CHAPTER 2
O come, desire of nations, bind
In one the hearts of all mankind
Bid Thou our sad divisions cease
And be Thyself our King of peace
2154 HOURS, DECEMBER 25th, 2559 [MILITARY CALENDAR]
ZETA HALO
Recovered five days ago, ONI agent Waylon Dill had been found by Osca' team after he pinged an SOS transponder. They found him barely clinging to life, two other operatives lay KIA nearby. Three Jackals riddled with bullet holes and a Grunt bleeding from its head were also found dead. An MA5K with a depleted magazine and combat knife stained in blue blood told the story of that encounter.
Since then, Dill had drifted in and out of consciousness, only fully regaining awareness shortly before Rukundo and his team began their mission briefing. As he listened to the conversation, Dill noted the earlier optimism gradually evaporate as the squad discussed their limited resources.
"Evacuating from the Infinity was a madhouse," Dill began. "My team and I were Section I intelligence-gatherers, but you didn't need to be an intel specialist to see things going sideways. We managed to grab as much ammunition and weapons as we could carry from a nearby armory and loaded them into a Gun-Yak APC. We hitched that onto a Pelican and dived for Zeta Halo's surface."
Rukundo's ears perked at that revelation. A throwback in terms of design to the APCs of the 21st century, the Gun-Yak was the UNSC's attempt to refine that concept and push it to new heights. While usually seen as just an infantry transport to the untrained eye, the lieutenant knew the true versatility of the APC's capabilities.
It boasted a suite of offensive systems from an anti-armor gauss cannon, machine gun emplacements, and an anti-aircraft missile turret. Toss in its layered armor designs and host of direct and indirect counter-measures to things like long-range missiles and you had a formidable asset at your disposal. It would be the perfect support vehicle for the raid.
"Good thinking," Osca said, snapping Rukundo back to the discussion. "But I don't remember seeing a Gun-Yak at your location."
"The Pelican got shot down by a Banished AA gun," Dill explained. "We managed to detach the APC before the crash. Thankfully, our personal AI, BADGER, uploaded itself into the vehicle's systems and has been pinging its location to my TACPAD. Our pilot didn't survive, and we barely did, but we were heading toward the APC when a Banished patrol ambushed us."
Dill went on to explain that he and his team were hoping to use the Gun-Yak as a base of operations to eavesdrop on and disrupt Banished operations. They knew they couldn't tackle the whole ring, but they'd be able to cover a lot of ground in the region at least. Optimistically, should reinforcements arrive they could use the H.P. laser module to uplink with orbiting vessels and call for help. It was a solid plan, but ever since the Infinity arrived nothing had gone according to plan.
"Is your AI still pinging its location?" asked Rukundo. "If so, how far out is it?"
Dill set his tablet on the holotable and, using his uninjured hand, projected the vehicle's location onto the map. A blinking marker appeared 17 kilometers due northeast.
Slightly out of the way from way to the outpost, but that could easily be made up for if the Gun-Yak is intact enough to go its top-speed, thought Rukundo.
Finally, Rukundo declared, "I have a plan, listen closely now."
2420 HOURS, DECEMBER 25th, 2559 [MILITARY CALENDAR]
ZETA HALO
Rukundo couldn't have asked for a better Christmas gift than the sight of the Gun-Yak nestled beneath snow-dusted pines 45 meters away. Hidden by a natural embankment and the cover of night, the lieutenant scanned the area safely from his position. The low-vision enhancement of his helmet's VISR system painted the scene vividly: friendlies glowed green, the Gun-Yak shone yellow, and scattered weapons twinkled in soft blue.
Unfortunately, hostile Banished forces along with an occupied Shadow troop carrier burned a bright red near the Gun-Yak. Pulling up a monocular telescope, he was able to identify and tag eight enemy combatants. Two Jackals patrolled the perimeter, Zubo-pattern beam rifles at the ready, while two Grunts and three Brutes milled about tinkering with the Shadow. Atop the vehicle, a Grunt manned a Shade plasma turret—though it seemed more interested in napping than scanning the horizon.
Satisfied with his reconnaissance, Rukundo slid back down the embankment to discuss strategy with his squad.
PFC. Orion "Rig" Chakrii, the team's EOD specialist, was feeding a belt of 40mm grenades into their M460 automatic launcher. Typically mounted to aerial vehicles like Pelicans or Falcons, Rig's natural strength and the aid of a harness with articulated support arm made lifting the bulky weapon a breeze.
"Make sure to utilize caution when firing towards the Gun-Yak, Rig," Rukundo reminded the soldier with a tap to the gun. "It'd be a shame to ruin our new toy before getting to try it out."
Rigs depolarized his visor and smirked, "Aye, sir."
Rukundo sized up the squad's automatic rifleman, Pvt. Katie Schattenstern. Even if not compared to Rig's size, Schattenstern was certainly on the smaller side for an ODST. Yet he never met a more component SAW gunner in his life and the wake of Covenant and Banished she'd left in her wake in his time knowing her was staggering.
Boasting a similar harness setup like their brave explosives expert, Schattenstern was able to wield a modified SAW boasting stabilizing jets for recoil control that was also capable of taking in a 300 round drum of 7.62mm rounds.
"Short controlled bursts, if you could," the lieutenant remarked.
"Understood, Padre," Schattenstern said.
The remark hadn't been a criticism, a fact both knew. With ammo shortages what they were every last round needed to be used efficiently.
Next he stood to face the squad's designated marksman, Sergeant Michael Bravo. The man busily inspected his M395 DMR for even the tiniest detail that could impact his performance.
"See any problems, Bravo?" asked Rukundo.
"Not yet," responded Bravo, studying his rifle's Sentinel sight. "But wish I requisitioned a new scope before we got stranded on this fuckin' ring. Old one's been through the ringer fifty times over and with all this fighting I'm just praying it won't conk out on me."
Abe patted the man's shoulder and gave him a quick, "It'll be fine" before moving back into a more central position in front of his squad. He clasped his hands together and announced, "Brothers, sister, let us begin."
As an officer and a chaplain, Rukundo was responsible for both the physical and spiritual well-being of those under his command. Some sought his services during moments outside of combat, others did not. Among his squad only Schattenstern was a fellow Catholic; Rig claimed no affiliation with any one denomination while Bravo simply declined comment when asked.
Regardless, all showed respect as he prayed before a mission or entering combat. Schattenstern held her rosary, Rig kept his head bowed, and Bravo simply stood silently with his hands held behind his back.
"God our Father,
Maker and lover of peace,
To know you is to live,
And to serve you is to reign.
All our faith is in your saving help;
Protect us from men of violence
And keep us safe from weapons of hate.
Grant this through Christ our Lord.
Amen."
After Rukundo had finished, Schattenstern added an additional intercessory prayer beloved by Catholic ODSTs in particular:
"St. Michael the Archangel, first Helljumper against the forces of darkness, guide
us as we descend into battle.
Be our sword against the enemies of mankind in the earthly realms and divine
spheres.
May God give us the strength to overcome our enemies; and do thou, O Prince of
the Heavenly host, by the power of the Lord, cast into hell Satan and the hordes
who prowl the stars seeking to deface your creation.
Amen."
Rig, for his part, opted to share a brief portion of his favorite Psalm, Psalm 23:
"The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside still waters;
He restores my soul.
He leads me in right paths for his name's sake.
Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil;
For you are with me
Amen."
Bravo simply said, "Amen. Now let's go kick some ass."