Disclaimer: I OWN NOTHING!

A/N: This is just a set up chapter for

the Requiem showdown next chapter.

Chapter 36: Collision Course

Date: February 28, 2558

Location: Slipspace, en route to Requiem(Shield World 001)

CAS Shadow Of Intent

The Arbiter, Thel 'Vadam , had not slept in days.

Losing one's home planet, and the majority of its population, would do that to a leader.

The immense feeling of guilt the dark skinned, gold clad warrior felt was just one of the many things weighing him down after the tragedy.

One of the few ways he could relax these days was by training.

His personal energy sword, Prophet's Bane, was gripped in his four fingered hand as he struck down the enemies he imagined in front of him.

As one of the most experience Elites on this ship, the Arbiter knew that exhaustion and emotional distractions put any warrior on the fast track for failure, even death.

He was hoping on wearing himself out to get a good night's rest, but sleep continued to elude him.

The enemy they faced was just the latest in a seeming never ending list of foes who threatened him and his people. The Civil War that ravaged his planet after the end of the Human-Covenant war had occupied most of his time, but the farther removed from the events that ended the war, he found more than just fellow Sangheili being the cause of his trouble. ONI, the human intelligence organization, had been a constant source of trouble with their meddling in Sangheili affairs. The only reason he hadn't called them out on it was because he hadn't a leg to stand on. He'd murdered a billion humans during the war, they wanting to keep their former enemies weak was something he understood well.

That didn't mean he liked being manipulated, or having his people suffer because of it.

The only reason he hadn't gone to war over it was because of people like Lord Hood and the Master Chief.

That, and he didn't have the resources.

Thel lost concentration as the emotions overtook him ,and his blade plunged into the wall.

A frustrated growl rumbled past his mandibles before pulling the sword from the wall.

Turning off the weapon, he walked out of his quarters with his Saurian head hung low. As his hooved feet pounded against the deck plate, his mind began to wander back to a battle he'd fought long ago. It was during the early years of the Human-Covenant War, when he first encountered a Spartan.

It was a battle he'd nearly lost, but backup had driven the lone Spartan off mid-battle.

Backup is what they needed right now. One Assault Carrier and a few support ships wasn't much of a threat compared to Skynet. The Arbiter had thought about contacting the humans, but knowing their ONI all to well, it was likely they already knew about the end of his home world. Beyond that, he wasn't sure if they had any intel on Skynet or the ship itself.

If they did, and they hadn't warned them...

He dismissed that line of thought immediately. It wouldn't help anything to fight a war on two fronts.

As he pondered both the past and the future, he didn't pay much attention to where he was going. Eventually he found himself in one of the hanger bays, at least, the only usable bay after the battle. Repairs were still slow going.

The cavernous room was bustling with activity since it was the only they could use, but the Arbiter knew why he was drawn to this place. In the back corner was a female Sangheili working on her damaged Phantom drop-ship.

Being one of the few females soldiers on the ship, it wasn't hard for the Arbiter to recognize her. Mahkee 'Chava.

The pilot turned upon hearing the Arbiter's hoove-steps and respectfully bowed her head. "What may I do for you, Arbiter?"

"Nothing, I'm afraid." He responded, his deep voice sounding as tired as he looked.

Unlike humans, it was impossible to tell that a Sangheili was tired just by looking at their faces. The best way to tell was to see how low one was hanging their head, and Mahkee could tell that her leader was beyond exhausted.

"If I may be so bold, Arbiter, you look like you could use rest."

The Arbiter felt a tinge of amusement at her boldness, but played along. She'd been among the first to volunteer when he'd opened up his ranks to females.

"Sleep will do me no favor, Mahkee." She seemed mildly surprised that he knew her name, but didn't voice it.

The Sangheili pilot hummed thoughtfully and set down her tools. "Would you walk with me?" She asked politely, as if she knew the Arbiter personally.

Having nothing else to do and frankly intrigued by Mahkee's offer, he bowed his head in acceptance. Mahkee wasted little time in leaving the bustling bay with Thel. When the traffic around them died down as they got farther away from the bay, Mahkee finally broke the silence.

"The loss of Sanghelios sorrows us all."

Right to the point then, everyone on this ship had lost someone they'd known, entire keeps had been wiped out with no survivors.

'Vadam keep had been hit especially hard, taking his entire family with it.

Thel was the last of his clan, as could be said for many on this ship.

Losing one's kin was far worse to a Sangheili than losing their planet.

"And drives more into the arms of Jul 'Mdama's Covenant." He added with dismay seeping into his rumbling tenor.

This was true, of course. Since the Arbiter had failed to protect their home world, Sangheili else where in the galaxy might join up simply to protect their worlds or have a better chance at beating the genocidal AI.

Mahkee wordlessly agreed, "If what the Forerunner told us is true, it will not matter as long as our adversary lives. We may all have to fight side by side if we are to win."

The Arbiter again felt his mind drift back to years past when he found himself allying with humanity after the Great Schism. It amazed him how fast allies turned into enemies and vice versa.

Though the logic seemed to work, things we're never that easy. "Survival is the most powerful of instincts, but even so..."

"This won't be easy, we all know it."

The ensuing battle would likely leave the Sangheili population even more endangered than it currently was; it might even lead to eventual extinction.

He briefly wondered if he would face a similar fate to the that of the Didact, seemingly the last of his kind.

Thinking about the Forerunner made the Arbiter change direction, one that took them deeper into the vessel.

Mahkee stayed beside him as they journeyed towards an unknown destination.

When the Arbiter finally stopped, she wondered what her commander was up to. "Where are we?" She asked as a thud came from behind the door.

"Our temporary training room, since the primary is open to space." He responded while he triggered the locked door.

When the triple paneled door slid open, the female pilot felt her yellow eyes widen at the sight before them.

Dozens of warriors, including Zealots, Ultras, and Minors were all in a coordinated battle against hard light copies of the machines the Didact called Terminators.

A rather appropriate name, if truth be told.

The large room, formally a cargo bay, was filled with crates and other debris to simulate an urban fighting environment.

Now that the Elites weren't caught unprepared, the fight was going much better than it had before. Elites were big and strong, especially in their armor. The models that they'd faced on Sanghelios put up a good fight, but they fell before the highly trained warriors.

However, according to the Didact, these models were relics from before Skynet's discovery of highly advanced technology. By the time he'd escaped, the malevolent AI had yet to develop new ground troops, but that was likely to change.

Whatever the future development in hardware, the Didact was fairly certain that the software would not improve much. Skynet liked control too much to give any Terminator too much intelligence.

The Arbiter watched as they mock battle played out until it ended in an Elite victory. Thel 'Vadam saw the battle for what it was, a morale booster. Very clever on the Didact's part.

Said Forerunner appeared next to him, seemingly out of the shadows. He stood several feet taller than any Elite, making an imposing presence for sure.

The Arbiter looked up at the masked general, wondering if he'd say anything.

Sensing the Sangheili's gaze, the Didact obliged, "You're warriors have proven their worth, but they are few."

It was a statement of fact, but that didn't ease the sting. "We will have to form alliances, even with our enemies, if we are to survive."

'Of course' the Didact thought to himself. He'd known that since watching Sanghelios die.

It meant having to ally himself with Humans. Despite his recent humbling at the hands of the Master Chief and the return of clarity to his mind, he still didn't like humans.

Humans had been the cause for so many of his problems, and the deaths of all his children during the millenia long Human-Forerunner war well over 100,000 years previous.

He could feel the demon within him twisting the proverbial knife in his chest.

No.

He would not let the insanity take over again.

The Arbiter, seeing the conflict even through the mask, spoke his peace on the matter, "You are not the only one who has a grudge against the humans, and neither are we an innocent party."

'True', the Didact thought, he had composed a large number of humans. "They will be far more accepting of you than I."

"Let us hope that is enough," he moved forward towards one of the fallen hardlight machines, "Or I fear we will all share your race's fate."

The Didact decided to keep to himself that not all the Forerunners had died during the firing of the Array, a few remained behind in this galaxy while the rest had left it out of the shame of their failure.

In his Gravemind induced insanity, he had planned to re-conquer the galaxy and then find a way to bring back the survivors so that the Forerunners could rule once more. He had believed that without the humans interference, the Forerunner's would have defeated the Flood.

If only the parasitic demon hadn't fouled his mind, but the time for what if's had passed.

Just as he was about to reset the simulation when everyone was thrown against the bulkhead. Well, everyone save him of course. It wasn't violent enough to kill anyone, but it left everyone scrambling.

The Didact didn't need the ship's systems or its crew to tell him that the slipspace had failed. The damage done in battle had finally taken it's toll.

Knowing the delay that this would put in their efforts to stop Skynet, the Arbiter let loose a single Sangheili curse before leaving the room.

More calmly, the armored Forerunner took another path.

Leaching data from the ship's network along the way, the Didact realized that fixing the rip-off Forerunner drive wouldn't be easy, especially since they had few Huragok and depleted resources. Even with what little power he possessed with just his armor, the task was still daunting.

The Half-Jaw, otherwise known as Rtas 'Vadum, was a little less reserved with his curses, especially the ones directed at the vessel's slipspace drive.

The Shipmaster turned to him and asked, "Can't you do anything?" It was both pleading and derogatory.

Foregoing a response, he got to work disconnecting the power conduits as he waited for the Huragok to arrive. Scanning the damage further, he realized that it would prevent them from arriving at their destination for several more days.

The delay was intolerable, but unavoidable.

"Our delay will not be long." He said finally as the Huragok arrived.

Satisfied and equally grumpy/tired/depressed, the Half-Jaw left them to their work.

Using his constraint fields, the Didact assisted the Huragok in removing damaged components so they could repair them more quickly. As he did, the menial task he'd assigned himself quickly bored him. It didn't take much of his significant brain power to conduct repairs.

That again left him time to think about how to defeat Skynet.

Allies were a variable, as was the current status of the AI itself. For all he knew, it could have begun decrypting the secret's of Forerunner technology and cementing its superiority. However, that was unlikely.

Forerunner technology was several levels beyond the Borg/Romulan Hybrid that the Narada was based on. However, the AI's innate intelligence coupled with both the Borg Nanoprobes and the insight it had stolen from his own mind meant that Skynet would eventually crack the secrets of Forerunner technology.

That left him with little time, a few months at the most, and he still didn't know much about the AI or it's tech, he wasn't a Builder after all. There was a reason why he underestimated Cortana; his mindset wasn't suited for reverse engineering non-Forerunner technology.

Extensive recon would be needed to find any sort of weakness in the tech, and even more so in the AI itself.

Having someone from realm from which either the AI or the ship had originated would be a great boon for them, however, he would not allow anyone to pursue such a goal, lest they make things much worse for everyone involved...

Captain Thomas Lasky was not having a good week, or month for that matter.

What had started as a successful operation to purge Requiem of Covenant Remnant soldiers quickly turned sour when they found that Jul M'dama still controlled the Promethean soldiers, despite the demise of the Didact.

The loss of a few Spartan fire teams was to be expected, but the loss of Blue Team was not. While they had no physical proof of death, the amount of Promethean weapons found at their last known coordinates, along with traces of Kelly's blood, seemed to indicate that the famous Blue Team had been eliminated or captured.

Either way, the brass hadn't been happy to hear that report, even though they'd successfully recovered the prowler.

Not that he blamed them, Blue Team had been the ones to save his life at Corbuelo Academy all those years ago.

To Thomas Lasky, they were his heroes.

On top of all that, they'd been dealing with a pesky Forerunner relic that had been disrupting their systems, and by extent, their operations on the surface. He'd been forced to bring the war criminal, Dr. Catherine Elizabeth Halsey, aboard to fix the problem.

Despite his, and other's, misgivings about having her aboard, she remained the smartest person in the UNSC. Her skills in reverse engineering and deciphering Forerunner systems were unparalleled.

Unfortunately, her skills came packaged with a bad attitude and a reputation for being unpredictable.

As it was, they'd just caught her communicating with the enemy and he'd sent her back to her cell. Her trustworthiness was sinking fast, and that made her less of an asset. Then there was still the issue of the artifact that kept them from moving. She'd hadn't yet figured out how to disable it.

Excusing himself from the bridge, the Captain went into his ready room and closed the door. Even though he was in the mood for a few fingers of whisky, he was on duty. Instead he settled for coffee.

It seemed he might have a moment of peace, but Sarah Palmer was having none of it.

She barged into his ready room looking to kill, though he could tell he wasn't the target. If he were to guess, the focus of Sarah's ire was likely Doctor Halsey.

For some reason he couldn't explain(even Roland was at a loss), Sarah hated Halsey more than most, despite having benefited from her genius. Her armor and augmentations wouldn't have been possible without the...experiments she'd done to the Spartan II's all those years ago.

"You know, people normally knock before barging in on their superiors."

Palmer had manners enough to look slightly abashed at her unprofessional entrance.

"Sorry, Captain."

He waved it off, they both knew he wasn't a hard ass like some COs could be.

"What's on you're mind, Sarah?" Since they were alone, he decided to be a little less formal.

She sent him a look, knowing that he already knew and she didn't want to be patronized.

He only crossed his arms in response to her glare.

After several seconds, Sarah finally spoke her peace, "You know, Tom, sometimes I wonder how you became Captain."

Lasky raised an eyebrow at that, as if she had any room to talk.

Sensing his ire, she elaborated, "I meant you're too nice, Tom, not incompetent."

'And you're too pig headed' he thought to himself. He liked that she was stubborn, but sometimes she took it too far. One day she'd learn that such stubbornness comes at a cost.

Despite her rough edges, she was a capable soldier who'd been a decorated and fearless ODST during the Human-Covenant War. She'd even proven to be a capable Spartan IV, one of the first to be chosen after the war's end.

However, her rise to Commander of the Spartan IV compliment aboard Infinity felt...premature, but there was no one else who had the experience who was available to take the job. They were lucky enough to get Blue Team to train the newer SIVs, but they, and the remaining SIIs and SIIIs, were either deployed elsewhere or in a higher position in the UNSC.

Still, he could see the leader she was becoming, much like the diamond in the rough he was many years ago.

"Would you like me to be more formal, Commander?" His tone was even, commanding.

She sighed and responded with a solid 'no'.

"Good, I'm not in the mood." He said before downing some coffee, still wishing it was whisky.

Instead of easing into the conversation like the Captain seemed to be doing, Palmer decided to be more direct.

"Tom, we can't let her out anymore."

"I know, Sarah, but who else is there? No one else can do what she does!"

The stark truth only made her more angry, "And we can't allow her passing intel to Jul 'Mdama!"

"We have no proof she..."

"It was only matter of time! That woman will compromise everything to get what she wants!"

While that wasn't completely true, Tom knew that the good Doctor's belief in the 'end's justify the means' could easily mean a world of hurt for Infinity and her crew.

"You won't get an argument there, but we still need that Forerunner device disabled."

Sarah almost let her emotions get the better of her, but instead settled for pinching the bridge of her nose and taking a deep breath. "You're still going to let her out, aren't you?"

To her surprise, he shook his head. "No, not unless the brass says so. I'm leaving this one up to them."

By brass he meant Serin Osman, and he was unsure how she'd want to proceed. Both knew the loss of Infinity would be unacceptable, but so would allowing Halsey to potentially betray them.

He almost feared what Osman's ONI-trained brain would come up with next to make his life hell when he told her about this.

Seeing that Lasky wasn't going to make what she considered a questionable decision concerning the good Doctor, Sarah relaxed her tensed stance.

"You know," Lasky started, "I never understood why you hated her so much."

She tensed once more.

"What's not to hate?" She growled while keeping her temper under lock and key. She didn't want to blow up in front of Tom, especially not over this. It wasn't any of his business any how.

She didn't ask why he fanboy'ed so hard over the Master Chief, and he hoped he didn't press this.

Lucky her, he didn't.

After unceremoniously dismissing her, she left his ready room and the command deck altogether.

Operations were currently being handled by Spartan Miller, and her shift was over anyway. If it weren't for the fact they were in an active campaign, she'd strip her armor off and go to the ship's bar, but she was the Commander of the Spartan IVs, she couldn't afford to be caught drunk at any time.

But hell is was tempting.

She finally made it to 'Spartan Town', and after getting her armor removed she filed a few reports; she checked up on some of her wounded Spartan's before finally retiring to her quarters.

Like most Spartans, she kept her hair short. Not shorn to the skull like some, nor did she break the rules and keep it too long. Her's was kept just long enough to pull back into a tight ponytail.

First thing thing she did was let it down before beginning the laborious process of removing her bio-suit. Once that ritual was over with, she stepped into the shower and let the water roll over her tense muscles.

She didn't normally waste time bathing, but today had been...well... stressful.

Letting the hot water pour over her face helped her drown out the emotions rolling through her. All she wanted to feel was the water and nothing more.

It wasn't just Doctor Halsey that was putting her on edge, nor Jul M'dama's Covenant forces down below.

In fact, it was Lasky that was bothering her.

Sarah had always been a stubborn, bull headed person who didn't really know when to quit when it came to finishing her task.

It was part of what made her a damn good ODST, it also why she survived the war.

ODST's weren't known for their long life span during the Covenant War, very few made it to the end alive. Those who did typically became Spartan IVs. She had been one of the first.

Most people who reached a position of authority, like her and other high level officers, all seemed like carbon copies of one another with the usual quirks thrown in for good measure.

People like Tom though...people as nice as him usually didn't become Captain of the UNSC's flagship.

He was certainly one of a kind.

Tom was already XO of Infinity when Sarah was recruited into the Spartan IVs, and even then she wondered how he'd gotten such a prestigious assignment.

In the years since she'd heard stories about him, about his prowess in battle, about how he was always able get out of tight spots and salvage a seemingly hopeless situation. Though his exploits were never widely publicized like Jacob Keyes or Admiral Preston Cole, the brass knew he had talent.

Sarah knew it too.

After spending half an hour in shower, she dried off and but on a fresh bio suit. It was important to be ready at all times, if there was an emergency, all she'd have to do is put on her armor and go.

Sleep came easy to her, unlike most, she had few demons to wrestle in her soul.

Dr. Catherine Elizabeth Halsey.

A name few knew, but those who did either hated her, were jealous of her, or grudgingly admired her.

She wasn't sure anyone liked her anymore, no one alive anyway.

Burning bridges seemed to be her specialty.

Almost anyone she cared about was either dead or didn't care about her anymore.

Most days it didn't bother her, she was often too busy working on some project to think about it, but now that she was trapped in a cell with nothing to do...

Well, Halsey was remembering just how many regrets she had in her life.

To most, she was a cold, heartless bitch, but the real problem with Halsey was that she cared too much.

She cared too much about humanity to let it destroy itself, so she joined ONI and created the SPARTAN IIs.

She cared too much about the children, whose lives she'd ruined to save humanity, so she forced the augmentations before they the procedure was perfected.

She'd done it so ONI wouldn't replace her with someone who wouldn't care about them, and do the procedures anyway.

30 of the children died, 12 were physically disabled. While some were resuscitated and/or recovered, others never recovered, and some stayed dead.

One of the disabled was now her archenemy. The one responsible for imprisoning her and using her as a slave.

Not that she didn't deserve it though, but that didn't mean she had to like it.

She'd also cared too much about her daughter, Miranda, and sent her away so that she'd be raised by a person more able than her.

Her father, Jacob Keyes, who'd been an instructor at the academy at the time, did a much better job.

In the end though, Miranda had hated her mother, and she'd died before they could reconcile.

The list grew on and on, but those were the ones that caused her the most grief.

However, speaking with the enemy was not one of those regrets. She had been so close to getting some real answers about Requiem and its technology, but she'd been sloppy and subsequently discovered by the so called Spartan Commander.

Now she sat in a cell with nothing but her past for company.

However, she knew that wouldn't last long, something was bound to happen...

Suddenly, the holo-plinth on the wall activated and a long frustrated sigh escaped its speakers.

"Can I ask you a question, Doc? What were you hoping to achieve with your little subterfuge?" Roland asked with something close to confusion mixed with disdaine in his voice.

Halsey would have smiled if had served the purpose, but she finally had something to do.

Escape.

A/N: Sorry for the wait again, life's been crazy the last 5 months since I posted. I should have posted this sooner, but I haven't had much time to edit.