Alright then everyone, enjoy.


Lord Hood was sitting in the seat on the Pelican. He was surrounded by a full squad of ODSTs that were assigned to keep him safe, this was not his regular protection detail but he moved at a quick pace to the hanger so the team to protect him was assigned in a rush. Though to be fair he didn't think it mattered so much, it was only a small flight between his own ODP and the Ajax who was still making its way towards him.

Normally he would wait for them to get closer to Earth before moving aboard but Atlas claimed that this was a priority one and he wasn't one to exaggerate. Based on what he was reading now, he was in mind to agree. As the Pelican flew through the void of space. Hood was leaning forward in his chair and looked at his data pad. The report was hastily written, that much he could tell but from what he could tell, it was understandable.

He didn't know why it never occurred to him but of course, it should have. Why would all of the aliens with the covenant be with them willingly? This was a huge win for them, that much was true. From the report he read, these aliens were a type of artificially made organic supercomputer. If they got more of them from the enemy, then they might be able to turn the tide of this fight.

He didn't even want to think about the lengths Margret would go to in order to get her hands on this one. Not that he was against the idea, but ONI did have all the needed facilities and staff to keep this alien a secret from most of their forces and get as much information out of it as possible. Not to mention use everything at their disposal to get more of them. Many would be surprised that he would be so open to the idea of ONI taking this 'Slightly Deflated' but the truth was he didn't have the luxury of being suspicious of ONI. The fate of their species was on the line with that war. Parangosky understand that very well, he might not trust her but he knew very well that she was on his side and that was never going to be in doubt.

"Sir, we're thirty seconds out" a voice called out from his right.

Looking up from his data pad since he looked down, he eyed the helmet of the ODST who was standing in place near the entrance of the cockpit "Thank you corporal" he said before standing up from his seat and taking a couple of steps forward into the middle of the cargo hold. Reaching up with one hand he grabbed the handle as he held the data pad with his other hand. Bracing himself for the bumpy landing.

He took a couple of moments to clear his head of these raging thoughts and readied himself for whatever debriefing that Atlas had prepared for him, he didn't doubt that it would be requested of him to tell the other heads of the UNSC. If doubted that what he's read so far would be everything he needs to know about this alien, this Huragok. There was a gentle rumbling he could feel beneath his feet, the tale-tale sign that they passed through the shield around Ajax's hanger.

He made the mental count down in his head and braced his legs, just as expected the ship rocked slightly, which would have knocked an unexpecting person over, for all those present on board, it was a simple stumble in place. Not a second later, the ramp to the Pelican slowly started to lower.

As it did so, Hood moved forward and stood in the middle of the cargo hold, on either side of him. The ODSTs took positions ready for anything and in a professional manner. When the ramp lowered completely, he was met with an exacted sight. Captain Khane stood in the middle of a group that was no doubt her department heads, five of them in total. He noticed Stevens first though the absence of Atlas was a close second. On either side of the group, was a line of twenty different marines with their backs straight and weapons held close.

He walked forward down the ramp, and as soon as his legs hit the floor of the hanger, every single one of them slammed their foot onto the ground and brought their hands on in a salute "Lord Hood, it's an honour to have you on board sir" Khane said as the leader of the UNSC stopped in front of her and returned to gesture.

"Captain, I'm sure you can understand my surprise by your sudden return to the Sol system" he said as all present lowered their hands "Even more so the reason why" his eyes landed on Stevens as he finished.

Taking his queue, the scientist stepped forward "I understand this is against all protocol sir. But I can promise, this has been the greatest advantage we could have asked for. Alt isn't here because he's been with the Huragok for the entire journey and needed a moment to freshen up. Though he should be here soo..." he started, trying to make the excuse for his son.

There was a sudden gust of wind and a new figure arrived, interrupting the lead scientist with his appearance. As one, all the guards with Hood were quick to raise their weapons at him. Though after a moment, they could see that Atlas had arrived and being one of the most recognizable people in the UNSC, they were all quick to lower their weapons.

"Sir" Alt said as he straightened his back and raised his hand in a salute "I apologies for the late arrival but I had other priorities at this immediate time"

"So I've been informed" Hood said back as he placed both hands behind his back, not returning the salute to Alt. A small reprimand for his tardiness "I trust you have a more detailed debrief ready for me" he added.

"Yes sir" Alt said as he lowered his hand "We have the conference room set up and ready and fair warning sir. This is going to change everything" he stepped to the side and allowed Hood to walk alongside him through the ship. While the rest of the ship's crew went about their business. Those that went with them were Khane, Stevens and the protection detail that went with the Admiral. All those in the corridors, upon seeing them immediately moved to the walls and saluted the group as they passed.

It was a small five-minute walk with very little said in between. It was only the most basic of conversation between those present, while Hood was normally a lot more open with the conversation, but it would seem this is how he shows annoyance. Not that Alt could blame him, he's the most important leader they have at the moment and no doubt had many responsibilities which he was just taken from. Alt understand that but he also knew that this would be worth it. The debrief package that Hood must have read was very hesitantly put together.

He didn't include all the BIG pieces of information that Slightly Deflated provided them. He didn't want to risk being taken by a hacker or some ONI agent. He knew that ONI would find out about this eventually, but he would like to get a full report ready before giving it to Parangosky. He didn't want her to try something before she got a full understanding of the situation. He wasn't an idiot, he knew full well that the head of ONI most likely had a few dozen spies on board and probably highjacked the ship's dumb A.I as well.

It would take time for her to give out the orders to those agents but not too much, hence why he wanted Hood here as soon as possible. He wanted to get him on board before she could try anything.

The doors to the conference room opened and Alt stepped in first, he quickly turned around in the doorway preventing the others from entering "Troopers" he said looking at the four guards that walked with the Admiral "I understand this is going to be a surprise but you cannot fire your weapons in here" he said before stepping to the side.

Hood tilted his head to the side at the sudden order but when he stepped inside, it was made clear. The conference room was much like many others, along with a table with chairs bolted into the ground around it. A long window against the wall gave those inside a good view of the void of space. What did bring Hood a moment of pause was the lone occupant of the room.

The image was the exact same as the one in the debrief Hood read not even ten minutes ago. The alien stood on the other end of the table... well. Stood wasn't the right word. It was floating calming, in front of a large screen that was nothing but blue. Its head turned to look at him as he entered, the sudden appearance made him pause momentarily. The protection detail with him had no such problem. The first of the two ODSTs raised their weapons upon the first sighting of Slightly Deflated.

Within the blink of an eye and accompanied by a gust of wind. Alt quickly moved in front of them and held a hand on the end of each weapon, making sure they couldn't be raised completely "What did I just say?" he asked them before they could shout orders and pull Hood back away from the possible danger.

Taking his hands off the weapons, hoping that each of them got the point "Lord Hood, allow me to introduce Slightly Deflated" he said stepping to the side and allowing the leader of the UNSC to see the alien "Slightly Deflated, this is Lord Hood" upon hearing the introduction and trusting Atlas's word that he was safe, Hood took a couple of steps further into the room until he stood up against the table. As he moved in the others came in behind him.

"mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm" Slightly Deflated moaned at them. To Hood's shock and relief, he didn't need to worry about a translation. As the blurred screen behind the alien lit up with White text "This is the one that you wanted me to speak to Creator?" the screen showed.

"What's going on here Atlas?" Hood asked as he turned to look at the other alien in the room as the last of those present entered and the door closed behind them. Those present were Lord Hood, his four ODST guards, Captain Khane, Stevens and Alt himself.

After taking one look at all those present, Alt took a couple of steps back and stood next to Slightly Deflated, whose whole body turned to face him "I understand that the situation is unorthodox, and I do apologise for that but this is worth it. What I have learnt from Slight Deflated has the potential to change everything. It could not only allow us to win this war but also changes the foundational belief we have about both of our species" he was quiet for a moment as he allowed the others to take the words to heart "Please" he said raising a hand and pointing to the chairs to all those present.

Hood was quiet for a moment before he moved forward and took a seat at the head of the table, the other two moving to sit on either side of him while the four guards took a position against the back wall "Alright, you have my undivided attention" he said as he took his cap off and placed in on the table before he brought both his hands together and clasped them firmly in front of him.

Upon hearing the words, Alt turned to look at Slightly Deflated "I want you to tell him everything you told me" he said before turning and taking a seat on the other side of Khane.


Hood practically collapsed onto his office chair. This day did not go how he was expecting it to, it's been around ten or so hours since he left but it felt like he just got a lifetime worth of discoveries. Everything he just learned was enough for him to want to retire and just sit down in front of a fire and try everything he could to process what he learned. It was enough to shake the foundations for everything they thought about themselves.

At least he didn't need to worry about the debrief for the others, while he and the others listened, asking a couple of questions along the way. Alt used his own data pad to write the full debrief of the situation, opening his eyes he looked at his desk computer and the debrief was already on it ready for him to go through. Of course, he would need to do it, it went without saying it would take a while. It might just be one of the biggest he's ever seen, not surprising really.

He didn't even want to think about how he was going to deal with Parangosky. He didn't doubt for a second that she would want to take custody of Slightly Deflated, for the moment he couldn't think of a reason to say no. ONI would put it to work at the very least. It's not like it could stay on the Ajax, the Huragok might just prove to be one of the most important assets they've got, right next to Atlas himself but unlike Alt, Slightly Deflated seems unable to defend itself. It would need to keep it somewhere safe.

And this was just the first thing they needed to worry about, the second being everything they learnt. Not even about the origins of their species but the enemies. To be completely honest, he didn't think he would find out about Alt's people in his lifetime. Now he wished that he didn't because every time he thought about it, he got a headache due to the amount of fear he felt.

This parasite, the Flood scared him more than he would like to admit. The amount of damage they allegedly did before they were stopped... a small shudder escaped him as he thought about it. He would need to make it a general order built into the base code of every A.I on every ship. If anything resembling a Halo is ever discovered, they need it kept secret. They need it to be kept a very tight-lipped secret and they need it studied immediately.

He had no idea how Margret would react when she found out about this, in truth, he didn't want to think about it. That being said, he may as well get that over with. Let her deal with her own people and he will do the same with his. He let out a long sigh, there was no avoiding it, he knew well enough that he was going to be in and out of meetings for hours at a time when this gets out.

The only thing he could do now was shake himself out of the shock he was feeling and get to work. He had a debrief to send off as well as a general order that any Huragoks spotted within the enemy ranks must be saved and secured for evacuation. Thankfully Slightly Deflated was able to provide a software program that can be used to help communicate with any other Huragoks that are found.

At least for now, he could take some comfort in the fact that it wasn't something he needed to deal with at the moment. After a small conversation between himself and Atlas, it was decided that the Ajax would make its way to Reach where a top-secret research facility was located. Slightly Deflated would be taken there and there it would stay until such a time that it would need to be moved. It would be used in the aid of research projects, mainly the UNSC's understanding of shielding tech.

It was briefly discussed that it stays on the Ajax to aid Atlas in his project of understanding Anti-Matter, but Hood shot that down. He knew that the idea had merit, but they couldn't risk its loss if the ship went down. However, he conceded that if another was found. It would be taken to Reach so it and Slightly Deflated could create more and then they could be used to aid him there.

It was interesting to know that the Huragok don't seem to have gender. They simply need each other, and they could create fully operational and fully grown Huragok within a few days. That was a blessing that he wasn't going to pass up. While he was going to make it a standing order to secure and protect any that are found in the field. He may stress to Parangosky that she would need to dedicate some resources to locating them in the field and then dispatch the Spartans for extraction.

But that was something he could deal with later, for now, he sat up in his chair and started to type away. Though he was quick to tell Jessica that he would like a coffee, he needed to boost to get through all of this. The debrief came first, then he needed to get a clear list of who to send it to, then came the general order when it came to the Huragok, and then a core piece of code into the A.I if they find anything related to Halo and finally deal with Parangosky 'This was going to be a long couple of days' he thought to himself before steeling himself and getting to work.


He stood up with his back straight and his uniform clean, his hands were clasped behind his back as he stood in front of the monitor, waiting for the connection to be made. It was times like this he was grateful for his stamina, it's been nearly two days since he last slept. Just before the mission which led them to find Slightly Deflated. He would get some food after this as well, assuming of course that something didn't immediately catch his attention.

The screen now showed a line of text 'connection established' before the black screen faded away and he was met with the sight of Parangosky sitting behind her desk with what he could tell was three different data pads lined up in front of her, much more than normal yet she still seemed to exude an air of control. Behind her was what he didn't expect, just off to her right was another figure, a well-dressed and composed woman who was very familiar to Atlas "Ma'am" he said bringing up his hand for a salute. Then his eyes turned to look at the other "Serin, good to see you again" he said with a small smile.

Something that was returned with a nod from the younger woman "I want you to know Atlas that was starting to consider demoting you for ignoring my messages" the head of ONI started as she ignored the greeting. That was when she looked back down to the data pads "Though given the situation I believe I can forgive it"

There was no doubt as to what she was referring to "Have you spoken to Lord Hood yet?" he asked her, choosing not to comment on the demoting comment.

"Not yet, I imagine that Terrence is still trying to get his people under control before he tries to deal with me" she added looking up from the data "I've just been given the debrief so far. Thankfully, I have no problem with... Slightly Deflated being taken to Reach for study" she spoke coldly.

Though the wording did give Atlas a moment of pause "ma'am?" he asked her.

"Don't worry Atlas, your new friend won't be harmed. But we would be fools to not investigate its biology. We could learn something useful" she reasoned "Though don't think because you've been distracted that you get to ignore me, I trust that you have the list needed to start your research into the Anti-Matter engines?" she asked him.

"Yes ma'am, I can send it to you immediately, however, I would like to hold it off for a moment so it can be evaluated" he said hoping that she wouldn't get too annoyed.

"who's going to be doing this evaluation?" she asked him with a raised eyebrow. Not that he could blame her for asking, with how much he's been looking into it. One wouldn't be wrong in thinking he might just be humanity's leading expert in Anti-Matter tech.

"Our new guest" he confirmed with a nod "Based on what it's said, it's an organic supercomputer. It could be a big help with the research and I don't think it will take long for everything to be in order" he added.

Upon hearing the nose, he could see the small extra flare in her nostrils, clearly not very happy with the news she was just given "I like to think I've grown as a person since I've taken this position. But I do hate being kept waiting. You have one day to deliver this report, failure to do so will result in disciplinary action" she cut the connection before he could say anything and the screen went back to a screen with a simple line of text 'connection lost'

He opened his mouth and let out a loud sigh, having an angry Parangosky was not something he wanted to deal with. Not that she could kill him of course but if there was anyone who could figure out a way it would be her. It was times like this he wished that he could enjoy a drink or something that could take the edge off. Though that thought was quickly taken away by the rest of his brain. But he doesn't feel the edge? Does he? His mind is mostly cold hard logic, there was emotion in their true enough. But he was trained his entire life to keep that under control.

Turning around he started to make his way back to the lab, it was decided that it would be best to keep Slightly Deflated away from the general crew. While everyone onboard knew about the alien and understood that it was being kept prisoner and slave by the enemy. He didn't know how they would react to seeing it just wandering around and all it took was one crew member being just a little suspicious or paranoid to be a problem. Either way, he would need to speak to it and have it overlook his research notes, it could be a big help.


The head of ONI hardened her eyes as she cut the communication and looked at the black screen for just a moment longer than she needed to "You disagree" It wasn't a question but a statement, directed to the young woman that stood beside her.

"No ma'am, he needs to be remained of his duty more than one would expect" Serin said coldly as she looked at her superior. While it was true she had a good relationship with Atlas and he was someone she respected, even if his naivety could get on her nerves sometimes.

"What is that duty?" she asked her as she turned in her seat to look at her.

"The protection of humanity, whatever the cost" her answer was quick. Not that Parangosky could blame her for that, it was the same lie they told the Spartans during their training.

A part of her was disappointed that Serin still believed that, it would seem that she needed some more training on the basics of it all. It wasn't the job of ONI to protect humanity, it was the job to fool the masses into thinking that they are safe, so that they don't need to know about all the shit that their neighbours got up to, it was ONI's job to kill those that they felt would cause more problems to the people then they were worth. It's something they would always do.

Even in times like this, an interstellar war, a war with an alien species could very well lead to the end of their entire species. Yet ONI still did its job. That's why the toll of Parangosky's death count has gone up over three thousand percent in the last couple of months. Because she has purposely had her agents send out signals that loured the Covenant to them so the worlds that are completely loyal to the UEG would have more times to prepare.

ONI was the devil of humanity, it was the most cold-hearted and calculating part of the UEG machine. It was the peace that would make the hard choices that needed to be made to make sure that humanity survived whatever may come for them. If that includes sacrificing whole worlds and the millions of people on them to save others, then so be it.

"No Serin, that is the job of the UNSC. ONI's job is much more morbid than that" she told the former Spartan "But that is a conversation that can wait for another time. For now, I'd like you to head to Reach, and oversee the transfer of this Slightly Deflated to the ONI facility. Be sure to keep an extra eye on Halsey, I don't want its time being wasted on the Spartan program, there are other things that it can be used for" she ordered the younger woman.

"Yes ma'am, I'll leave immediately" Serin said without argument and started to make her way towards the exit of the office. As soon as she left, Serin wouldn't deny it and say she wanted otherwise but another chance to deny Halsey what she wanted was going to be something that she took a great amount of joy in. Though perhaps she would enjoy seeing Atlas again, despite it all she did enjoy their time together.


Allrighty then, I know not a lot happened here but don't worry thinks pick up more next chapter. We're closing in on the large time skip now and the start of the games. Let me know what you all think in the reviews and I'll see you in the next chapter. I was going to upload this yesterday but it was a crazy weekend and that's all I'm going to say about it. Hopfully I'll see you all next Sunday.