[}{]
Captain Alex Harper
August 28th, 2552
00:20
Docked with the Life Ship Garden of Eden
[}{]
"It's insane!" his Nav officer said, gritting her teeth. "We have assets groundside and we're not allowed to recover them? Those are our family, Sir."
"It's not fair" Mei said, in agreement, "but there's more going on here than we know."
That much was true. Though he and Mei had some idea regarding what had happened to Viper, the cryptic conversations with Ollie had only revealed so much. His staff loved Maddie, and Alex loved her more, but Reach was fast becoming a place where legends went to die.
"The UNSC is throwing everything at the defence and there's nothing to show for it," the Lieutenant continued, "why are we pissing assets into the wind when we could be regrouping?"
"HIGHCOM are panicked" Alex said, speaking at last, "their Winter Contingency plan was to scrub the planet but we weren't ready for the kind of force that the covenant were going to deploy."
"We were supposed to be" Mei sighed, "only Earth has better defences, and that was true years ago. Now, Earth is all that's left."
"Reach isn't gone yet, there's still a chance" the gunnery chief said, optimistically.
Just like everyone else, including the young man who had said it, Alex didn't believe him.
"Look out the window and tell me there's a chance," the Lieutenant said, burying her face in her hands. "There's zero chance for the people of Aszod if we obey that order."
Alex looked back at the text in front of his command team.
'In the event of Covenant reinforcements, all evacuation efforts are to cease immediately. You will head to rally point Zulu and reinforce Admiral Freemont's fleet to defend Reach. You will not leave the system unless ordered. You will defend Reach.'
"It's a death sentence, you're right." Alex chewed on his thumb, there was a crunch as he bit through the nail. "If we disobey this, if everyone did as they thought was best, who would reinforce the fleet? We would leave the fleet undermanned when numbers are our only chance."
"Your sister wiped out a covenant fleet, Sir, surely that makes her worth saving."
Alex nodded, "I hear you, but we stick together to get through this. One crew, one ship, one fleet, one peoples. My sister would say the same if she was here, she knows sacrifice like no one else."
The room fell silent.
No one spoke for nearly an hour.
[}{]
Maddie Harper
August 28th, 2552
08:00
Aboard the wreck of the UNSC Cavalier
The Boneyards
Aszod
[}{]
Maddie ate breakfast in silence as she felt the antibiotics and painkillers flood her system. Preston had made her some battlefield MREs and she gulped it down eagerly as she waited for him to stop staring at her.
"What?" she asked with her mouth full of tomato sauce.
"You haven't said a word about this place since yesterday."
"It's an old ship we dumped in the desert" she shrugged.
"This old ship is the last place I saw Maggie alive."
Maddie paused, meeting his gaze. It was a look that dared him to make a comment. Her eyes told him she would tear him apart if he did. Preston, however, did nothing of the sort. He simply stared at her, as if looking into another world.
"You want to take a look?" she asked, swallowing another mouthful. "Relive it all?"
Preston nodded.
"Good for you; I don't want to relive it."
"You have to, I think."
"Excuse me?"
Preston nodded, firmly, "yeah, I think you do. Reflection is important. I didn't do enough of it and it made me hate you."
"Most of the things we might have remembered will have gone, Preston. Do you even know what happened to this ship after Skopje?"
He nodded, "It was damaged over Meridian and sent here to be canabilised for parts."
Maddie huffed as she scraped at the last parts of her meal, stuck to the inside of the bag. She wrung the sauce from the pouch with her hand, squeezing it into her mouth before wiping it with her sleeve.
"Alright, fine. You want to saunter down memory lane then be my guest, asshole." she got up and began to walk down the dusty corridor to the hangar. The medbay wasn't far from there. Preston followed her and grimaced as she tucked her hair behind her ear, revealing the cybernetic eye more clearly.
"Hey, Mads, I didn't mean it to hurt you. I think it will help."
"Do you remember that holiday to the mountains when you were sixteen?" Maddie asked, as they walked along the corridor. She purposely ignored his apology, she didn't need his pity or his advice.
"Vaguely" he lied.
"The one where you told Grandpa that you were going to join the Marines?"
"How do you know about that?"
Maddie ignored him and continued, speaking as he had as a teenager "besides, it can't be that bad right?"
"Huh?"
"I want to do my part,Grandad, and I won't be able to do that if I'm not with the marines." Maddie added, repeating the phrase from so long ago. "Those were your words when Grandpa Joey returned from Actium."
"What is your point, exactly? And I didn't sound that nasally."
"You were sixteen. You made a decision, and look what it did to you."
"Ah, I see, very clever."
Maddie grinned a little, delighting in scoring a point against him again. "What would you do if you could walk into that room again, see yourself saying those words, and could change the outcome?"
Preston paused and thought. They walked in silence while he did so. "I don't think I would have let me finish the sentence, let alone leave you all."
"Do you regret it?"
"Every day."
"I don't." Maddie said, firmly. "Not after I found Tuk in that mountain."
"You genuinely believe in it, don't you?"
"I do, yeah. Everything I did, I did because I was curious. Above all else, I wasn't motivated by hate or revenge or power. I wanted to know more. Do I regret not listening to Drake? Would I prefer a life of quiet academia, studying the forerunners or humanity?" she shrugged at her own question. "Do you think if you had burst into that room, that anything you said would have changed your mind?"
Preston opened his mouth, then shut it. "Alex and Grandpa tried for two years to change my mind. Nothing they said made any difference."
Eventually they happened upn the brig, with the old interrogation room that now had a hole in the wall, melted by plasma splashing over the hull from an impact a few decks above them. Maddie opened the door and let it slam to the floor as the hinges gave way and dust bellowed into the air around them, shrouding their forms from each other.
"They hauled me here afterwards and interrogated me like a criminal. They let me go to her and see her condition and then they offered me a choice. Do you think you would have chosen differently?"
Preston watched as Maddie touched the dusty two-way mirror with her hand, leaving a print behind. She rested her hand next to it, trying to remember what it felt like to have two arms. When she stepped away, two right-hand prints were left on the glass.
[}{]
Captain Aurellian 'Ollie' Van Graff
August 28th, 2552
10:23
In Orbit Over Aszod
[}{]
"We fucking lost her." Nico said, scowling at the displays in front of him.
They were back in orbit, watching the battlefield shrink as the Covenant pressed their advance on the breaking yards. Maddie had slipped their grip, and Nico had been particularly chagrinned by it. Ollie wondered if he had ever loved someone since he had last loved Maddie. He certainly had the dark heart of someone who hadn't.
"Ya'll never had her, from what I can tell." he said, shrugging.
Drake shot him a venomous look as Nico stepped towards him, his teeth bared.
"Say that again," he challenged.
"Or what, Lieutenant?"
Nico glared but backed down, Ollie smiled inwardly, knowing that Nico knew his place. He was a barely restrained bloodhound but he was leashed.
"Alright, let's focus." Drake said, scanning the feeds, "the important thing is finding out why the Covenant has been shadowing us."
Valette remained quiet, she'd barely spoken for days and not at all since Drake and Nico tipped the covenant off regarding the location of the convoy. It was a calculated play, one that had confirmed that they were being followed by a band of Zealots led by the leader of the brutes.
"Our last op in New Alexandria, and now the convoy…" he said, as he replayed the slaughter on the sat-feed. Nico looked almost pleased as the man named Olu was hit three times in the chest by a plasma bolt.
"Not a coincidence. What did you two to piss them off?" Ollie asked, folding his arms.
Ollie cursed the Winter for its imaging equipment. He didn't like being reminded of his time as ONIs driver for their headhunting teams. The longer this went on the longer he felt a sense of dread and sickness creeping into his soul.
"Hell if we know," Nico said.
"Might you be looking for the same thing?" Valette said, quietly.
Drake turned his head towards her and smiled. "You know, I think you might be right, Lieutenant Savatier."
"What does the covenant know about Maddie?" Nico asked, his eyes flicking between Ollie and Valette.
"Oh, they know plenty." Drake said, there was more than a hint of pride in his voice. "She took out three of their rising stars, burned a whole fleet, and is in possession of heretical technology. The High Council themselves know her by name."
"They want revenge for Ballast." Ollie said, softly.
"Aye, I think they do. The covenant often dispatch collection teams to retrieve demons and heretics for sacrifice. They used to try and capture SPARTANS, took them ten years to realise it wasn't worth the effort. Spooks go missing all the time, though. Maddie herself has been captured more than once."
Ollie bit his lip. It was a lot of trauma for a person to go through, he wasn't surprised the girl could be so mopey. It served to tighten his resolve. He would be there for her, when it counted. His promise to Katya over a month ago would be upheld: when the moment came, he would come through for her. He would get her out.
"We can't let them get her first." Valette said, "if we find her, there's a chance she can see reason."
Drake smiled at her, softly. Ollie frowned, he really did seem to care for the girl.
"I'll try but I will put her in the ground before I hand her over to the covenant." he shook his head, "ARC DREAM in the hands of Maddie is one thing but in the hands of the covenant… they'd destroy it, or worse."
Nico stepped up to the debriefing console in the middle of the bridge. "If it's all the same, I have a plan to get her."
"With RED FLAG officially greenlit. Maddie has two options to get off the planet." he swiped and brought up a map of the complex, "two ships can serve their purpose. The UNSC Pillar of Autumn, and the William Wallace. The Wallace is an ice hauler, they're giant tanks built from more titanium than most cruisers in the UNSC. We can keep it grounded as a backup."
"You think she'll head for the Autumn?" Ollie said, unsure, "there's hiding in plain sight and then there's walking yourself to the brig."
Nico nodded, "I don't see her hiding with civillians, do you?"
"Point taken."
"Now, the Autumn is on priority tasking, it'll arrive on the 30th but it won't stay long enough for her to board. We can make sure that Harper or Volkovskaya think they can make it but we will need to engineer the situation a little."
"Meaning?" Ollie asked, raising a brow.
"Meaning that we need to make it their only option." Drake said. "We funnell them to the rendezvous set with Noble Team and tip off our Brute shadow. We corner them there, pick up Maddie and eliminate the Brute in one fell swoop."
"That's a lot of movin' parts." Ollie replied, "how you gonna make it work?"
"I've got a blank cheque and a direct line to Parangosky, we can do anything." Drake said, grinning.
"Kill squads?" Nico asked, hopefully.
"Kill squads," Drake replied flatly.
"Just like old times, eh, Ollie?" Nico said, his voice like acid.
[}{]
Maddie Harper
August 28th, 2552
12:00
Aboard the wreck of the UNSC Cavalier
Medbay
The Boneyards
[}{]
"So when are they getting here?" Maddie asked, her arm drawn tight across her stomach.
Preston blinked. They'd been sitting by Maggie's old hospital bed for nearly an hour, now. "Oh, uh," he checked his watch, "soon. ETA was 1212 hours."
Maddie sighed, she wanted to smoke again but doing it beside what had once been Maggie's bed seemed perverse. It had been used since, of course, but the last time Maddie was in this room, Maggie was there with her. It had some hope then. Now, it was barren and cold and slowly filling with dust. It was a metaphor, Maddie supposed. She wanted desperately to be hopeful, to see the world like Mikaela; she struggled when she saw scenes like this.
"Do you remember when we met at the frontline?" he smiled, "back on Skopje?"
Maddie laughed, "you attacked me."
"No, you beat my ass." he said, "I just wanted to know why someone had all our family heirlooms."
"Did I?"
"Yeah, you don't remember?"
"I remember how I felt when I saw you." she coughed as the dust tickled her throat, "I felt so much hope. In all that, you had lived and I had found you."
"Was it the same when you saw Maggie?" he asked, "It was for me, even seeing her in the condition she was in."
Maddie shook her head. "I only felt concerned. They told me the moment they could that there had been a complication. What I did… signing her over to them, that gave me hope she would live, Preston. I'd seen a SPARTAN in action, her name was Naomi. You should have seen her, P. She was a goddess of death and destruction. She was never fazed by any of it, she never got hurt, not really. When I saw that I thought she would be safe. It was that or die."
"ONI lie, Maddie. Don't you think they were lying about her condition?" he asked the question so honestly that Maddie couldn't be mad with him. She was tired of being angered by her brother, she wanted him to understand.
"They lie, that's true. Lies are powerful, Preston, but it's the way they use the truth that is truly dangerous."
He ran his fingers along the old gurney in silence.
Maddie tried to fish some painkillers out of her pocket but as her sutures began to strain, Preston smiled, and approached her. Taking them from her pocket and removing the little capsules from their packet. Maddie tried to reach for her canteen but he swatted it away.
"You need to let people help you, Mads." he said, unscrewing the lid.
She rolled her eyes and handed the canteen back to him as she swallowed the pill. "Would you put it back for me?" she asked, earnestly.
Preston smiled and did as she asked, "You can't do it alone, you're not a SPARTAN, you haven't had the humanity ripped out of you, yet."
"Nor will I ever" Maddie said, firmly. "I don't want to feel less, I want to feel more."
"Like Mikaela?"
Maddie nodded.
"I got you a present, actually." he said, beaming as though he'd just remembered it. "I asked Mikaela if she thought it was a good idea. She called me a moron for even asking."
Maddie raised a quisitive brow, "what did you get me?"
"A book."
"Oh!" Maddie exclaimed, genuinely surprised.
He walked over to his pack and removed a small leather satchel. He grinned, almost giddy as he handed it over to her. She took the bag from him and held it in her hands for a moment, savouring the kind gesture.
"Thanks…" she said softly. Her voice was aching with a tremor that she hadn't felt for a long time.
She lifted the leather flap and removed the book.
"A Tale of Two Cities." she said, her eyes widened.
"It was next on my list to read…" he voice wavered. Part of her wanted to sob, it was such a touching gesture. Instead, she threw her arm around him and pulled him tightly around her. "I was going to read this back on Skopje, I even had a copy ready."
"Yeah, I remember Mum saying you had it when I was buying your present."
Maddie held back tears.
"What did you buy me for my birthday, Preston?"
"Cigarettes." he laughed.
Maddie sniffed, clutching the book. "Asshole." she said, before letting him go.
She thought about Mikaela, and what she would say. Maddie wanted to hold onto this feeling. Things could get worse, she knew that. She refused to let the moment die, revelling in the warmth of such a kind gesture.
"I'll repay the favour, someday. I promise."
"No, this is unconditional," Preston said, "I'm sorry I was ever mad at you, Maddie. We've all been through hell to get here and I should have been more conscious of that."
"That's very mature of you, Preston"
"Don't tease me, asshole."
"I wouldn't dream of it, not anymore."
She hugged him again.
Maddie and Preston headed to the bridge together. Within the hour, the others had finally made their way to the Cavalier and were reunited at last. She didn't get a chance to open the book as the moment of revelry occupied most of her thoughts.
She sat down to read it but Mikaela joined her as she sat by the dusty glass of the Cavalier's bridge.
"You're sitting alone?" she asked, cocking her head.
Maddie smiled, "Yeah, this place… did anyone tell you about it?"
"Preston said that this is where the legend began."
Maddie laughed but shook her head, "that's charitable of him. This was where I made the wrong choice."
Katya approached then, with Jack.
"This is where the Covenant lost the war" Jack said, toasting his water-filled canteen.
"Not really," Katya said, "She hadn't met me, yet."
"Now that's certainly true" Maddie grinned.
"I'll say," Mikaela said, as Preston returned from his bathroom break. "I've never seen such an extraordinary group of people in one place, and I'm a xenoanthropologist."
"When we get out of here, the covenant and ONI won't know what hit them." Preston offered, to the approval of all others. "Speaking of which, where are we headed, Katya?"
"There's a refugee camp building up outside Dock A. We're going with them." Katya said, taking Jack's hand in her own.
"Aboard which ship?" Maddie asked.
"I do not know. We will find out when we get there."
We've had a few worries regarding the length of the story and my comittment to it. Yes, the releases are getting faster and shorter but that is by design, don't worry!
Pacing is key, there are nearly twenty more chapters to go and... two more days until Reach falls from this moment in the story.
Originally, the 30th of August 2552 was going to be its own story but I think it is the perfect backdrop for Maddie to finally face her past. Her story is coming full circle and what comes next will be a conclusion worthy of her character (I hope).
So, hold fast and enjoy the ride.
There will be more Star Wars snippets as well, particularly for the shorter vignettes I'll be releasing in the coming months so look forward to those. I know they lack context right now but they won't forever, I promise!