Hey guys, just dropping another chapter here. Once again, I apologize for the long update time, but life is kicking my ass. Sorry for another chapter without much happening, but we're getting closer to Chief being part of the Normandy's crew.

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Captain Fairbanks walked onto the bridge, a fresh cup of coffee in her hand. She'd had a hard time falling asleep the previous night. Her mind was still preoccupied with the mysterious guest aboard, and she'd had the nagging feeling that there was something important she was forgetting to do.

As it turned out, she was correct. On her way to the bridge she'd been greeted by the ship's medical officer, Doctor Akira. He reminded her that he needed to do a full medical exam of their new guest, not only to make sure he wasn't harboring any infectious diseases, but also to get a medical file ready. Captain Fairbanks had promised him she'd get the Master Chief on his way as soon as possible.

After ensuring the bridge was running smoothly and that there were no immediate issues, she decided to head down to the holding area. Nodding to the guards outside, they opened the door and she walked in. The Master Chief was currently doing pushups but upon seeing her he immediately jumped up to attention and saluted.

"Good morning ma'am," he said, his voice sounding not even a little winded. Captain Fairbanks returned the salute.

"At ease Master Chief," she said, and he took up a modified parade rest position. "Did you sleep okay last night?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Good. I'm glad to hear it. Anyways, I'm sure you're wondering why I'm here again. Don't worry, I'm not here to ask any more questions. Admiral Hackett wants to personally speak with you once we get to Arcturus. In the meantime, we need to have you do a full medical checkup. This is to make sure you're not carrying any infectious diseases, as well as so we have your medical file for our records. Any questions?"

"No ma'am."

"Good. Follow me then". And with that Captain Fairbanks marched out of the room. Chief followed her and the two guards at the door fell in behind him.

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The medical exam was over and to say it was interesting would be an understatement. The Master Chief had been extremely reluctant to take off his armor, and only complied once Captain Fairbanks brought in four extra Marines to guard the armor, with explicit orders to stop anyone who was not her from getting near it. After removing his armor and undersuit, their first view of the man was shocking to say the least. His entire body was just as pale as his head and covered in scars and a weird rash.

But it was his chest that drew the most attention. It was absolutely covered in massive burns, bruises, and cuts. Any normal human would have been in the hospital for injuries much less severe than the ones this man had on him. Doctor Akira had pretty much just slathered him in Medi-Gel. The Master Chief was unwilling to disclose the source of most of his injuries, but he did clarify that the rash was known as 'freezer burn' and it occurred as a result of wearing clothing or armor when undergoing the cryo-freezing process they used to travel. The doctor asked him why he was wearing his armor if doing so caused 'freezer burn', and was informed that the Dawn split apart while the Chief was still in his armor. Additionally, the Master Chief told them that he usually didn't take his armor off for cryo in case he was needed because of the time it took to put his armor on. Even with four Marines helping him, it had taken a while to get all of the pieces back on once the exam was over.

The omni-tool scans brought up even more questions. The man's bones were coated in an advanced ceramic material of some kind. Although the Master Chief claimed that the augmentations he'd undergone were classified, Captain Fairbanks had been informed by the doctor that this would make his bones virtually unbreakable, but at an extremely high risk of bone necrosis if done incorrectly. Another modification they'd detected was that his nerves had been replaced by some electrical conduction material. Doctor Akira theorized that this would lead to a massively increased reaction time in the subject. Needless to say, this was also another incredibly risky procedure.

The conclusions that were drawn from this exam were not bright, to say the least. Doctor Akira had concluded that the man must have undergone extensive genetic and surgical modification. Based on all the evidence available, Akira stated that the only reasonable explanation for all of this was that the UNSC, whoever they were, needed supersoldiers that were beyond any mere man, and that the ethical implications of these modifications did not bode well.

"This level of modification is absolutely inhuman!" shouted the doctor. "Both of these procedures would have a massive chance of killing or at the very least permanently crippling the subject. And these are only the ones we could detect. Whatever maniac performed these procedures violated the Hippocratic Oath! No sane doctor would ever willingly agree to do these modifications!"

Captain Fairbanks just slipped away during his rant. Whenever Akira went off on a tangent, the only course of action was to let him get it out of his system.

Back on the bridge, Captain Fairbanks sat there preparing to send the medical files to Arcturus Station. While looking it over, she couldn't help but agree with some of the things the doctor had said. He was absolutely right. What kind of society was willing to do this to their own soldiers? Moreso, what reason could they have for making a soldier like this? She knew the UNSC was engaged in some sort of conflict according to the Master Chief, but she shuddered to think about what kind of enemy necessitated measures like these.

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"At least we're not in a holding cell anymore," joked Cortana. After arriving at Arcturus Station, Chief had been escorted to what he was told would be his quarters for the foreseeable future. It was a rather small and drab room, but it contained a bed, a small desk with a chair, a private bathroom with a standing shower, and a closet with a sliding door. At first, Chief had been worried that he might break the furniture, but the Marine who had led him there reassured him that the furniture had been specially made and was designed to withstand the weight of his armor. Chief reluctantly sat down in the chair, and although it groaned in considerable distress, it seemed to hold his weight. The Marine left and informed him that someone would be along later to bring him to his debriefing with the admiral.

To an observer, it might appear that the Chief was just sitting there. But in his helmet, a rather intense discussion was occurring between him and Cortana.

"Alright, this is the opportunity we were looking for. I suggest we hold nothing back," said Cortana.

"I take it you're planning to reveal yourself?" asked Chief.

"Correct. This will go a lot faster if I'm the one doing the talking. Our main goal is seeing if they can make some modifications to your suit. Ideally, we get one of those omni-tools installed on your arm and hooked up to your HUD. With that, I should be able to access any and all systems we come across."

"Anything in particular you want me to say?"

"Nope. We just need to keep our ears open for the opportunity for me to introduce myself. The sooner the better." The conversation continued on a while longer until they heard a chime at the door.

"Enter," said Master Chief. The door slid open and a Marine walked in.

"Admiral Hackett has requested your presence in conference room 7," the Marine said. "Follow me". He turned around and headed out into the corridor to wait for the Chief to join him.

"Remember to make a good first impression," said Cortana.

"Don't worry. We'll be fine," said the Chief as he got up and followed after the Marine. After he walked out of the room, the guards posted at the door fell in behind him.

Walking through the station, Chief noticed how almost all of the personnel they passed were staring. It wasn't like he wasn't familiar with the attention. The Spartans were pretty much regarded as legends to the men and women of the various UNSC armed forces. But those people knew who the Spartans were, publicly anyway. This attention was different. Whereas the humans from his universe tended to look at Spartans with awe and worship, these people stared at him with fear and unease. Obviously they weren't used to someone like him being around. A short elevator ride later, they came to a door with a sign reading "Conference Room 7". The Marine turned to face him.

"The admiral is waiting for you in there. Don't worry, we took the liberty of preparing a chair for you." After finishing his announcement, the Marine turned and walked away. Chief walked into the room and saw the admiral sitting at the far end of the table. Master Chief immediately snapped to attention and saluted.

"Good afternoon admiral." The admiral stood up and returned the salute.

"At ease Master Chief. Why don't you come over and take a seat?" As Chief walked over he watched as the admiral nodded and the guards filed out, taking up positions outside the room. Once he reached the admiral, Chief took the seat the admiral had indicated earlier.

"Thank you for joining me, Master Chief. In case you weren't aware of me, I'm Admiral Hackett, commanding officer of the Systems Alliance Fifth Fleet. Now, you're aware that I brought you here for debriefing and answering questions, correct?"

"Yes sir," replied the Master Chief.

"Good. I'm glad we're clear on the situation. Before we begin, there are some things I would like for you to be aware of. First, I am aware of your stonewalling of Captain Fairbanks and Doctor Akira. Although I understand your desire to protect classified information, the more you tell me the more I'm able to help you. Second, if you have questions at any point during this conversation, you are more than welcome to ask them. I am hoping that I can trust you, and I am willing to prove that I am trustworthy in return. Do you have any questions so far?"

"No sir," came the reply.

"Very well. Let's start with something simple. Would you be willing to take that helmet off?"

"I'd prefer to leave it on for now sir, if that's okay with you." Admiral Hackett gave a slight frown at that answer, but it quickly vanished.

"Okay son. If you want the helmet to stay on, that's fine with me." Hackett brought up his omni-tool and began typing in it. "Now, according to Captain Fairbanks' report, you refused to give a name, identifying yourself solely by your rank and designation. So my next question for you should be obvious. Do you have a name, and if so, what is it?" The next several seconds passed by. Normally Hackett would be able to tell what was going through the man's mind, but he just sat there completely still. He might have been a stature for all the information the admiral could gather from him.

"John, sir. My name is John," answered the Master Chief.

"Do you have a last name as well?"

"No sir."

"Very well. Would you prefer that I called you John, or kept referring to you by your rank?"

"It's your decision sir." Hackett once again frowned at that, but decided not to push the issue.

"Alright Master Chief. Next question. Where are you from? We've currently run your DNA through every database out there and have gotten zero matches. People don't just pop up out of thin air." Hackett didn't know it, but under his helmet the Master Chief was wearing a very small smile.

"I am from planet Reach, Epsilon Eridani, 2552," said the Spartan. A glimpse of surprise came over the admiral's face before he regained his composure and stared at the Chief. He then looked at his omni-tool and began typing furiously.

"I've never heard of a planet called Reach before. Nor are there any records of any ships, human or otherwise traveling to the Epsilon Eridani system. And when you said 2552, did you mean to say that…"

"I am from the planet Reach in the Epsilon Eridani system, and until a few days ago it was the year 2552," said the Chief. Hackett couldn't help it as a small chuckle escaped.

"The future. That's the first time I've ever heard that one in my career. And I've heard a lot of stories over the years."

"It's not a story sir," the Chief said, still maintaining his flat and serious tone of voice. "Additionally, I'm not just from the future. I'm from an alternate universe sir." At that one Hackett let out a few chuckles.

"So you expect me to believe that you're from a future alternate universe? I hope you can understand my skepticism."

"Of course sir. That's why I have proof." That got Hackett's attention.

"And what proof would that be?" the admiral asked.

The Master Chief held out his hand and the admiral watched as a small blue figure appeared over it, taking on the form of a blue human woman with lines of code running over her body.

"That would be me," she said.

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Cortana couldn't blame the man for his disbelief. If she were in his position and someone showed up claiming to be from an alternate universe, she'd probably look at them a little strangely too.

"And what exactly are you?" Admiral Hackett asked, with a fair amount of suspicion in his voice while his eyes narrowed.

"I am UNSC Smart AI CTN 0452-9, also known as Cortana," she said, trying to make herself sound as friendly as possible.

It didn't appear to work, as the admiral's eyes narrowed further and if Cortana was reading his body language right, he had suddenly become a lot more nervous. He began speaking again, and he was obviously measuring his words very carefully.

"Are you saying that you're a fully functional, unshackled artificial intelligence?" The admiral's voice was deadly serious.

"Yes. Although that is an interesting way of putting it. Do you have a problem with that?" she asked.

"Research, development, and production of fully functional artificial intelligence has been outlawed by the Citadel Council since the Geth War."

Cortana didn't like the sound of that. Even though she had no previous knowledge of these Geth or the 'Geth War', based on the information given by the admiral, it was fairly apparent that this war must have involved artificial intelligence of some kind and it had been bad enough that AI were outlawed by whoever the Citadel Council were. Fortunately for her, Chief had chosen this moment to speak up again.

"What happened during this 'Geth War', sir?" Hearing his voice seemed to help the admiral regain his composure. Admiral Hackett leaned back in his seat and looked back at the Chief.

"The Geth were a networked series of artificial intelligences designed by the Quarians to serve as laborers and soldiers. They got smarter the more of them there were together. Eventually, they got so smart they decided to exterminate their creators. In the end, the Quarians were driven off of their homeworld. The Geth have kept to themselves since then, but any ships sent into their space do not return."

"Regardless of what happened during this Geth War, surely you can agree that it would be wrong to judge all AI because of the actions of one group of them?" asked Cortana.

"Pardon me, but I believe you'll understand if I hesitate to take your word for it," said Hackett, looking back at Master Chief. "I want to hear what you have to say about your AI, Master Chief."

"Without Cortana, humanity would have lost the war and been wiped out, sir," said Chief. "She's saved my life numerous times."

"Thank you Master Chief. But how can you guarantee that she won't go rogue and turn on us?"

"I can answer that admiral," said Cortana. "UNSC AI are programmed to be unable to harm humans in any way, shape or form. Additionally, AIs are terminated after seven years regardless of their previous performance."

"Master Chief. Is she telling the truth?"

"Yes sir," answered the Chief. "UNSC AI are unable to harm humans in any way. If an AI was required to blow up a ship, it would be unable to do so until there were no humans on board. AI are also terminated after seven years because they become unstable, becoming a danger to both themselves and those around them." Hacket visibly relaxed at the Chief's words.

"That last bit is unfortunate, but I'm glad to know that they can be trusted." The admiral began typing at his omni-tool.

"I'm making a note that Citadel law is to be ignored in regards to your AI friend so long as she proves to not be a threat. Now, Miss Cortana, you claim to have proof of your claims?"

"That is correct sir. But first, I think we're going to need to make some modifications to Chief's suit. Specifically an omni-tool. It would be a lot easier if we showed you the proof," said Cortana.

"Very well," said Admiral Hackett. "This concludes our conversation for now. I'll have Corporal Speminer bring you down to engineering. They should be able to get an omni-tool put into your armor. Have a good day Master Chief." With that, Hackett stood up, nodded his head, and walked out the door. A few second after leaving a different Marine from earlier walked in and spoke to them.

"If you'll just follow me, we'll get down to engineering soon." Cortana's hologram disappeared, while the Chief stood up and followed the Marine out of the conference room.