Summary/disclaimer: Time for another Chapter of Honorable Split. Enjoy the 3600-word chapter. I do not own Halo and such, 343, and a few others do.
Tul watched the step of Sangheili as she paused to watch him. She looked at him as he stood entirely up before she looked to the side.
The Sangheili held a Danzhau-Pattern harness. Something that most of Jul's followers would. He was also taller than her by 3 or 4 feet.
He was young and she could tell, why? Because he was still shorter than a full-grown Sangheili and he did not carry himself with the weight of a warrior who had led for years.
"Scion." They stated, clasping their hand to his chest in greeting.
"Shipmaster," Tul said, doing the same.
"Thare." He stated. "I have heard of your exploits… I have also heard you are one of the few women among the Swords of Sanghelios" Thare stated.
Tul set her jaw for the trademark blows of their people… Instead, Thare snorted.
"Why have you come?" Tul asked.
"Curiosity… And respect." Thare stated with a gesture away. "If you believe I find offense in your gender? I do not… We need every warrior if we are to stand against the AI…. I am curious about your skill; you fought a Prophet? A San 'Shyuum Prelate?" Thare stated.
"I have… He was dangerous, San 'Shyuum or not." Tul responded, snapping her mandibles at the word.
"As Prelates are…. I have noticed your looks; you know I am… Not of command age normally." Thare added.
The Sangheili Shipmaster let his chest fall, letting out an exhale… A sigh, one Tul had made often.
"I do not judge, I am…" Tul said as Thare finished.
"Curious…" Tul heard as she nodded. "I would explain… But it seems we must save such an exchange of tales for later." Thare stated.
He sighed and then thought of himself before he looked to the side, something which he had to deal with for now at the time being as he looked to the side.
Thare sighed to himself before he looked around them. He had not been able to think of it all, crossing his arms and then looking upwards and into the sky.
He knew more and more that both were able to think of it all when it was all said and done. He sighed, rubbing his temples before he looked onward toward the Scion.
Both were able to relax, and both thought of this option as…. Odd, very odd when it was all over.
Thare seemed to smile as Rtas and Arbiter approached, Thare looked over to himself before he thought of it all when he crashed to the side and then thought of it all when he relaxed before he hummed more as he managed it to fix itself.
Tul seemed to relax as she looked over at her friend before she thought of her next move, she did not even know it now, only that it was odd.
Tul was quiet as Thare hummed, rubbing at his mandibles before he turned to Arbiter and bowed to the Sangheili leader.
"I and the crew of Harbinger stand ready for your command, Arbiter…. As all Sangheili do." Thare stated.
He knew that acting any different from this would earn most soldiers a headshot. Arbiter was not arrogant but he did believe very much in trying to solve issues with combat and force.
Granted, the Banished and Covenant demanded it be forced… They held such armies that trying to placate them was a foolish notion that gave them death.
"The Banished know we come… Thare? I need you to be willing to play a part in the plan." Arbiter stated to himself and then thought of himself
He had been too placated at the time being. Thel heard the Sangheili clack his mandibles, curious more than offended.
"I believed the plan was to destroy the Banished fleet over the site and then move in to capture the rest of the site…" Thare stated as he sighed.
Arbiter hummed to himself and then sighed… All of it was going through it all… He had been too thoroughly conflicted… All of it was odder and odder now, something about it all was too much for now.
He had been too relaxed for now. An idea was growing in the depths of his mind before he thought of it all for now.
Tul hummed as both Thare and Rtas looked at each other. She was not able to predict it all, not now when they had to answer it.
She and he were differently predictable when it was all said and done… Both had been tossed a different part of the solution at the time being.
She had been thrown to the wayside as he and she thought of the next move.
"We have things to do, don't we?" Thare asked to which Arbiter hummed. "There is a change of plans… Ones you may not enjoy." Thare heard as he sighed.
Thare turned away with annoyance. Part of him thought of it as something else to deal with, another trial as a warrior of the Arbiter, he had not been able to relax… And he believed it was all coming to a head sooner or later.
Thare was too interested in it all now… They had a lot more to try and figure out as he cracked his fingers.
If there was a solution to their problems, it would be found sooner or later…. And it would be enjoyable now when all of it was said and done.
He was not eager to understand now, not once did he see it differently. They had too much had been through the idea at the time being, she had been too interested in it all for now.
Thare hummed and relaxed now and for good reason, all of it was growing more and more tiresome at the end of the day.
Thare looked over at Jul, questioning what was happening at Tul as she smirked. Thare hummed, crossing his arms before he looked downwards to the ground before he clicked his fingers.
She had not been able to think of it all, something which had been able to try and figure it out as he wished to be relaxed.
Thare relaxed, something about it all made the shipmaster all too interested in the next move that had been too interested in it all before now, an idea seemed to be relaxed for now.
They turned and walked away as Thare hummed, his semi-emotional voice as she thought of it all.
"Are you ok?" Thare asked her as she looked to the side.
Tul nodded before Thare hopped from one foot to another, clearly too energetic as he thought of it all… Thought of every single option on his mind, smiling before he looked to the side.
"We should return to the hanger bay; the rest of the commanders need to discuss tactics… It seems I must prepare the crew of Harbinger." Thare stated as Tul hummed.
"Do you not intend to stay and speak with the Arbiter?" Tul asked, tilting her head to the side.
"I do… But Shipmaster Vadam outranks me in experience and commands a carrier… I command a battlecruiser, the differences in importance vary, Scion." Thare stated as Tul nodded. "In addition? I also need to give orders to my crew based on Arbiter's instructions…. Something about it all is odd." Thare stated before he clicked his fingers.
Tul turned, rested her weapon across the small of her back, and started to direct Thare as the two Sangheili started to walk towards the hanger. Thare followed, the rest of his officers behind him.
"Have you fought warriors in live-action combat?" Thare asked himself before clarifying. "That is not an insult… The Banished are deadly and far more cunning than the Covenant, they lack the dogma of the Prophets…" Thare added as they walked, his footsteps carrying little weight.
Thare hummed before Tul nodded, shaking her head, and setting her jaw.
"I have… Not as much as the rest of the Sword's warriors, a fact I have attempted to rectify through training." Tul responded, her gaze looking at the ground beneath her.
"Understandable," Thare said, his voice seeming to trail off. "Hopefully the combat will be limited to space… The reports from scouts stated most of the Banished fleet was in orbit, very little of it is on the planet itself." Thare stated as he sighed.
He did not sound at all bothered over the battle, no… He sounded more worried over the IDEA that the battle would spiral out of their control. All of it sounded more like business as usual for such a thing… Which made sense to her given Sangheili combat skill.
He had been able to hold his own in combat which meant victory was semi-confident in skill now.
Thare hummed to himself before he looked to the side, something about it all came crashing at the time being. Thare crossed his arms, his sword shifting from his hip as he looked over to the side, something which had been too interesting as of the time being.
Tul seemed to be looking over at him as the two walked, both shared a glance as Thare cleared his lungs in a cough.
"You have fought well from what I heard, I've seen plenty of warriors," Thare stated before he crossed his arms. He looked downwards with anger.
"We will need every single warrior that we have now," Thare stated to himself before he smirked.
Tul nodded before she looked ahead, something that had been okay for now as she clicked her mandibles together before she looked ahead, something which had been too fascinating for now.
Tul and Thare stepped closer to the hanger as she looked at him, curious.
"You command a Ket-Pattern Battlecruiser?" Tul asked before Thare shrugged.
"No, an older model… Why? Harbinger is one of the few battlecruisers the Swords have." Tul stated before he crossed his arms.
"Why?" Tul asked to which Thare shrugged.
"The Covenant is shattered, they have lost their options," Thare said as he frowned. "The rest of their options are to either look for pits to try and construct warships or to steal those who exist as I have," Thare stated, crossing his fingers.
Tul was silent, realizing that she had been too interested in it all. She was all too interested in the exploits that had been employed by the Swords, she knew stories of them all fighting the Covenant and winning, fighting Jul's army, and winning, and fighting the Banished and winning.
It was clear to her that Thare had not been honestly whining, his problems with the situation were also well and truly done.
Thare turned to her as a type-57 Phantom entered the hanger, swinging around towards them as Thare turned to her.
"Would you like me to return you to Shadow?" Thare asked before crossing his arms before he looked to the side.
She hummed to herself. She was curious as she looked to the side, she did not know how to react. Something about it all was corrupting it for now, something about it all became harder and harder to grasp.
Yet? She was quiet, she knew better than to try, something about it all became harder and harder to deal with now.
Something about it all became harder to understand now and for good reason. She had been too interested in it all, she had been too interested in it all before now as she looked to the side.
Something about it all became harder and harder at the time, something that had come to the end of it now and for good reason. Tul had not been eager to think of it all now, something about it all became harder and harder to deny now at the end of it all.
She was too interested in it all before now, she had too much to try and deal with it all for now as he paused to think of it all.
Tul hummed to herself as both looked over to the side, something which had amused him to no end, something about it all was harder and harder to comprehend for now.
She had no desire to think of it all before all when it came down to it. She had plenty of problems when it was all said and done as she looked to the side.
Tul hummed to the side, she was a curious warrior as she thought of it now before she looked to the side, something that could and would be harder.
She had no desire to try and figure it out, she had something that could that needed to be done and dusted.
She was so interested in tactics she did not at all know what the plan was.
Granted? Neither Thare nor her knew what the true plan was. The Banished had Atriox and they had the Arbiter, their goals were very different but both held power behind them and the means to control their goals and destinies.
Still? Thare planned to fight for now, he held onto the fate of his crew and planned to keep fighting, all of them were loyal to Arbiter.
"I have a feeling this battle coming up will be harder, however… Atriox knows we are coming, he knows what we desire… One of his most skilled officers is supposed to be commanding the fleet." Thare said with a frown.
Not a lie, he knew one of the legion masters oversaw their prize… The fleet they would be assaulting was under his command, it would remain so until his forces were beaten and the rest of the planet torn from his control.
"Do you have any names from the list of warriors?" Tul asked, her head tilted sideways.
"Orna 'Fulsamee commands their space force…. With Inka 'Saham, Thav 'Sebarium, and Orko 'Vagadunn commanding the ground forces… From what I have heard of our scouts? Atriox has left Ballas as the leader." Thare stated, his voice a hushed and angered whisper.
Thare almost spat in anger… The 4 were Sangheili, warriors who had betrayed their people, and formed with the species who had created the schism. They were criminals and traitors to their people, criminals beyond reproach and something she would have no issue killing.
Thare noticed her anger, noticed that she was ready to snap… And he laid a hand on her side, something had been harder and harder to contain.
It was clear to him that he had not once had they been able to think of it all the way that it had been done now and for a good reason.
She looked to the side, eager to get to the work they had left to do now and forever. It would not have been enough for them now.
It had always hit him harder and harder at the end of the day… Something about that all had made him shocked, very shocked at the end of it now, and for a reason.
Thare clasped his hands as he thought of each moment he had left on his mind, a chaos which he knew well would not be stopped so easily… Something about his entire demeanor was annoying him.
He knew very damn well most of the Sangheili have become problems, most were uniting under warlords but it was clear even if he had to fight the galaxy? He would not, why? Because he did not have the means… But the arbiter did and he would not betray his master.
He boarded the Phantom and looked over at Tul as he hummed, curious as to his next move.
The Scion was silent a moment, then boarded it as the craft exited and he found himself relaxing.
All of him was tired, very tired now… He had been too tired and too unable to think, something about it all had been horrible for words, something not even he could stop.
Thare glanced out into space… Content for something to end this horrid display.
"Shipmaster? We are almost prepared… The Harbinger will still take some time to program but we will be ready." Thare heard as he hummed and then looked to the side.
Something about the fact the battlecruiser was not prepared for combat bothered him. Why? Because he knew Arbiter needed every single warship they could get.
He was too interested in it all for now, too interested in the war to come… Rtas was here now and it was clear this war would be something of a major move with the Swords of Sanghelios… Something that had or would have astounded him if he had known better.
He knew they were to fight soon and he knew Atriox was not a stupid general, he was as smart as Arbiter and he was just as cunning when it came to fighting dirty.
That left very few things as problems, very few ideas had been off the table.
"Do you believe the battle ahead will be hard?" Tul asked to which Thare nodded.
"Yes, the Banished know what is going on sooner or later… They will strike sooner or later." Thare stated before he sighed to himself as he looked downwards. "They will not be so easy to fool. I expect a full fleet to greet us there… The dreadnoughts I heard they employ are a match for even the Shadow… This battle will come down to strategy, not firepower." Thare added, humming.
The fleet bothered him, they were fielding a modest number of warships, and from what he had heard? Atriox had a supercarrier, not something he believed they could handle solo.
He sighed to himself, more than a little exhausted at the end of it all, a design that not even he could stop, not that he had the means to do so.
It all had to end sooner or later, all of it was going to be harder at the end of it all now.
Something which had to be ended now, and for good at the time being, an idea which needed to be done at the time.
They had a lot more to try and figure out now… It was something he could not end at the time.
(With Arbiter)
Arbiter hummed to himself before he looked to try and look over at Rtas.
"The fleet of Retribution is something I wish for you to command," Arbiter stated as he frowned.
"I am not the leader you think I am… You created the Swords of Sanghelios, not me." Rtas stated as he frowned, looking to the side.
He sighed to himself before the Arbiter looked at him, too interested in it all for now. Arbiter chuckled before he looked to the side.
Both were officers and yet Arbiter was the one with power, he had something of an amusing little chaotic little thing. All of it seemed tiresome now, all too much had been lost in the pain.
Arbiter hummed and crossed his arms, his armor clanking on his body before he looked downwards, curious for a moment as he turned.
"I am the leader; you are the general of the army as the humans say…. I have led us; I cannot fight every battle at the head of every army." Arbiter stated, turning towards them. "The AI, her army is vast… And the warlords who serve the Covenant are not yet deposed." Arbiter stated.
"You expect the trip to end with a full-blown war," Rtas stated before he looked to the side, something about it all bothered him.
"I expect more death… Atriox knows we are coming, I allowed information on the relic to also reach the ear of Sali 'Nyon." Arbiter stated as he hummed. "I expect a war above the planet…. While we deploy smaller teams to reach the relic and retrieve it… Seeker of Truth and Shadow of Intent will be needed to fight off the head of their fleets." Arbiter added, humming.
"You asked Thare to retrieve it…" Rtas stated, crossing his arms.
"I need a warship small and fast… Harbinger can capture it and escape while we flee towards the planet's northern pole." Arbiter responded, humming as he did so.
"You expect Atriox to come directly after you," Rtas stated as Arbiter hummed.
"I expect Atriox to attempt it… His lieutenants are too arrogant to believe they cannot win… They will be hard to pin down, not impossible." Arbiter added in response to this.
He was all too interested in it all before he looked to the side, something about it all came crashing down at the time being… He thought of it all before she looked downwards at the ground.
He thought of it all before he looked to the side and then cracked his fingers and then relaxed once more as he paused to himself at the end of the day that he had nothing nice to say about it all now, something which had been harder and harder to deal with.
Something within his own words had made himself worthy of it. They held a LOT more plans to think about now, something which was harder and harder to think.
Arbiter was not stupid, Atriox was a smart commander… And he knew Thel was no fool, he would not allow Atriox to win, not once did he have to relax for now and for a good reason.
He had been too interested in it all before he thought of it all now… Something about Tul had been too interesting as of now.
He hummed to himself before he looked to the side.
Author Notes
Phew. Another chapter is done! The next chapter will be in 2-10 months and will be in 900-6500 words, it will also show more of both the invasion to find the relic and the war between both the Swords of Sanghelios and Banished. Until then, Lighting Wolf is out!