The Counters, Lucky Strikes and, by some sheer coincidence, Matis, had been deployed. The Pelican transporting the teams dipped down toward their intended landing zone:The Forward Operating Base set up by the others. The aircraft gently hovered down, pilot powering her engines to touch down. She turned back toward the Commanders of the three teams and said, "Alright, gentlemen! This is how far ya paid for!"
"Thanks for the ride, Foe Hammer!" Cortana smiled brightly, "It's good to see you again!" to which the dark-skinned woman gave a wave and a smile. The crew dismounted the moment the aircraft landed, with extra Marine security and a few other additional items, like resupply, extra fuel and ammunition and food.
The UNSC Engineers present had flattened the plateau and set up an entire defensive perimeter around it, plus guard-rails and even a new road leading down from it. A road that was dirtied by the red sands of the Great Deserts, obviously, but a road nonetheless. The group, clad in their combat armors and reinforced, marched over toward Forge, who was tending to Nadya.
Nadya herself looked up, rubbing her head, then smiled awkwardly and said, "Aly… Bit early for a reunion, eh?"
"You alright?" He asked as he and Stella walked over to her. She nodded, then pointed at her ears and toward where the signal was coming from. Rapi blinked, already hearing the repeating calls to come to it, too. She shifted uneasily, shouldering her rifle, then looked at Neon, Anis, Pinne, Niner, Sammy, Layla, Delta and Signal.
All of them had suddenly become uneasy, faces visibly morphing into concern as they started hearing the sweet nothings being whispered in their ears. Delta scoffed, checked her rifle, then walked over toward Nadya. She put a hand on the girl's shoulder and said, "We're rotating you out, Nadya. You and your girls need to rest."
"We're fine, boss," Nadya breathed, rubbing her eyes, "It's just a migraine. We've handled worse," before pausing and perking up. She looked around and asked, "Where's Nastiya?!" only for the entire group to pause. They saw the young woman seemingly in a trance, marching over toward the edge. Delta sprung to her feet and sprinted, grabbing Nastiya and suddenly feeling her fight back.
"Let me go…!" She pleaded, her voice low, "She's calling… She needs us to be whole…"
"Give me a second," Cortana spoke as she approached, gently cupping the girl's chin and breathing. Her eyes glowed blue for a moment as her connection to Nastiya's NIMPH was established, her hands glowing a little with the touch. She looked deep into Nastiya's eyes and, for a moment, a flow of data seemed to appear between both of their eyes.
Then, Nastiya snapped out of her trance and gasped, looking around and asking, "W-What happened!?" only to turn and see Delta holding her in an arm lock. She asked, "B-Boss!? What did I do wrong!?" all while Delta stared at her. She frowned, then gently let her go and pat her on the shoulder, before both of them looked at Cortana.
The AI-turned-Nikke spoke, "Seems like it's some sort of Data Stream. Directly touches the NIMPH…" with a sigh. She scratched the back of her neck, "Whatever it is, it's also using our coms to simulate the whispers. Drag you over… I'm guessing MP NIMPHs aren't shielded well enough to withstand the power of Suggestion behind it."
"Sounds like some rumored tech I read about," Alyosha spoke as he took his helmet off.
Nastiya shivered, "Scary…" before looking over at the rest of the Lucky Strikes. She asked, "What about them?"
"The Luckies are just that, Lucky…" Cortana spoke, scratching her cheek. She told them, "I've been interfacing with their NIMPHs for a while now, ever since we started working together," and she saw them all turn toward her. She shrugged and added, "Extra layers of safety and a lot more autonomy. You girls know that."
"Riiiiight," Pinne dragged out, "I forgot you like poking people's brains as much as Doc Halsey does…" which got a few laughs out of everyone. Everyone except, rather obviously, a worried Syuen. She shifted uneasily, feeling the smell of metal in the air, too. She walked over to one of the edges and peered out toward one of the ancient battlefields.
"You good?" Cortana asked her.
Syuen swiveled about, stunned to hear someone give a damn. She nodded, eyes wide, then said, "Just looking… This place was one of the few distraction missions undertaken by whatever remained of the United Forces of Humanity near Ark Guardian. It's a place with millions dead and god-knows how many scrapped."
The AI hummed, approaching the girl with her arms crossed, then said, "Would explain why they used Area 51's offsite storage for some pieces of tech. Maybe they hoped that, whenever you guys poked your heads back up and out of the ground, you could find them, use the tech to save humanity or win the bloody war."
"Obviously," Syuen started, crossing her arms with mild annoyance, "They were dumb enough to stick their noses into this 'Forerunner' stuff…" Then she mumbled quietly, "Same way I was dumb enough to look into the Flood," having no desire to give either Harris or his team the acknowledgement there. Cortana, however, heard it and offered a kind, if small smile.
The girl blushed, then looked at the AI and was about to say something, but Cortana lifted her hand and shook her head, stating, "I kind of know what it's like… Not being trusted by your own. You were still a major fucking idiot for doing what you did," and that got a scoff out of Syuen, to which Cortana continued, "However, you're paying your dues now by being stuck on the Front Line. No reason from me to make it worse for you now… Especially after I was kind of the one who ratted you out."
"Yeah…" Syuen breathed a sigh, rubbing her eyes. She spoke, "Thanks…" before turning away and hefting her gear. She marched back to the rest of the Formation. Foe Hammer lifted off after delivering supplies, before she powered her engines to the maximum. Chief walked up beside Cortana, to which his partner looked at him. He raised a brow, a faint tilt of his helmet to the right. She smiled.
"Don't worry," She shrugged, "Just keeping tabs on everyone…" before she looked at Syuen. She said, "She's just a girl now. Not the all-powerful CEO of Missilis. Not a threat to the survival of mankind. Giving her a bit of leniency should be fine. It's not exactly forgiving her for the mistakes, but it's… At least a start into her not hating who she is now."
Chief hummed, thinking for a moment. He depolarized his visor, revealing his blue eyes, tinted a faint orange by the glass, before he commented, "You get a new body and suddenly become sentimental…" more as a joke. She snorted, then started giggling, covering her mouth as she did so. Chief, meanwhile, looked at the diminutive former CEO and said, "I agree, though… If for nothing else than not spiting her into becoming a Heretic."
Cortana nodded. She made sure to transmit that bit of information to the rest of the Nikkes in the platoon formed of both the Counters, Matis and Lucky Strikes. Despite the stares of some of the girls, there was nobody against that. Creating another enemy by actively mistreating one of their own the same way she has them would make them no better than Syuen.
And Stella, for one, didn't want that. So she thought as she checked the girls of Nadya's squad over for injuries or other issues pertaining to the Whispers, or the Artifact they found. She also had that gnawing in the back of her mind, but she could fight it better thanks to Cortana. Still, it was annoying as all hell.
She gave Kalina, the last of the girls she was checking, the all-clear, before she stood up and walked over to Anis, Neon and Rapi. She said, "Well, the girls are fine, but I'll be damned if this thing whispering into my ears isn't annoying as all," while tapping her foot, arms crossed. The four girls nodded in approval.
Neon herself said, "I wish we could find the source and blast it apart. It's giving me a headache," before she looked over to the left. Far, far to the North-East, the Noise felt like it was becoming more focused, as if trying to point them. Anis nodded, seemingly not finding the will-power to snark at the girl.
Rapi herself stated, "It's mildly annoying," in a whisper. She seemed the least affected out of all of them, terrifyingly. Even if there was a faint glimmer of scarlet in her strange, bright-red eyes. The team prayed that was not what they thought it was for a moment, simply ignoring it. Rapi then turned to Stella and asked, "How are you doing, Stella?"
"I'm alright, Rapi, thanks," The girl chuckled, before the corners of her mouth turned to a full grin. She asked, "You worried about your Sister-In-Law? How sweet!" which got Rapi to cough, face burning red all of a sudden, while Anis and Neon both burst into laughter. Ah, easing the tensions, accomplished, Stella thought.
Alyosha approached, asking, "What's so funny, sis?"
Stella chuckled, then waved it off, casting a glance over at Anis and Neon so they didn't say. She also saw that, for a moment, Anis showed a hint of jealousy. Meanwhile, Alyosha walked over to the blushing Rapi and asked, "Hey, you okay? You look like you're burning up," before putting a hand on her forehead. Even through the gauntlet, he could feel slight warmth, mumbling to himself worriedly, "Don't tell me Nikkes can catch colds now…"
Rapi finally managed to utter out a "N-No. I'm fine," before clearing her throat and trying to force that blush down. She said, "It's just… A little banter between squadmates," as she cast a sideways glance at a proud Stella. Alyosha noticed this and followed Rapi's gaze over to her sister, who grinned again, proud. He gave her a gentle chop on top of the head(namely on her helmet) that sounded like he was hitting empty metal, which caused her to let out an 'Oof!'
Yet again, Anis and Neon laughed, while Stella pouted, rubbing the top of her head. Alyosha sighed, then said, "Pack your bags, girls. We're moving out in ten," before he walked over to the Chief, letting them get the belly laughs out of their systems. He crossed his arms and said, "Whatever's whispering to them all has me worried, Chief."
"Agreed, sir," The Spartan nodded. He looked over at Johnson and asked, "Sergeant-Major. Mind keeping tabs on Matis, Nadya and her Scouts while we head over to the Forerunner artifact?"
"You know me, Chief," Johnson quipped, sliding a fresh cigar between his lips, "I don't mind babysittin'. Just don't leave us hanging too much," before he joined Forge and their combined fireteams around the other Nikkes and the researchers setting up the transmission system:One of half-a-dozen similar sites containing communication antennae that would link to the satellite network and provide connection with other UNSC forces on the planet.
"We'll be back quickly," The Spartan replied. The two teams boarded the Oryx IFV and a Saddleback, a newly built Mine Resistant Ambush-Protected vehicle designed by Isabel and based on the old Warthog Chassis. It'd been extended, with the chassis and transmission turning slightly longer and taller. It was lower to the ground, too, though it had a triangular suspension bar in order to redirect blasts.
It was also more armored, with the rear cabin, which now had the mounted weapon in a turret on top, being able to house either six average-sized humans, or maybe four Spartans with their full equipment. Meaning Alyosha and Chief got plenty of space. Especially since the two of them drove the vehicle. Rapi was manning the MG.
"Shifty, this is Chief," The Spartan spoke as the two vehicles rolled forward, "Advise on Alva Particle concentration."
"Minimal for now, though I'd be more worried if you were heading East. That place is a black hole," Shifty replied happily, seemingly glad to be back at her old job. She added, "I've also got news that three of the stations necessary for that broadband transmission to the rest of the forces on the planet have been set up. Numbers 3, 9 and 12 are having trouble with a heavier Rapture presence."
"We'll head out as soon as we're done here," Alyosha smiled, "Thanks, Shifty," and he got a happy hum of affirmation from the girl. The com went quiet as Alyosha leaned gently back into his seat, eyes scanning the horizon. As reports said, Rapture forces around them were really keeping their distance and observing. He whispered, "That's really worrying…"
"Agreed," Chief replied as he turned the wheel, bringing them slowly down the slope toward the bunker containing the alien artifact. They saw a defensive perimeter set up there, surrounded by heavy turrets with Nikke-caliber weapons and UNSC Infantry armed to the teeth. A campfire burned brightly under the camouflage tarp.
The vehicles slowly rolled forward and stopped next to the stream and by the massive rock face where the bunker was. The Spartans and their Nikkes dismounted and were greeted with salutes by the Marines, all of whom were glad to see the famed Counters and Lucky Strikes here. Pinne looked at the Valley around them, sighing deeply.
Niner, meanwhile, was struggling to keep the 'earworm' that was the new Rapture transmission out. Cortana's psychic modifications to the NIMPH were helping, but not enough to really keep the words out of the girl's brain. She'd been with the Chief and the others for a while now, since the dawn of the Spartan's service as an Ark Commander.
Honestly, she was glad to have worked with them. If for nothing else than the fact Chief saved her life. A life she would've gladly given for him and the others right now. She heard a UNSC female Marine humming a tune as another played a Guitar, then turned toward the rock face and outpost and walked toward them.
The valley was a good spot for the Raptures to attack them. They had the high ground and there was only one way out of this mess, the way the vehicles had come through, meaning they were royally screwed if the damn alien mechs ever decided to attack them here. Well, no, not really. They had Commander Harris, the Chief and the Counters and Matis.
They'd be fine… She hoped, anyway. The squads gathered at the entrance, the Marines taking their positions on the barricades and activating the turrets just in case. Chief looked at Cortana and told her, "As usual, Cortana, you're in charge of interfacing. Make sure to keep it light… We don't know what this is…"
"Of course," Cortana nodded.
Alyosha turned to the team and added, "If anyone's feeling off while we're inside the bunker… Terrifyingly fresh corpses notwithstanding…" and he slid his helmet on his head, locking it in place and letting the seals hiss shut before continuing, "You call it out and leave. No reason to risk any possible repercussions for Nikkes when humans should be able to handle this."
"Okay," Anis nodded, leaning her grenade launcher on her shoulder, "Wonder if I'm gonna get to experience being sick all over again, heh," before she gently nudged Neon with her elbow. The shotgunner was trembling like a wet dog, weapon at the ready, while Stella acted about as calm as they came.
Rapi, meanwhile, shifted her rifle forward and checked over her armor plating. It certainly worked well enough, considering the marks on the breastplate told that she'd been hit a couple of times. She was glad for the upgrades, even if they felt a bit confining to certain parts of her body. She needed a helmet, too, but relegated that to a possible later issue.
Her and Alyosha's eyes met for a moment, then both turned away, the latter glad his helmet shielded his face while the former blushed. Anis's face at that could only be described as something a kin to a combination of surprise and disgust. Not at them per se, but at the fact both were still so blatantly pussyfooting around the issue. Her eyes were narrowed and mouth was slightly open.
Neon's glasses seemed to be glimmering in the sunlight, glowing white to the point they obscured her green eyes as she pushed them onto the bridge of her nose. She, too, furrowed her brows at the two, while Stella was giggling, hand over her mouth. The Spartan sighed deeply, then chopped a hand forward, the two teams moving forward.
Syuen rolled her eyes, but actually cracked a tiny smile at the interaction, much to her own surprise. She saw Pinne and Niner looking at her, eyes wide behind their own visors, before scoffing and walking forward. The two girls stared still, but sighed and followed the Chief alongside Delta, Signal, Sammy and Layla.
They entered into the bunker itself, stunned to see that it was both now lit up by the LEDs overhead and that there was just a giant piece of Forerunner technology in the middle, surrounded by the dead and destroyed. Dead and destroyed that looked about as fresh as the corpses after a firefight, too, which was horrifying.
The group slowly advanced toward the alien artifact, with Syuen mumbling, "So, this is what you all found in the North…"
"Similar, but not quite," Alyosha replied as they walked forward. He looked at the corpses around, then breathed a deep, saddened sigh. He could feel the touch of the nanomachine lattice keeping this place extremely pristine, mumbling to himself, "God, the Tech we had back then…" as they got closer to the alien device.
It seemed to flicker for a moment, the empty space between the top and bottom sections suddenly shining a bright blue. The team tensed, readying their weapons as the light washed over them. A moment later, the entire world seemed to disappear and reform. The blue of the sky and bright white of clouds below their feet caused the entire group to stagger.
"What the hell?!" Syuen balked, her voice sharp, as she stumbled back and nearly fell. Rapi caught her, causing her eyes to go wide again. The girl let her stand up straight, then looked around, with Syuen commenting, "Thanks… This is some of the most advanced holographic technology I've ever seen…"
"Forerunners are something else…" Pinne mumbled, looking around as a faint memory flashed in her mind. She shouldered her shotgun and gazed around, then paused and called out, "Uh, Commander, Chief…" while pointing at the strangest thing. The sole source of light in this strange heavenly simulation was twin suns.
"Impressive, is it not?" A female voice spoke, causing everyone to swivel about and aim their weapons. A humanoid clad in armor and a beautifully ornate robe stood there. Or hovered, in truth. Her hands were placed together, one on top of each-other, over her skirt. Despite disorientation and confusion at literally stepping on solid ground while in the sky, the teams retained professionalism.
And skill, obviously. Chief, however, raised a balled fist and then opened it, lowering his own rifle while Cortana smiled. He greeted the woman in ornate, silver alien armor with gravity-defying geometric pieces with a nod, stating, "Librarian…" before he slid his weapon onto his back. The woman, though her face was not visible behind the mask, bowed.
"Good to see you again, Master Chief," She spoke softly, like a mother addressing her child. She looked upon Cortana and said, "And your Ancilla has a body now. Welcome to the land of the living, Cortana," with a seeming fondness. She added, "I also sense you're no longer in the final stages of Metastasizing… In fact, you seem to have made it."
"Thanks, ma'am," Cortana smiled, scratching the back of her neck. She paused, then realized that last bit meant. She began running a quick self-diagnostic, before covering her mouth and whispering, "That explains a few things…" only to look at the Chief. For a moment, the Spartan tensed, but the relaxation, now visible to everyone, spoke volumes more than words could.
"Indeed," The Librarian stated. She then looked upon Alyosha, the young man taking his helmet off as she did. She approached him and said, "And this must be one of the others marked by the Genesong… A strong young man," before turning to Rapi and stating, "And his own Ancilla… Or, more-so a guardian, I suppose."
"H-Hello?" Rapi spoke, stunned.
"Please, be calm," She replied, gently hovering back and looking at the crowd of Nikkes and soldiers. She also saw Syuen, simply acknowledging the petite Nikke with a gentle nod, before sighing deeply and stating, "I presume you have a great deal of questions to ask?" as she looked at Chief. The Spartan nodded.
"... What are Forerunner structures doing on an alternate version of Earth?" Chief decided to ask first, "What are the Forerunners doing on this planet at all? And why a Station linked to the Composer?"
"I built this place in secret," The woman replied, calm, "A place outside the range and realm of the Rings, specifically to protect Humanity, meant to allow you all to thrive again," before she sighed deeply, "Although, rather obviously, it didn't end too well. Considering the Machines roaming the outside world."
"Wait a minute," Cortana blanked, "You built this place? The station, planet, or system?"
The Librarian let out a chuckle, then said, "Of course, you'd know just the thing to ask. All of it. It was a project eons in the making," before she lifted a hand. A holographic latticework of the Earth, the copy of the Sun and the entire planetary network appeared. She said, "It was supposed to be a shelter for mankind, to weather the coming Storm."
"... And the station reviving us is, what?" Cortana asked, crossing her arms to her chest.
"The realization that mankind here needed its heroes," The woman replied, calm. She clenched her fist, then said, "To help them Reclaim the Surface after the arrival of these vile machines. I've tasked the Monitors to keep them away from our Facilities, but, as you've seen with the Station in the North… Things are getting tougher."
"How hasn't any previous human been able to contact you?" Syuen asked, leaning against her shield. She continued, "We could've probably used the help from you and your tech when the Raptures first started popping up a century and some ago," to which the Librarian paused. The rest of the crew looked at her, surprised.
The Librarian sighed deeply, then stated, "Mostly dormant, seeing as humanity had developed up to a technological standard beyond even that of the Master Chief's people, at least in some aspects like the Nanomachines. The very same ones I'm utilizing to generate this little 'piece of heaven' that we reside on as we speak."
"Oh," Syuen blinked, "Right… Guess the population having a sudden nosedive would've stirred you all awake…"
"Sadly, the process took far longer than we'd have liked," The woman nodded, "Had we been quicker, maybe this War wouldn't have your kind at a disadvantage as we speak, but even our technology fails from time to time-" only to pause. The place seemed to darken, the suns fading, falling behind the horizon as darkness set in. She spoke, "... There is one nearby."
"Oh, great," Pinne mumbled as the teams readied their weapons.
Chief told her, "There's something calling to the Nikkes out there," before drawing his weapon, "We'll need your help to deal with it," All while the others, Alyosha included, immediately armored up and grabbed their guns off their belts. The Librarian herself stared at them, then nodded calmly, gently putting her hands together.
"I will point the way, but that is all I can do," She stated, "Good luck…"
And the simulation faded.