though the current dissipating rain helped to rid me of this dark colored substance.
Just as I gripped onto my weapon's hilt, to retrieve it from the eliminated Medium Biped leader, a sudden explosion erupted off to the side ahead of me. As my gaze was directed toward said explosion, something was propelled outward from the building with black smoke trailing behind it landing with a noticeable splash of water.
I could simply ignore this new contact, yet for it to be this close to me while I dealt with these Machines is worrying. Especially when during the few moments I could see it soaring from the explosion, I could only gleam off its form that it was wearing an all encompassing dark colored body suit.
I could only think of one faction that would issue full body suits in that very color… Yorha!
Retrieving my weapon from the dead Machine, I swiftly made my way over to where the Android landed, skipping over puddles so as to limit my presence from their local sensors.
Not that it mattered, as most Yorha units were now equipped with support Pods, though the Pod for this unit may have been destroyed in that explosion as I do not see it trying to regroup with its assigned unit.
As I ascended over the small incline, I found myself looking at a face down Android. It wore a suit of combat armor unrecognizable to any Yorha Units I've encountered, and I have encountered many during my time.
From the handgun at its side, this unit must be a G-type… Perhaps a prototype upgrade to the G-type? Most G-type's have been phased out in favor of the B-type, yet their versatility at range combat is still a reason why their line is still being produced, even if in small numbers.
If it was a prototype I should gather what intel I can about this unit, and if it is non-functioning, use whatever non-damaged components to replace some of my very own aging and worn parts.
While I disliked doing such a thing to fellow Yorha Androids, I needed those parts to continue functioning, if not for emergency replacement parts.
Storing away my weapon into my digital storage compartment, I stepped down into the grassy puddle of water. The cool pool of rainwater was a welcome feeling to alleviate the heat from my extremities, despite it being up to my knees it was a welcome feeling.
Placing my hand upon the shoulder of the prototype Android unit, I turned it over, face up to examine its outer suit and its internals.
"OOOoOoouuuuuagh" It groaned with a male voice as it landed on its backpack unit.
This unit was still functioning, at what capacity, I did not know, but if it hasn't recognized me yet then I should gather what information I can from him.
Glancing over his armor, I found it extremely different from that of Yorha… In fact I would say he had more in common with the Resistance or the Army of Humanity's forces' attempt at creating their own version of standardized equipment or specialized heavy equipment.
The additional armor plating, protection of vital component areas, multitude of pockets, what appears to be equipment modules, and the large pack that it now rested on, spoke of a different purpose when compared to Yorha's specialty designs.
This equipment seemed like it could be used by any Android to better their survival rate when facing Machine forces by themselves, as evident by this Android.
I suppose it was his lucky day.
Instead of becoming spare parts for me or being left behind in this puddle, I'll leave him close to the signal tower. Some Android is bound to pass by and retrieve him as they use the tower to scout the surroundings.
It wasn't too far away from our current location, at most a 10 minute walk while I carried him there.
Glancing back to this armored Android, I performed a quick scan to see whether or not this was a new line of Android. If they are fielding this new equipment then they must be fielding a new line, if not an upgraded previous line to improve fellow active units.
The Resistance and Army of Humanity are finally implementing improvements.
Krrrrr
Scanning countermeasures?!
This was interesting, was it his own inbuilt counter measure stopping my scan, or is it the suit he wore? If I had either of the two it would help me in staying hidden from Yorha units better, and I daresay even against the Machines.
Despite my attempt to scan his body again, nothing came up, reinforcing my thoughts as to him possessing a type of countermeasure.
Perhaps it was mounted externally upon his helmet, the rectangular box object on the right side of his head seemed like the perfect position to mount such a thing. Especially seeing that there was a short sensor module of some kind with antennas on the left side of his helmet.
The frontal part on his helmet seemed nothing of the sort involving electronic equipment, instead appearing to be just added armor for additional protection.
As I got down, straddling this Android to view his helmet modules better, his arched back head moved forward coming close to head butting me as I sat upon his waist. He had almost headbutted me, stopping short as his head hung limp staring downward at himself, groaning as he did so.
Fixing his head backwards again to view his helmet's components, I found myself staring into his gray glass-like face, seeing a heavily blurred reflection of myself.
"Am I dead?" He questioned in a slightly distorted unknown language, yet somehow I understood him, and the subsequent words I spoke following after his question.
"No, yet somehow you are still-" he cut me off with a slight chuckle, confusing me as he did, so much so that I didn't pay attention to his left hand already caressing my face.
"It'd be fine if I died right now in the arms of a beautiful lady… Not many get the chance, you know?" This is… Confusing.
The way he speaks is different from other Androids I have observed so far, possibly a unique personality setting?
"What do you mean?" I questioned him, it seems like he wasn't the only prototype unit that was fielded, even his tone and allusion to others seemed to confirm my suspicion.
Grabbing his hand that was still caressing my cheek to remove it, I noticed that he was trembling to keep that hand up.
This trembling… This awful trembling of his hand… I-
"It doesn't matter" He stated tiredly, his hand slinking out of my grasp, my eyes following it as it fell upon his lap, reminiscent of those I cherished so long ago.
This heat… This unknown force that had all but remained hidden within my very self just seemed to flare up at this sight. And this pain… This deep hollow pain that I had forgotten had returned.
"It does matter!" I stated, unknowingly with a raised voice, staring him directly into where his eyes would be, my hand grabbing his that fell just earlier, tightening to show that he still functioned.
His head simply fell backward, breaking his figurative eye contact with me. I simply watched as his body fell back against the sloped grass of the ditch we both resided in.
I gingerly reached forward in a vain attempt to pull him back to sit up, but the sound of heavy mechanical footfall in the distance stopped my hand just as I was about to grab ahold of his chest armor.
I glanced to where my hand connected with his, and gave a soft squeeze hoping to elicit a reaction… Only to be left with the fact of his passing, and so I let go of his hand and stood up.
Grooomb… Grooomb… Grooomb
Glancing to where the sound of heavy footfalls echoed, I could make out at most two or three Goliath Bipeds just from the sound of their footfalls alone. It must have been a pack of Goliaths, attracted by the explosion from earlier… Their types? Unknown, but seeing as they are traveling in numbers, it would be foolish of me to believe that they are unaccompanied by smaller Bipeds.
Despite the return of sensations to my left arm, I am in no shape to continue fighting, especially against a larger force that may have an officer unit leading them.
My decision made, I stepped out from the ditch, leaving behind the now deceased Android, remembering that I was planning to leave him by the tower.
I contemplated the decision I made earlier, but ultimately decided against lingering any longer in this area, despite my course including passing by the tower on my route, I knew that the Machines would simply ignore his corpse.
Just like the many Android corpses that were left rusting away, abandoned and bearing their battle injuries that ended their very lives. Only found by a luckily passing Android who'd all but leave them be, or recover their corpse if given time.
And for him? Whoever he is with would almost assuredly do what they can to recover him, if not just for his equipment, then for the data that he may hold.
Either way, it makes no difference, someone will find him… Eventually.
Earth… No matter how many times I view it, it's still breathtaking… Too bad there isn't anyone to share it with other than these Androids.
"Mhuum" A soft moan escaped me as I grasped the head of my secretary, forcing my dick deeper into her mouth and cumming inside.
It's not that I don't like Androids, as seen with my secretary swallowing and slobbering over my dick as I finished inside of her mouth, but it gets boring when you're mostly surrounded by 'yes people' for the past 12 or so millennia, with no new forms of entertainment.
Other than the constant wars that are started up again against the same ol enemy, turning into nothing but a simple continuation of the overarching war with the blasted aliens that the Androids call the Machine Wars.
There was also an Android war directed amongst themselves for a time, before the Aliens invaded Earth. A war between the Android Conservatives and Independents, those who still serve under humanity despite our 'extinction', continuing their duties that mankind gave them, and the Independents who want nothing to do with the duties given to them from their dying creators.
I could gather a guess that some fool gave them the order to rebel or create their own future whilst leaving humanity behind. A new start not marred by human selfishness or taint, whoever gave that order is a damn hypocrite, because it created a war that left us weak to the Aliens that invaded in the coming years.
Despite my pleas and attempts to de-escalate and try to reintegrate those 'Independist', even going so far as to show that I was a human, revealing my weak condition at that time.
They didn't listen and fervently upped their propaganda to carve their own future because humanity was dead or at the cusp of death. Using me as nothing more than the postal boy to show that I was soon to kick the bucket myself.
Oh how wrong they were, because thanks to Maso, I was able to be healed at superhuman speeds but it wasn't fast enough to stop the conflict between the two sides from going over the breakpoint.
From simple shouting, counter protest, to crowd on crowd violence, it escalated so much so that armed melee skirmishes began to appear as a norm between these two factions, overwhelming law enforcement that were sent to quell the riots.
Of course with the growing hostilities, first blood would be drawn and by none other than the Independents, sparking the war to come between Androids, turning from a civil problem into an armed militaristic confrontation between two sides.
It would be a long and bloody conflict that left both sides weakened, but not so much as to stop their fighting, that is until the Independents consolidated their forces to Australia. Pulling back all their forces from the main disputed areas, finally de-escalating the war but leaving both sides in a perpetual cold war where both sides continued harboring ill feelings towards one another.
I didn't care about the outcome of the war at the time, and instead did my best to help rebuild the Android population and keep those surviving humans of the Gestalt program alive.
Keeping humanity alive… But no, as if the universe wanted to stomp us out from existence Aliens invaded. Destroying and attacking without provocation, killing the last few replicant humans that still lived, leaving only a scant few left.
Myself being one of the lucky few who managed to do so.
"Thank you, Carisa" I said toward the auburn haired Android, as she finished cleaning me up, much to my delight as she simply smiled up at me with her face so close to my erected penis.
"Do you wish for me to continue, General?" I was just about to give her the go ahead but the sudden chiming of a video call stopped all interest, annoying.
I gave her a dismissive wave, resulting in a simple nod from her as she fixed her appearance and headed out whilst fixing her long hair back into a bun. OOOOooh and the way her body sways as she walks is such a sexy sight, let's hurry with this call.
Fixing my pants to hide away my bare crotch a familiar face appeared as I answered "Ah Judy, how goes the mission?"
She smirked, pleased with herself "We accomplished the objective, but found something far more interesting than what our intelligence reported"
Oh? Something that wasn't included in previous reconnaissance? "Explain"
As I awaited for Judy to give her explanation a line of text appeared on the left hand screen followed by a picture of a grayish-white silver like metal object laying on a table with what appeared to be two kinds of wings tucked into its body, appearing U shaped overall.
"Is this a live feed?" Judy affirmed my question as I continued to examine this significant piece of artifact, bringing me forward from my chair to view it better.
I could see small blue lines of light on its body, softly pulsating, as if it were the heartbeat of a slumbering animal… This was a great find, greater than the other artifacts that Judy has recovered before, this is her biggest haul yet.
"Has there been any reaction from outside stimuli or accompanying artifacts? No, No, it's too soon to try experimenting with this new artifact… Anything else that intelligence missed?"
"Yes sir, alongside this artifact" Judy pointed to the back of her with her thumb "We had to fight through at most a company or two to acquire this artifact, and that's not including their air support or reinforcements. My guess is, is that this is also a big discovery for them, as it is to us"
Yes, it is a discovery, a major one at that. As most of the time the only artifacts we were able to get a hold of in working order were miniature small items like a baseball, or something big as a living room lamp.
But this? Oh this may help in understanding our inventory of artifacts to a better degree, and I daresay even allow us to use some of them.
"Judy" I said, almost humming her name, grateful for this wonderful acquisition.
"Sir" She replied readily, a wonderful Android soldier she is, so dedicated to her duty and willing to take my order without question, a stern and professional looking Android Officer of her Artifact apprehension task force… I wonder how she'll react to my advances.
"Are there any prisoners?" I asked knowing that she most likely had a few for information gathering.
She nodded, only for me to grin in delight "Get rid of them, we have no need for traitors. Enact masking protocols"
Judy simply saluted, grinning sadistically at my order, ha ha hah, what was the saying? Never stick your dick in crazy? Hmph, who could resist the allure of such a lively woman? Even if she is an Android, they are nothing but just that, a Machine built to mimic humans, and oh how they perfected it oh so well.
Closing the call, I pressed a button on my desk, calling forth Carisa who dutifully entered through the double doors "Let us continue where we left off"
I stared out toward the vast field of carnage, littered by both human and Covenant forces alike.
UNSC Marines, Army, Navy, and Planetary defense force bodies littered the numerous battlements that were once manned by the living.
Spent shell casings, discarded magazines, weapons, used medical supplies, burned and broken helmets and cracked visor helms accompanied the dead, but they were not alone.
Covenant troops, from Elites, Grunts, Jackals, Hunters, and Buggers laid dead in the tens of thousands alongside their vehicles and hastily erected structures, most laying side by side with deceased humans at their side or upon them, knife in hand or anything that would be considered a weapon.
The familiar blue flames of destroyed Covenant vehicles were many and varied in volume, but the blue flames were beautiful to look at, it was mesmerizing, and very fulfilling to view. We routed 3-4 whole Covenant Divisions, wiping the floor with the bastards despite how drained and few in number we were.
At most we numbered barely 10,000 men and women, both injured and uninjured. So it was a significant morale boost when we heard a Spartan team had arrived at our humble last stand, more so not just 1 Spartan team but 2!
Cough Cough, hhhhhhhuh-huh-huuh
I tell ya… The faces of everyone when they laid eyes upon a Spartan for the first time, lit up their hopeless demeanors, in fact I'd go so far to say that they're very presence gave us the push to fight to the bitter end.
Not that we weren't planning to in the first place, but with Spartans on the field, side by side with us? It felt like a religious fervor spread amongst everyone, comparable if not greater than the fucking covies.
Because, if a Spartan is willing to fight a hopeless last stand with us, instead of fleeing on the last boat to fight another day. Who else wouldn't feel honor bound to die fighting side by side with the legendary Spartans?
COUGH COUGH
I spat out the glob of blood and spit mixture off to the side, numbed to the pain of having a hole straight through my body from a Needler rifle shard. Although sealed with what little biofoam I could scrounge from around the area and my own personal aid kit, there were a few small gaps in the foam, so it wasn't a full seal on my injury.
This cough and ragged breathing is a symptom of that problem, not that I mind as I sat there Leaning back against the sandbag wall. Gazing up toward the dusty brown sky with my sniper rifle resting upon my lap.
The skies were once so clear and blue, but now? Nothing but a muddied sky of brown and yellowish-red of the days fading light… Because after today Reach would forever be lost to the Covenant, becoming another casualty in this unforgiving war.
I looked back down to my lap, eyeing the improvised bag of thick red cloth with golden embroidery filled with numerous metal plates inscribed with the names of the fallen… My right hand let go of the bag atop of my lap to clasp the handle of my rifle, as I heard a trio of heavy footsteps calmly approaching my position with disregard to hide their presence.
I didn't have the strength to shoulder the gun, but I did my best to at least get it set up to fire a round or two off as I sat there feigning my helplessness with my heavy breathing.
My unit is dead, and this position is all but overrun, the last of those able to fight or retreat either died as a rear guard action, or are currently fighting with the rest of the survivors where the distant gunfire and explosions continued on.
As the footsteps all but stopped in front of me, I brought my gaze down from the muddy skies to glance at my executioners. Standing there were but three hinge heads, two Minors and a Major, all armed with plasma rifles, staring me down with disdain in their amber eyes.
Cough Cough Cough Cough
I spat out the bloody substance from my mouth, earning an observative remark about me.
"Another one yet lives" The Minor standing to the left of the Major spoke with a deep base like voice quietly with disgust, clearly directed toward me.
"An Assassin brother… Look at its weapon, one that fights from cover and wishes nothing more than to avoid an honorable death!" The other Minor on the right side of the Major, growled disdainfully, placing its plasma rifle on its thigh before drawing a metallic knife from behind its waist "Many of my brothers have died to assassins such as this one. Honor demands my blade be quenched by its blood for recompense!"
That didn't sound good, but at the same time I simply smirked at how it said it lost so many to marksmen and snipers. This only served to piss it off, and I welcomed it, yeah fuck you too you slack jawed ugly split faced fucktard!
The blade it wielded shot to life with a thin veil of plasma coating its edges, the thing looked to be a hybrid of an energy sword and a standard combat knife of its species… Honestly looks like a cheap energy sword you'd get at a MakeAWish foundation, because this is a first I've seen a blade like that.
"And you shall Mro'ka, but be quick with it. There may be more humans to exterminate here" The Elite Major said as it passed in front of its knife wielding Minor, walking off toward the other human corpses to check if anyone was alive.
With both of the Minors attention focusing upon their Major and bowing their heads, I took this moment to whip my rifle up from the ground and fire two rounds in rapid succession toward the Major, my first shot struck the side of its head shattering its shield stunning the fucker as it threw him to the side, where the second shot I fired struck its back torso. Right where the spine would be for the alien bastard, puncturing its combat armor and exiting its body in a glorious mess of blood and small chunks of meat and bone.
My sudden attack took them off guard, giving me hope that I would be able to pull off the impossible, but found the knife wielding Elite to have recovered from my ambush. So quick that it closed the distance between us and grabbed my rifle, pulling it from my grip and tossing it to the side before its left hand seized me by the throat, lifting me up to meet its fiery gaze.
It growled with hostility and I in turn coughed, only then to spit out congealing blood, spit, and snot into its face defiantly. This sent it into a rage, roaring as it plunged its energy knife into my torso.
"UUUAAAGH!" I cried out in pain as I felt my insides burn from the plasma, and the unbearable feeling of both my lungs and intestines burning up with a constant sharp pain ringing throughout my body, but then I felt pain upon the back of my head, though dull when compared to what I experienced earlier.
Naturally I sucked in a breath of air, tasting nothing but iron and the smell of burning metal, but that breath of air was expelled soon after by my wet coughing.
I could tell blood was entering my lungs, though slowly due to the cauterizing effect of the plasma blade, and with it I could feel a warm yet cold sensation upon my back, where my previous injury from a needle rifle's shard exited from.
What blood was still in my body was starting to ooze out from the exit hole, and the biofoam, if there was any that managed to reach that far, wasn't enough to stop it. Not that it mattered after getting a plasma blade rammed into your torso.
I tried to turn my body on its side to better breath but the only thing that moved was my neck and head. Leaving me to gaze upon the now unwinded improvised red bag, fashioned from the flag of the 105th… Numerous dog tags scattered around and out of the bag…
With gritted teeth, my breathing became even more ragged, and my hearing began to dull, so much so that I could just barely make out the sound of the distant gunfire… Gunfire?
As if answering me, the gunfire disappeared, leaving me with the distant wind blowing into my ear carrying a calming silence.
My vision began to blur, but using what strength I had left, I willed my right arm to move, to reach out for the scattered dog tags and unwound flag.
I had to… No… I. HAVE. TO. GET. THEM… I had to… I… Hrrrrrg… I… cough cough... Have to…
Approaching the two now dead Elites, an armored individual fired a round each into the heads of the blue Elite Minor's with his DMR before quickly making his way over to the survivor.
"Trooper! Are you alright?!" He asked through his modulated voice as he knelt to the side of the helmet less ODST.
The ODST, pale faced, and covered in light abrasions across his face, only exhaled his breath in reply to the armored individual before going still. Seeing that the trooper had obviously passed, the armored individual followed his gaze, finding a cluster of dog tags scattered by an unwound flag of red and gold.
He recognized this flag, it was the flag of the ODST 105th Shock troops Division… 7th Battalion to be exact, as he saw the 7th lettering peeking from the improvised bag. He then glanced at the deceased trooper, his arm outstretched in an attempt to grasp the scattered items, understanding the last wishes of the trooper's final moments.
The distant gunfire and explosions though gave him pause, there were still others fighting, and he very much wished to regroup with them. The only reason why he had stopped in his journey toward the distant battle was due to the two shots fired close to his vicinity, by this ODST.
He had arrived just as the Elite threw him to the ground, and in that moment he fired his own sniper rifle at the two, killing the Elite Minor wielding its plasma rifle first and foremost before putting a round into the head of the knife wielding Minor ending the two before they knew what hit them.
The Armored individual went over to the unwounded flag, picking it up carefully so as to keep the rest of the dog tags from spilling out. After a quick examination of the unfurling improvised bag, he fixed it back into its improvised bag form, before picking up the scattered dog tags.
He was neither slow nor fast, and finished the clean up before making his way over towards the deceased ODST.
He fixed the ODST's head to face upward toward the muddy sky, closing his brown glassy eyes and placing the bag on top of his chest before placing both of the deceased arms upon his chest, grasping the bag of dog tags.
No words were given and instead of leaving right then and there. He searched through the pockets of the deceased ODST, pulling 3 full magazines of 14.5x114mm HVAP from the chest rig, along with a half magazine for an M6G Magnum.
Once he finished scavenging what ammunition he deemed useful, he glanced over to the discarded SRS99-AM sniper rifle that the ODST most likely used to kill the Elite Major.
Leaving the deceased ODST behind he made his way toward the rifle, hefting it up by its barrel before grasping its stock handle and pulling the magazine from its place. Two rounds were still left within the magazine, seeing this, he stowed away this half filled magazine, replacing it with a full magazine that was freshly looted from the ODST.
His HUD immediately sent him the information of having 17 rounds total in his inventory, but more specifically that he had 5 rounds at the ready instead of the standard 4 of the magazine.
Despite originally having a sniper rifle himself, he had ditched it to better increase his mobility as he made his way to the ODST, in a rush to ensure that the trooper was okay. Sadly he was too late, but with the ODST's death, he now had a sniper rifle again with a good amount of ammo for it.
As thanks and to honor the fallen ODST, he would use this rifle to its fullest capability.
AU Note: Hello there, I have brought to you another chapter! A2 has appeared and the mysterious human on the Moon has gotten a bit more insight to his origin/ character and will be built more with the future chapters. Alas Juke just can't seem to catch a break in this chapter, but he has a new objective. One that I honestly can't wait to write along with the future chapters involving the other characters along his journey.
Also I'm glad you guys are enjoying this story, seeing comments pertaining to new chapters is really nice to see. So don't feel nervous about commenting on the story!
To finish on a good note I'll answer a few questions
Chief? Yes
Gobbly-gook language? Just mixed up normal words, congrats on understanding xD
Fingers crossed for chapter 4? Here ya go
Why did Juke not correct himself as human? Shock of the situation and reality, besides where's the fun in him being an ODST if he's just gonna reveal it right then and there? Besides no one asked.
Also I will start to label my chapter dates of uploads, fanfic doesn't have it for each chapter sadly only for the most recent so gonna add that