Sorry for the long update time guys. Life kind of got in the way. Long story short, I had some mental health stuff going on, and that combined with school and a job contributed to me not doing anything with this story. I'm doing much better now, both mentally and in school, so I figured I'd return to this story. Looking back at my first two chapters, they're pretty crappy. I decided to rewrite them. Returning readers should go back, reread them, then come back here. If you're a new reader, then continue enjoying the story.
Disclaimer: I do not own Halo or Mass Effect. All original characters belong to 343 or EA.
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To say this day was interesting would be an understatement. What had started as an ordinary rescue mission for Patrol Group 9 had turned into something far stranger. Captain Fairbanks was currently in her cabin, writing a report on everything that had occurred.
First was the strange distress signal. From there it had only gotten weirder. A ship matching no known designs, without any traces of Element Zero, cut in half(?) by a mystery energy weapon.
Lieutenant Kaur had reported finding an armored green giant standing at seven feet tall, who had apparently never heard of the Systems Alliance, using a rank from the United States Navy back on earth, serving an organization that no one had ever heard of. Master Chief Petty Officer SPARTAN-117 had asked Lieutenant Kaur what the year was. After getting an answer, he had requested permission to come aboard. The Lieutenant had agreed to bring him onboard, as long as the stranger handed over his weapons. He was currently sitting in the Peleliu's holding cell. The Master Chief had caused a bit of a stir when he attempted to sit in the chair they had provided, only for it to collapse under his weight. Lieutenant Kaur proceeded to ask him how much he weighed, only for the Master Chief to say that he and his armor weighed one-thousand pounds. The solution was bringing up a crate from the hangar bay for him to sit on, and so far there had been no problems.
Gunnery Sergeant Mealer and 2nd Squad had also reported several interesting discoveries. One of these was the discovery of a cryo bay. The ship apparently used cryogenics to preserve its crew while traveling. It made sense. Without Element Zero, space travel would take anywhere from a few months to a few years depending on how fast the ship moved. Mealer had also discovered a hangar bay, containing multiple vehicles. There were a variety of different land and air vehicles, but none of them contained any traces of Element Zero. The most interesting discovery Gunnery Sergeant Mealer's squad made was the ship's armory. Whoever the UNSC were, they used rather primitive weapons. The majority of the guns in the armory used bullets with chemical propellant. Humanity hadn't used those since discovering the Prothean archive on Mars. However, there were some rather strange weapons in the armory as well. They were purple and green and pink, and didn't appear to use bullets. Captain Fairbanks had ordered them to recover the weapons, but to take extra care with the strange-looking ones. They'd need to question the Master Chief about them.
As of now, Captain Fairbanks had decided that the Makin, Coral Sea, and Midway would stay behind to guard the Forward Unto Dawn. The rest of Patrol Group 9 was going to head back to Arcturus Station. Finishing up her report, Captain Fairbanks transmitted it to Admiral Hackett, noting that she was heading to Arcturus Station and was going to question the survivor. Getting up from her desk, she began to make her way towards his cell.
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Inside the cell, it didn't appear that there was all that much going on. Master Chief was sitting on the crate, resting his arms on the table. He had been that way ever since they'd brought the crate in. However, there was a very intense conversation going on inside his helmet. Ever since Lieutenant Kaur had told them the date, Cortana had been running through every single possibility in her head thousands of times, and they all pointed to the same conclusion.
Somehow, the Dawn hadn't just traveled through space or time. It had managed to travel into an entirely different universe. Chief hadn't exactly believed her at first. He'd come around to her way of thinking after she asked him if he had an explanation for the date, and the technology being wielded by this "Systems Alliance". After admitting he didn't have one, she pointed out there was only one possible explanation for why the timeline and technology were different: they were in an alternate universe. Normally she'd be ecstatic to discover that the theories about the multiverse were true. But the fact that they were in this alternate universe by themselves put a damper on her mood.
Currently they were debating on a course of action. Going over the facts, it was clear that this Systems Alliance was at the very least this universe's version of the UNSC, and from what they had seen so far, was clearly more advanced than the UNSC by several decades at minimum. Chief had been dead set on finding a way to get back to their universe, but Cortana had been able to change his mind relatively quickly.
"So you want to go back? Well we'd first have to find ourselves a Halo ring in this universe, assuming they and the Forerunners even exist. Once we've found it, we'd have to destroy it, then excavate Kenya so we could travel to the Ark. Once there we'd have to wait for the Ark to almost finish constructing the replacement Halo before firing it. There's also the fact that we'd need to either repair the Dawn or construct an entirely new slipspace-capable ship that we could leave in after activating the Halo. Even if we manage to do all of this and recreate the exact conditions that sent us here, there's no guarantee we go back to our universe. We could wind up in another completely different universe. With all that in mind, are you sure we should be focused on going back?"
Chief wasn't dumb, he was probably one of the smarter humans alive. But sometimes he could be so frustrating.
After that little outburst, Chief had asked her what she thought they should do.
"If we're stuck here, then what do you think we should do?"
"It's pretty obvious, isn't it?" Cortana asked back. "You were created to defend Earth and all her colonies. We may not be in our universe, but humanity, and by extension Earth, exist here. Since we're currently traveling through space, it's logical to assume they have colonies. Ergo, we continue defending Earth and her colonies. We'd just be working with this Systems Alliance rather than the UNSC."
"In case you missed it, we're currently sitting in a holding cell," said Chief in a completely serious voice. "I don't think they're planning on offering me a job."
"Really? I hadn't noticed. MAYBE, if someone was a little more talkative, we could have gotten better accommodations," Cortana retorted back. "If someone comes in here to talk to us, I suggest you talk as well. We probably don't need to go telling them every little thing about the Human-Covenant War or the SPARTAN program, but we should give them enough that we get to speak to an admiral or someone that we could tell the full story to."
"I'll keep that in mind," remarked the Chief. As Cortana tried to figure out what to talk about next the door to the room opened and in walked a woman in a uniform indicating her to be a naval Captain if Cortana was correct in assessing her insignia. She was an older woman, probably in her early fifties. Chief immediately stood at attention.
"At ease, Master Chief," said the woman. She sat down across from them and gestured for Chief to sit down as well. Once he had done so she spoke again.
"I'm Captain Maria Fairbanks, the captain of this ship, the SSV Peleliu, as well as the Commanding Officer of Patrol Group 9. We're currently heading for Arcturus Station, and I was hoping you would be willing to answer some questions that will make your processing and debriefing at Arcturus much easier."
"Of course ma'am."
"Thank you. I think we should start with something small. Would you like us to bring you any food or water?" she asked.
"That won't be necessary ma'am. I'm fine," answered Chief. After a few seconds he spoke again.
"On second thought, food and water would be greatly appreciated ma'am." Captain Fairbanks nodded. Chief watched as a sheath of orange appeared around her arm, like some of the Marines had earlier, and she began tapping it.
"Excuse me for asking, but what is that on your arm ma'am?" asked the Chief. Looking down at her arm, then back up at him with a bit of confusion, she answered.
"This is an omni-tool. It's basically a computer on your arm. It allows you to interface with other computers, communicate with other omni-tools, and access the Extranet among other things."
"What is the Extranet ma'am?" Captain Fairbanks had to think about it before answering.
"It's basically the space version of the Internet. But it can be accessed by anyone in the galaxy," she said. After this Cortana spoke up in Chief's helmet.
"Sounds like Chatternet. But if anyone can access it from anywhere in the galaxy, then it means these people have FTL communications. Ask her if that is the case." Chief confirmed he'd heard her.
"So if anyone can access the Extranet from anywhere in the galaxy, does that mean you use FTL communications ma'am?" Chief asked.
"In a sense. It's not entirely FTL, but it's close enough to not make a meaningful difference." After she answered his question the door opened and a crewman walked in holding a tray with a plate and a glass of water. After setting it down, the man walked out and left. Looking over the food, Chief saw that it was your standard freeze-dried, rehydrated food that was common aboard starships.
"I won't be able to talk to you once your helmet is off. Try not to say too much," joked Cortana.
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As the Master Chief took his helmet off, Captain Fairbanks did little to hide her curiosity. The man was the size of a Turian, and she did want to see what he'd look like without his armor. There was a hiss as he lifted his helmet off, and she was unable to hide her shock at his appearance.
The first thing she noticed was his skin. He was paler than anyone she'd ever seen. It was like looking at a glass of milk. His head was bald, and covered in scars. Finally his eyes were a deep piercing blue, and she found herself unable to look him directly in the eyes for more than a few seconds. She had to admit that he was fairly attractive. As he started eating his meal she pulled up her omni-tool and started typing up her thoughts so far. The entirety of this interview was going to be recorded, but it wouldn't hurt to put her thoughts down periodically.
Master Chief Petty Officer Spartan-117 is definitely a soldier. He also seems unfamiliar with most modern technology. With as pale as his skin is, I'd guess he is almost constantly in that armor of his. I'm also not sure what to make of his scars. That armor looks incredibly well-built, meaning something either got through that armor, or he was scarred while not wearing it.
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As Chief finished eating, he set his glass down and picked up his helmet, putting it back on.
"How was the food?" asked Cortana.
"Acceptable."
"Great, glad to hear it. Well, I guess we better get back to answering questions," she said as a crewman walked off with the tray. Once he exited, Captain Fairbanks spoke.
"Let me know if you need to use the head Master Chief. You'll need an escort though." Chief could hear Cortana trying and failing to stifle a laugh.
"That won't be necessary ma'am. My armor is designed to handle those sorts of issues." Captain Fairbanks raised an eyebrow at that.
"Really? If true, that's rather impressive. Regardless, now that the pleasantries are out of the way, we need to get serious. First, what happened to your ship? It looks like it was cut in half. I'd also like you to tell me what happened to the rest of the crew. According to the Marines all the evacuation craft were still docked, and we didn't find any bodies or anyone else in those cryo chambers."
"The Dawn was cut in half due to some sort of issue when we attempted to enter slipspace. As for the crew, there were only two of us onboard at the time. The Dawn was on an extremely dangerous mission, so the rest of the crew had already been evacuated to other ships ma'am."
"I see." Chief could tell from her tone that Captain Fairbanks knew he was concealing details from her, but everything he'd told her was true.
"I take it this other person was in the front half of the ship?"
"Yes, ma'am. He was in the front half when we were split in two."
"Thank you. As for my next question, what is this 'slipspace'?" Cortana spoke up in his helmet.
"Just repeat whatever I say," she commanded. Chief acknowledged it and waited for her to begin speaking.
"Slipstream space, also known as slipspace, is a dimensional subdomain of alternate spacetime consisting of eleven non-visible infinitesimal dimensions used for faster-than-light travel." It was pretty obvious Captain Fairbanks didn't know what he was talking about. To be honest, he only partially understood it himself.
"I see. Can you tell me about this mission you were on?"
"No ma'am. It was a classified operation. Suffice to say, it was essential to the survival of humanity." A frown told Chief that probably was the wrong answer.
"Interesting. Now, care to tell me what this United Nations Space Command is?"
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The interrogation continued on for about forty more minutes, when Captain Fairbanks received a notification on her omni-tool that the Peleliu was receiving a transmission from Admiral Hackett. Excusing herself, she told the Master Chief that some bedding would be brought by so he could get some sleep if he needed it. Walking out of the room, she reflected on just how little information she'd managed to obtain.
The vast majority of the Master Chief's answers were either incredibly vague, or some variation of "that's classified". Despite this, she didn't think he'd lied to her. Plus, the information she did have was incredibly useful. Master Chief Petty Officer SPARTAN-117 (he'd refused to give her his name) was a member of the United Nations Space Command, which was supposedly similar to the Systems Alliance. The Master Chief was a member of the SPARTAN II Project, which created soldiers with advanced armor and combat capabilities. The UNSC had been involved in some sort of war, and the Spartans were created to win the war. The Forward Unto Dawn was a warship that had been dispatched on a mission of high importance, and in attempting to flee was cut in half, with the Master Chief entering cryo-sleep to await a rescue.
Perhaps more enlightening was what he hadn't told her. He'd refused to mention the origins of the UNSC or the territory it controlled. When she'd asked him his capabilities and the capabilities of his armor, he said that the Spartans were the best soldiers in the UNSC, and their armor was the most advanced armor the UNSC had ever developed. Once again, the truth without any identifying details. Finally there was this war the UNSC was supposedly involved in. He had refused to mention anything about the other side in the war, only that it had gone on for several years and the Spartans had been created to help win the war. Captain Fairbanks asked him about the strange weapons from the armory, and he confirmed that they were weapons used by the other side. He didn't tell her what they could do, only that no one should fire them without him present. She told him that she'd keep that in mind.
Finally, the most enlightening information was in the questions he'd asked her. The Master Chief wasn't familiar with the Systems Alliance, omni-tools, Element Zero, or the Mass Relays. Captain Fairbanks knew that all of this was extremely important. It was painting some sort of picture, but she wasn't sure what the picture was. Brushing it off, she entered the comm room to see Admiral Hackett on the screen.
"Captain Fairbanks, it's good to see you," said Admiral Hackett.
"It's good to see you too, Admiral," said Captain Fairbanks. "I take it you've read my report?"
"Yes, and I must say it's incredibly interesting. I presume you were delayed in getting here because you were interrogating this 'Master Chief Petty Officer SPARTAN-117'?"
"That's correct, Admiral. I'll need a bit of time to finalize everything I've learned in my interrogation."
"What's your opinion of the man? And did you learn anything that you feel I should know right now?"
"According to him, the United Nations Space Command, or UNSC, is an organization that's very similar to the Systems Alliance. They were involved in a years-long war. The Master Chief was part of a project to create powerful soldiers with advanced training and armor that the UNSC believed would win the war. Their ship was damaged in an extremely dangerous mission, which resulted in it being cut in half. The rest of what I was able to get out of him will be in my report, but he was very tight-lipped, and many of his answers were some variation of 'it's classified'. As for my opinion of the man, he's definitely an extremely disciplined and loyal soldier. I don't believe he lied at all during my interrogation of him."
"Thank you for the information Captain Fairbanks. Send me that report as soon as you've finished it. I look forward to your arrival at Arcturus Station. Hackett out."
Captain Fairbanks began making her way back towards her quarters. After she finished up her report, she was going to take a nap. This whole thing was giving her a headache.