Manhattan, New York City, New York State.
En-route to the United Nations Headquarters
The National Guard had been called to help ensure the safety of the travelling motorcade alongside Police and EMT services. Several more Humvees had been called up to the boulevards of New York to escort the Motorcade from the Hotel it had arrived to in the middle of night to the UN Headquarters. Even so, the National Guard had to deal with an influx of several million people on the streets of New York, many of them fans of the series that had found out just in the morning, via a photograph of a Warthog circulating on the internet, that the UNSC's representatives have arrived.
Halsey stared, almost bug-eyed, at the sight of the many people lining the streets of the city, waving banners from the tops of houses and wearing bright smiles. Some had climbed lamp-posts to greet them, waving with their hats. Others had simply shown up in what was called 'cosplay' of UNSC troopers and even SPARTAN armors made of cardboard and various other materials. The good Doctor was tense enough about the CODE VERMILLION on this planet as it was...
The one thing these men and women all had in common, it seemed, was the fact that they knew of the Halo series, its characters and people. The cheers that filtered through the bulletproof glass of the limousine caused the vehicle itself to shake very lightly. Meanwhile, on the Warthogs, the Chief, his SPARTAN comrades and the people driving the other vehicles around them had to contend with people throwing flowers and petals their way. There were also people of all races and creeds among them, clearly, since Chief could see traditional headwear from various religious groups among them.
"Steady," Chief spoke from the fifty-cal gatling on the back of his 'Hog, which he kept pointed up at the sky and on safe...
"Good lord..." Cortana murmured as she looked through the Chief's HUD. The man panned around, to the sight of the many thousands lining just this street alone. It was, surprisingly, not a disproportionately-male crowd as the nature of the video game would've suggested. Rather, it was a nearly-even split down the 'middle', so to speak, with many girls greeting the SPARTANs ear-piercing cheers. The AI added, "This is one hell of a crowd. Even thicker than in Japan..."
Chief linked to the radio network of the New York National Guard, only to hear the boys and girls aboard the Humvees and the one LAV that had joined them talking. The commander of the LAV spoke to his men calmly, "Jesus H. Christ, I haven't seen this many people since the President's inauguration speech. And that was two fucking years ago, goddamn..."
"Nerds do have a big coverage, man. I hear that, not only do we have a shitton of fans of the games in our fair state that came from across it to see this, we got people from all across the country. Shit, I'd probably be out in the crowd, too, if I had Shore Leave today... But it really ain't every day you get to escort the motherfuckin' Master Chief and his team to the UN," Quipped one of the HMMWV drivers up front, his buddies letting out hollering laughs. Two of the Humvees were unarmed up front, with only troops poking out of the top. They had M32 rotary grenade launchers lent by US Marines draped over their shoulders, most probably loaded with crowd control grenades, like CS Gas.
Kelly looked up as the chop of rotor-blades filled the air. Above, Army helicopters, including Apaches and Black Hawks, flew in formation. Police helicopters flew low, while police cars held the corners of the streets with armed policemen carrying pistols and more tear gas out on patrol. They'd fenced-off the sidewalks as well, she then noted. She quipped, "It's almost as if we're in an impromptu 'welcome home' parade..."
Linda hummed as she held position, mounted on the Gauss cannon. She listened into the crowds, listening various cheerful cries ranging from "Welcome to Earth!" and "God bless the UNSC!" to directed calls, girls calling out to the Chief, "We love you, Master Chief!" and boys yelling out, "You're all fricking heroes! You're our generation's heroes! We're all so happy you're real!" as they held up a banner with the same writing as the Japanese had. "WELCOME HOME, UNSC!" This banner, hanging off the fences, had various artistic pieces representing Chief, Cortana herself and various other scenes from their lives that were represented, sometimes erroneously, in the games.
Linda also picked up various ill-intended cries from within the crowd. "Killers! IMPERIALISTS!", "Get that War Criminal Halsey and her Frankenstein's Monsters off of our fucking world or HANG THE BITCH!" and "The Revolution isn't broken here, you Capitalist lapdogs! The Koslovics will rise here if they're gone in your world!" words which made Linda sigh deeply. Those voices, however, quickly subsided once they realized that the crowd of those happy to see them outweighed them.
It didn't stop one idiot from jumping the fence and throwing a rock straight at Linda. The SPARTAN's hand nigh-instantly snapped up and she caught it mid-flight, which stunned the thrower. Linda glared at him, all the additional visual systems on her helmet flaring up. That made the man stagger just as Police pinned him to the floor. She looked at the rock, sighed and dropped it onto the Warthog's flatbed.
"You good, Lin?" Inquired Kelly as she looked around.
"Yeah. Just punks screaming. One tried throwing a rock..." She replied before kicking the item off the Warthog and onto the road. "Didn't work."
"There's always someone," Sighed Kelly, leaning back into her seat. Linda hummed in agreement, not even disappointed by the fact there were aggressive people, even across the multiverse. Kelly cued her mic, then said, "I think I can see the HQ from here..." before pointing out toward the massive monolith of glass, stone and concrete and the campus around it. Central in the view were the hundreds of flags of the nations making up this supranational institution's Committees, Councils and Divisions.
The fact that this kind of security was even needed for their arrival irked Halsey as she looked on from within the vehicle. Their arrival should've been secret... Though she realized with a deep sigh that nobody had told the Soldiers that would go on leave not to speak of the UNSC's presence. Very likely that the word would've slipped through the Gate the moment one of the bigger fans of the games had come out and went on a forum. The photo of one of their Warthogs coming out of the parking lot early in the morning did not help their case, either, considering...
Piña spoke softly as she looked up at the various buildings and university campus-related things on this road, her awe and reverence audible through each single word, "Buildings that touch the very heavens... All lived-in. Many tens of millions living in one such city, so diverse, so rich in culture, even more so than Sadera... Incredible, what centuries of human skill could achieve..."
"That's New York for ya, Princess," Torres remarked with a grin, "Still ain't got nothing on Texas as a state, but I feel like NY's a good tourist trap."
"Huh?"
"Figure of speech. Means a place tourists know and would visit..."
"Ah..."
Halsey rubbed her eyes, then shook her head and said, "This is gonna be a pain..."
"We'll be alright, doc," Richard spoke, "Crowds aren't that big a deal."
"Mhm," Halsey sighed deeply, then leaned back into her seat, murmuring to herself, "Tell that to Franz Ferdinand..."
Richard snorted at that historical quip.
"I do have to admit, this is getting me jittery..." Murmured the Princess as she eyed the crowds. Bozes nodded in agreement, bags under her eyes a she looked around. Torres patted her on the shoulder as the vehicles moved along the road. She smiled and nodded in thanks to the man, then looked to a seemingly eager Rory. Lelei, meanwhile, kept an eye on the crowds and the vehicles around them.
The National Guard forces around also stunned Rory somewhat. The sheer military presence one must have to be able to deploy troops both beyond the borders and at home to maintain security in such numbers... She looked toward Itami and Torres and asked, "How many soldiers do your armies have, Lieutenant Itami? Lieutenant Torres? I've never seen such a deployment of forces before, even during my few visits to the Imperial Capital..."
"The US Military's total is at around one million three-hundred thousand active duty personnel on last estimate, while Japan has two-hundred forty-seven thousand personnel," Torres replied. The words seemed to terrify the young women of Falmart, with Tuka gazing toward the Lieutenants as if they'd just spoken of the devil himself being on their side. Torres also added, "We're running thousands of vehicles, hundreds of warships and many thousands of aircraft. The logistics divisions alone have many people. Not to mention reservists which are just shy of eight-hundred thousand."
"By Emroy," Murmured Rory, stunned, "And... How many are currently deployed on Falmart?"
"... A few thousand, give or take? Maybe somewhere in the ballpark of like, twenty thousand with what's coming in now. Though much of the new numbers will be from our Allies in NATO and Asia." The man replied, causing even the Princess to double over, staring at him with wide eyes. He shrugged, asking, "What? Did I say something wrong, or...?"
"That would be quite a few Legions in their eyes, Lieutenant..." Halsey murmured as she lifted up her tablet and started looking over her notes.
"I-indeed..." Bozes trembled. Shino and the others looked to one-another, with Rosie grinning proudly while Stavrov shook her head, letting out a short chuckle. The group watched as they were on 'final approach' to the UN HQ, before Bozes asked Richard, "What of your troops, Lieutenant Samuels? Doctor Halsey...?" and both the man and the lady looked to one-another.
Halsey hummed and said, "On a last checkup, a few hundred million across all branches..."
The entire vehicle suddenly stopped dead, save for the UNSC Marines and Tyuule herself. She nodded to her comrades, arms crossed to her chest, then told them, "The UEG, despite having survived a genocidal war I'm sure miss Kuribayashi knows about, considering her relation to the Halo 'Fandom', still hosts a massive population across a multitude of worlds. It's only natural, with them being modeled after the United States, to maintain a large military, especially considering some of their largest warships require thousands to man."
"That's... Fair..." Torres murmured, "Still..."
"Holy shit..." Itami looked to Shino, who shrugged and smirked.
"There is a little over a hundred million known people within the Empire itself. Your maintained military forces are beyond even the Known World's population..." Lelei observed, "That is incredible..."
"And yet, true..." Halsey hummed as the vehicle stopped. The group watched as the driver got out of the Limo and walked up to the left-side door, popping it open. They began to dismount, the ladies going first, with Halsey in the lead. The good doctor had been practically forced by circumstance to wear her Admiral Uniform, her labcoat draped over it like an add-on, rather than a normal part of her attire.
The Military personnel aboard had also picked out their parade uniforms and disembarked, with the Chief and his SPARTANs being the only ones without uniforms. Then again, their MJOLNIRs were just imposing enough for the camera crews as they joined the line. Hundreds of journalists from a multitude of national, international and small-time local publishing companies photographed the soldiers and UNSC Representatives, extended microphones and yelled overlapping questions for the woman.
Chief hummed, "Didn't expect there to be this many cameras..."
"And we all thought you were gonna wear something nice, Chief," Kuribayashi smirked, having seized the opportunity. Torres rolled his eyes. He had played Halo 2 once. He had loved the beginning, but the rest was just not his cup of tea, so he knew the reference. Chief, meanwhile, looked to Kuribayashi, who smiled, her cheeks faintly tinted red, as she said, "As the old saying goes, Chief... Folks need heroes. Gotta smile while we can, right?"
Chief took pause, humming as he thought about it. His mind flashed back to an old friend... And he nodded, "Agreed, Sergeant."
She beamed, face glowing red, while her teammates and the UNSC personnel chuckled. Halsey quipped, "I agree with John, however... The flashes are thoroughly blinding..."
"Let's proceed inside, then," Torres said. The National Guard members and SPARTANs formed up around the staff as they walked up the stairs of the massive building, between the many flags of the United Nations and toward the Central Building where the General Assembly would be held for this extraordinary time. Various news crews spoke aloud of a new future for mankind and of these new arrivals as cheers still rang high from the people in the streets.
Entering the imposingly opulent place under escort of armed personnel, the Doctor and her staff were met by the gazes of several United Nations representatives already. Halsey hummed, arranging the patch on her left shoulder as both the men and women of the place smiled. Some of the UN Representatives of various nations greeted the Doctor with smiles, others with glares. The woman maintained the poise of a diplomat, face impassive as she walked toward the backstage area. She could see, past glass doors, the Assembly's amphitheater with its designs and marble and the UN Logo hanging high above the raised podium.
Descending into the rear areas, the 'ready area' so to speak, the woman was greeted by the sight of a few armed guards carrying short-barrel carbines of a Russian make and clad in black suits that had bulletproof vests strapped over them, hugging the frames of the hardy men tightly. One of them tapped a microphone in his ear and spoke in Russian, followed by another, an American, clearly, considering the MP7 SMG, speaking in English. He sighed, then nodded.
"A lot of security... I'm seeing Spetsnaz and Secret Service face to face..." Murmured Torres. The SPARTANs seemed to tense for a moment, as did just about every other soldier in the group. The men nodded to Halsey and her posse as they entered backstage, before they came upon the sight of a woman that looked young for her age. Blonde hair caught in a bun on the back of her head, blue eyes staring down at a glass of water and a dark-blue uniform with rank pins denoting the ranks of a Colonel in the Russian Federation's Military, the young woman turned toward them and smiled.
Standing up, she walked up to Doctor Halsey and extended her hand, speaking in heavily-accented Russian, "Good morning, Doctor Halsey."
"Good morning...?" Halsey took her hand and shook it, though she was confused.
The Russian woman chuckled, "Oh, right, yes... You probably wouldn't know who the President was during these times. My name is Aleksandra Pomorenka. I am the acting President of the Russian Federation."
Halsey blinked, much like her UNSC soldiery, before noting, "W-We do know who the president is, ma'am. It was supposed to be a former KGB agent... Though I suppose..." She supposed the worlds would've been somewhat different, considering what she was seeing around the place. Hell, the fact that their lives were part of an elaborate video game was telling enough. Still...
Pomorenka blinked, then hummed and thought for a moment. She smiled as she realized, "Oh, you mean him. Yes, well... I presumed there would be differences between our worlds and even quite extensive ones. Tell me, how did the 1993 Constitutional Crisis end in your world? What did Yeltsin do during that time? What mistake did he make, or what didn't he do?"
"... He ordered tanks on the streets and the Army to fire on the Supreme Soviet," Richard replied from behind Halsey, "It was a Coup..."
Pomorenka paused, chuckled, then smiled brightly, "And there is the biggest difference... Over here? Yeltsin was talked down from a coup attempt by his cabinet ministers and generals. The Supreme Soviet, now known as the State Duma, and him actually reached a common agreement, saving Russian democracy... If not all of it," She sighed deeply, "We still have issues with Oligarchs in positions too high for the Country's good, but I'm dealing with that, plus the other messes the previous President and his cabinet left behind."
"... Jesus fuck." Stavrov murmured, covering her mouth, "Wait 'till Ivanov hears Yeltsin's drunk ass didn't do shit this time..."
"Talk about a change of history," Halsey murmured, then said, "A pleasure to meet you, madam President..."
"The feeling is mutual, doctor. It's not everyday you get to meet video game heroes," The President of the RF replied kindly, then looked over the soldiery present. She smiled and saluted them all, to which they saluted back out of reflex. Even Tyuule saluted. Everyone else who didn't were definitely Special Region members from what the good President could tell. Rory walked up to her and smiled at her, to which Pomorenka said, "You must be Rory Mercury, the Apostle of Emroy."
"Oh? You know of me?" She raised a brow.
"Information travels fast once your allies and troops are joined by spacers," Pomorenka chuckled, "Not to mention the fact that even the Refugees within the Settlement near Alnus Hill are talking, too," and she arranged her uniform. She turned to Halsey, tugging at her collar, then said, "Speaking of, Doctor. That will be one of the things the staff will be asking you about:How both the UNSC and UN forces come to guard a convoy of Refugees, plus the losses sustained by the Convoy..."
"I have any question they may ask already in the back of my mind as I go in, madam President," Halsey replied, pulling down on her labcoat to straighten it out, "Any that come unexpectedly, I will answer as openly as possible. The UNSC and UEG have trusted me as the representative of our interests on this alternate universe version of our home-world. I do not intend to disappoint."
Pomorenka nodded, "Spoken like a true young Politician, doctor. I look forward to what you have to say. As for the outsiders? Welcome to Earth, ladies," She nodded to the Princess, to Rory, Lelei and Tuka and to Tyuule, "Lady Tyuule, Lady Luna Marceau, Lady La Lalena, Lady Co Palesti and Your Highness, Princess Piña. It is an honor to meet the first extra-dimensional and extra-terrestrial beings to step foot on our world beside the UNSC."
"The honor is all ours, madam President," Piña replied, still seemingly jittery, as she and the Falmart residents bowed in greeting to her. The Princess spoke softly, "We came to see how this world compares to our own and..." She swallowed her own spit, then spoke with a bit of a shake to her voice, "To say we are impressed would be an understatement."
"You'll find that not just our military strength is great," Pomorenka spoke, "But our scientific know-how and civilization are, as well."
The Princess nodded, awed and a little afraid, it seemed.
"The Gods already tremble," Rory quipped, "It is strange to see them like this."
Pomorenka chuckled, "I see..." before turning to the Doctor as the representatives began gathering in the Assembly Hall, each taking their seats. The President spoke, "I will find my seat in the rear, doctor. Once more, I extend a warm welcome to our spacefaring counterpart. We shall see each-other later, perhaps," and she bowed. The Head of the Assembly called the meeting to start and began his introductory speech toward the staff. Halsey hummed, suddenly feeling a minor bout of Stage Fright. She was more used to working in the shadows, she realized...
Alas, looking back at the Chief, at Tyuule, at the Princess and the locals of Falmart, she sighed to herself and said, "I am going to need all of you on that podium with me, John. The Princess, Her Highness, miss Marceau and miss La Lalena and miss Mercury. There will be questions for you, as well, you can be sure..." and the women all nodded. Chief hummed as he looked to BLUE TEAM, all of whom were ready to join the good doctor. Halsey said, "Let the entire group move with me, then..."
As the Speech finished, the head of the Assembly motioned to the Doctor and her group and said, "And now, allow us to introduce the people we've met beyond the Gate... As I am sure you are familiar with the news, I needn't say much more myself than the fact that we welcome our advanced counterparts from beyond the Gate to our world with open arms and look forward to seeing what they have to say. Ladies and gentlemen, doctor Catherine Elizabeth Halsey and the representatives of the Unified Earth Government."
The multitude of national representatives stood up, greeting the good Doctor and her escorting units with clapping as she walked up to the podium. The head of the Assembly turned to the doctor as she climbed the podium and extended his hand, which she firmly shook. He spoke kindly, "An honor to have you here, doctor. Let this friendship begin properly."
"Indeed," Halsey nodded as the applause quietened down. She turned toward the Assembly Hall and leaned against the podium. Tapping each microphone to test it and looking around at the cameras pointed at her, from the BBC to the CNN and various local national broadcasting stations, Halsey suddenly realized just how... Terrifying the situation she was in was. She was the voice of tens of billions.
She stared at the room as silence now reigned, then sighed deeply. She cleared her throat, her mind racing. Certainly, she's faced bigger issues, like getting a budget approval for the SPARTAN Program and other such stupid things. And she was facing a genuine chance at being killed with ONI's Section 3 Naval Special Warfare Group if she said one wrong thing. Breathing in deeply, the good doctor felt a hand fall on her shoulder and looked back to see Tyuule. The girl nodded at her, smiled, then took a step back.
Thankful for Tyuule's intervention, Halsey began calmly, "Good morning, afternoon or evening, people of Earth. I would presume many of those watching this broadcast already know who we are, considering the unforeseen situation of us existing in the form of a fictional tale here..." And she let the people in the room that didn't know gasp, then continued, "But, if it is all the same to you, I would like to introduce myself and those I work for, for posterity's sake."
That garnered a few quiet laughs out of the representatives. She cleared her throat, then spoke with poise and focus, committed to the part of playing the ambassador, "My name is Doctor Catherine Elizabeth Halsey and I and those who stand behind me represent the first proper foray, the first steps, toward the beginning of a relationship between our two sister organizations."
"And those we represent? They and we are the United Nations Space Command, military, exploratory and scientific arm of the Unified Earth Government. The successor to the United Nations as it stands today," She spoke on, calm, as she gazed into the cameras, then the eyes of each man and woman that represented a nation here. "We are you. We are mankind. And we greet you, our younger interdimensional sibling, with open arms and a desire for peace."
Halsey hummed as some of the reps cheered, before continuing, "Our encounter was fateful chance, I must say. When the United Nations Space Command landed on the continent of Falmart, what you call the Special Region today, it was three years ago and we were there on an exploratory mission, simply seeking ancient artifacts of a long-gone civilization. In those three years, we have developed our presence planetside, created allies..." She motioned to Tyuule, "And built up infrastructure with the hope of, perhaps, peaceful coexistence with the Saderan Empire, the invaders that struck you as well, but that was sadly not to be."
"And then," She hummed and spread her arms, "We met you. Once the Gate opened and our common enemy sought to conquer what was beyond it, instead, they found the greatest countries in the world and their militaries, replying to an unwanted aggression with surprising moderation. It was that sight, of the deployment of the First UNSPECREG Task Force units, that has told me Mankind could be as it is in the UEG's time, united."
"It is how we came to work with the UNSPECREG forces present on the planet. The American, Russian, Chinese and Japanese presence on the planet allowed us to understand exactly what the Empire's goals were. We have openly started co-operating with your troops since the dawn of their operations there, welcoming them into our own reality. For many, this may seem strange. Why would a multinational, unified force want to welcome its divided brethren from another universe into the fray?" She asked rhetorically, "Simply put? We want to show Humanity, no matter where it is, that we are open to discussion. To working together. Because, as President Kennedy himself said, United, there is little we cannot do in a host of cooperative ventures. Divided? There's little we can do."
"We have learned that the hard way with our Insurrection, that which we face on Falmart now, together. Even before that," Halsey spoke on, "As I'm sure many of the fans of the video game series 'Halo' would know, humanity has faced a Genocidal enemy for a little under thirty years of our existence. For those who do not know, don't worry. We will speak of it soon..."
The entire room grew even more deathly quiet as Halsey left the pause for effect. She hummed, then said, "Yes, we wish to see mankind united under one banner, no matter the world or time, because we know what happens when we do not work together..."
A hand was raised, by the Chinese representative as it seemed. Halsey nodded to her and she stood up, then asked, "Forgive me for interrupting, Doctor... But would this banner happen to be that of the UEG?"
"Yes," Halsey replied calmly.
"And why do you believe that humanity should come together under that banner? Why not another?" She inquired further.
Halsey hummed, then replied, "Simple. Because the UEG and the UNSC, more-so, have been battle-tested. We did not falter under the enemy that nearly overwhelmed us ever, just like we didn't falter when two rebellions in the 2100s, one Fascist and one, Communist," She pressed the latter word, though maintained an impassive face,"almost tore mankind apart in our Solar System. We fought for every inch of ground where our troops marched and every ounce of void where our ships stood in the way of the enemy, no matter what. Even if it was our most recent foe, a technologically advanced nightmare, almost... Are you, perhaps, knowledgeable in what we fought, ambassador?"
"No," The woman replied, maintaining her professionalism, though it was clear Halsey had irked her, "I am afraid I'm unaware of what sort of danger befell mankind in your time."
"Then? Let me show you..." She replied, pulling her tablet out of her labcoat. She turned to the staff operating a projector on the left, then turned to Richard and extended it to him, "If you don't mind, Lieutenant," to which the man took the tablet. He walked down and asked for some sort of connective wire, receiving a USB. He hummed, slotted it into the bottom of the tablet and looked to Halsey. She nodded, then said, "File number six-three-seven."
The man thumbed the file as the projector turned on. Before long, a slideshow began to play, of images of seamonster-like hulls of ships in orbit of a verdant world, met by the black, straight hulls of UNSC Ships. Halsey began to speak, "In 2525, the UNSC encountered an alien force over the planet Harvest, one of the Outer Colonies and an agricultural world where a lot of food came from. We have attempted to talk with this alien force, to greet them with open arms, by sending representatives... It did not work."
The image switched to one from a satellite. The first alien ship encountered opened fire. Beams of violet hate lanced through the void and cut through the bow of one of the UNSC's warships. Then another. Then another. One single ship escaped, with Halsey stating, "There was a sole survivor from Harvest that came home to tell the tale of our enemy. They called themselves The Covenant."
A video came on, of a shaded, alien figure clad in strange garbs. It gesticulated toward them, the crown on its head shining blue and gold. It spoke, a solemn fury behind its voice, "Your destruction is the will of the Gods! And we are their instrument!"
The image switched to another SAT view. Harvest burned. Covenant warships bore down upon the world, burning-white beams of energy boiling the surface away. A groundside view appeared when the screen split. UNSC Infantry and tank columns fought planetside as the world around them burned, trying to lead people to any sort of shelter. More images played, soldiers fighting planetside, gunfire, plasma beams, the hell of a War nobody wanted, displayed in a gruesome mosaic of death and destruction. Many gasps echoed in the room, all while Shino and the others stared up, mouths agape.
Shino had read up on Glassing. Never in her life did she think she'd be looking right up at the images of Covenant ships bearing down on Earth-like planets, only to scour them clean with their plasma beams. She looked to Rory, to see the Reaper herself pale, next to a terrified Lelei and a shivering Tuka, the girl hugging herself and averting her gaze. Halsey, the SPARTANs and Marines remained terrifyingly impassive at the images, save for a faint frown on Tyuule's face.
"Christ fucking almighty..." Murmured Torres, watching an Elite bear down on a squad of Marines with an Energy sword, rounds sparking off its shield. Itami nodded, while the Princess had grabbed onto the American Marine, trembling. Bozes herself shielded her eyes. Halsey remained impassive, gauging the reactions of the people. The Russian representative and the President seemed almost too stunned to speak, while the Chinese rep covered her mouth. Behind her, the American, British, French, Australian and other reps were all terrified.
In truth, much of the place was...
The feed cut out for a moment, allowing Halsey to speak, "The Covenant started their genocidal campaign against mankind with the destruction of one of our worlds. Harvest was lost in 2525. However..." She looked straight at the PRC rep as the feed returned, "We did not give up on Harvest. Just like we didn't give up on any of our worlds, despite the Covenant's best attempts. To quote General MacArthur, we would return."
Footage now played of UNSC ships entering Harvest's orbit. Hundreds of vessels, both of combat and support roles, filtered in in front of the smaller Covenant fleet. What followed next blindsided the Alternate Earth folks:An Alpha strike that shook the very void. Dozens of MAC rounds and hundreds of missiles lit the half-empty space between the UNSC Naval Force and the Covvies. Nuclear warheads flashed against the enemy's shields, followed by the transference of Kinetic energy from ferrous slugs buckled the energy fields and punched clean through the hulls of Covenant vessels.
Torres grinned at that, "Fuck yeah, baby..."
Following that, footage taken across time showed the UNSC Navy deploying craft to land an assault force, said assault force landing, the ensuing Combat between them and the Covenant and the retaking of the planet, nearly a decade on. Halsey spoke, "The UNSC took Harvest back, one of our few great victories. Even as the Covenant bore down on us, we kept fighting. We retook one world... And we would go on to win the war with the sacrifices of great men and women..."
"One such great man was the very one that lead the fleet to retake Harvest," Halsey explained again, the image of a man with a chiseled chin, buzzcut hair and a straight face appeared on-screen. Below, his name, written in bold lettering, "VADM. PRESTON J. COLE". She spoke, "This man has spearheaded the Campaign against the Covenant and won a great deal for us, buying humanity the time it needed. His greatest victory... And perhaps the saddest moment for the UNSC, would be the Battle of Psi Serpentis, where Admiral Cole and Battlegroup India would take on two Covenant fleets and win by tactical acumen and a little bit of luck..."
Images played from Prowlers in the area, showing the moves of Admiral Cole's fleet against the Covenant Armada. Even as ships went down, the Admiral pressed and fought, feinted, struck, encircled and destroyed. He gave the Covenant a run for their money as Halsey hummed, then approached the tablet and played a sound file. Soon, a booming male voice filtered into the room, "Listen to me, Covenant."
Richard grinned, saluted and said, "God bless ya, sir..." which stunned Tyuule. Shino grinned, crossing her arms to her chest as she looked at Torres and Itami listening in. Stavrov and Rosie both saluted, as well, much like Chief and BLUE Team. She saluted, too, with little hesitation. Who the hell wouldn't salute when hearing Admiral motherfucking Cole's Last Stand?
"I am Vice Admiral Preston J. Cole commanding the human flagship, Everest." The Admiral's voice sounded hard, determined. Enough so that the Princess and Bozes had both looked up to hear him speak. Rory also listened in intently, humming. The UNSC had never mentioned this man to her and she hadn't found him in any of the materiel she was given to read. Sure, she had known about the Covenant's unholy nightmare of an attack against the UNSC, but...
"You claim to be the holy and glorious inheritors of the universe? I spit on your so-called holiness. You dare judge us unfit? After I have personally sent more than three hundred of your vainglorious ships to hell? After kicking your collective butts off Harvest - not once - but twice? From where I sit, we are the worthy inheritors. You think otherwise, you can come and try to prove me wrong." The man taunted, no hint of fear in his voice.
Images of the Gas Giant, Viperidae, detonating into a second sun with the hundreds of Covenant vessels tailing Cole's flagship. The entire planet flashed as nuclear warheads detonated in its core. The footage froze, with Halsey stating, "Vice Admiral Preston Jeremiah Cole was and is one of the UNSC's greatest heroes. One we have thankfully since found out is alive and have subsequently recovered."
Shino gasped, looking to her and whispering, "Admiral fucking Cole's ALIVE!?"
Rory hummed, then grinned, giving the photo of the man a salute and whispering, "Perhaps we shall meet some day, ye who are blessed by the God of War among the UNSC..."
Halsey chuckled as she heard the words from both. She spoke calmly, "Yes, we found Admiral Cole having a well-deserved rest on one of our more 'backwater' colonies. He did go AWOL, so there was an investigation underway, but we let him off with... Well, a light slap on the wrist and a promise to never do that again should we need him reinstated. He promised to and we let him retire without much fanfare afterward. It did allow us to reintegrate a squadron of former rebels that also fought alongside him at Psi Serpentis."
Shino seemed to be restraining herself from jumping around like a lunatic, all while the representatives of the UN and the rest of the staff seemed to be sharing smiles. The PRC representative, despite the smile she wore, asked, "You called this the saddest event in the UNSC's history... Why?"
"Most of us thought Preston dead," Halsey shot back, wearing a smile of her own. She had seen the Admiral return home to retire, of course, "Luckily... We were wrong... Our war has had enough dead heroes."
"I see..." She hummed.
"Quite impressive, ma'am," Quipped the US representative, leaning forward, "But you were getting to a point...?"
"Indeed," Halsey nodded in thanks, "Admiral Cole and all of our other heroes... Including the armored soldiers you see beside me, our SPARTANs, have brought about a victory we could never have hoped for, taken from the clutches of defeat. The Master Chief, though he may be a humble man, is one of the many reasons mankind today prospers and is able to rebuild..."
Another file played. Footage from recovering worlds, UNSC aircraft finding survivors amongst the ruins, survivors welcoming them with stolen Covenant weapons in hand and UNSC banners raised high on the reconquered planets. There was even footage of the signing of an alliance between the Swords of Sangheillios and the UEG in there, with Shino finally letting out a whooping cheer when she saw the Arbiter and Chief shaking hands.
Halsey once more looked to the crowd of Representatives and spoke, "These are some of the reasons I view the UEG as the best change of mankind at unity and prosperity. Because we can provide the security mankind needs... And we can also provide a future without many of the current issues we face in your world and time. From medical, to technological, to military... The UEG is willing to be what it always has been for us, for you. A peacebringer and that which helps us develop. In fact..."
She looked back to Tyuule and said, "Apologies, miss Tyuule, but I would suggest you tell them yourself what we've done... Best that it come from you..."
"Of course..." Tyuule nodded, smiling. She then stepped up to the podium, to the gasps and gazes of the UN reps. Calmly, she began speaking, "Good day. My name is Tyuule and I represent the Warrior Bunny population of Falmart. Three years ago, at the apogee of our darkest hour, when the same Empire that came down upon Ginza itself sought to either enslave or kill us, the UNSC came to our aid. The Unified Earth Government provided us technology and equipment, defended us against the onslaught of a misbegotten Prince and saved us from death, or worse. They helped unify my people, as well... They are the reason I and my compatriots are alive."
"Think what you may of me, or what I say, but know that I speak the truth when I say that we owe much to the UNSC and UEG," She finished, "And all we seek with the UN is a friendship like that which we have with your spacefaring counterparts."
Halsey nodded in thanks, before turning to the people around and stating, "The UNSC and UEG can be your best friends, or your worst enemies. And none of us wish to be enemies with fellow humans. Never again... The war against the Empire is a disheartening case of too many mistakes. One I'm sure even their leadership, such as Princess Piña Co Lada, Emperor's daughter herself," She motioned to the girl, who straightened up, a bead of sweat running down her right cheek, "Can see that. All we seek is peace with all our counterparts... And to bring about the same prosperity we have."
"The choice," Halsey pressed to finish, motioning to the UN, "is yours, of course. We will not force ourselves upon anyone. Just know that if a threat to our people ever comes again, such being the case with the Empire, we will answer it... With little remorse for whomever it may be if they prove themselves worthy of our worst. Thank you, people of the United Nations and people of Earth. We hope our cooperation will continue and that we can bring forth all that we can offer to our allies, including highly-advanced technologies and cures for many ailments sadly so common nowadays... Thank you for your time, representatives. If we may take a break, I'd like to talk to those beside me, then I can answer any questions you may have."
"Of course, doctor," voiced the leader of the Assembly. He stepped up to the podium in Halsey's place, then said, "We go into short break now, ladies and gentlemen. Many thank you..." and he watched the Doctor and her staff descend, all while murmurs began to echo throughout the room. He pulled up his phone, only to see various social media sites exploding with hashtags, news of Doctor Halsey, of the SPARTANs, of everything. He gazed up at the Big Countries' representatives and saw several of them already talking among each-other, with the PRC seemingly the least 'comforted' by the good doctor's words...
Understandably...