A/N
Heyo, people! Good to be uploading again. With another different story lmao. Oh well, I don't think I'll ever stay consistent, but hey, it keeps y'all on your toes and maybe you have something different to read on the occasion I do update any of my fics lol. Anyway, here's the first chapter of Blood and Ash, where we meet Tai and she meets the Chief. I don't entirely know how 117 would act as of yet, but I'm getting a feel for him the more I play Halo. But, I'd just like to remind y'all to submit oc applications if you want your person in a fic, whether it be this one or another, either is cool with me, Ima need variety. Anywho, Ima shut up now, and let y'all get to reading.
One
The smoking fields of the planet were being bathed in a swath of gold, the setting suns giving off an amazing sunset for a day so horrendous. Thousands of people had died, possibly more than half of the population of the planet itself. Talian wasn't a huge planet, not like Earth or others like it. It only had a good million in its entire population.
Red dust settled as a figure came skidding into the fields, her motorbike a black blur in the late afternoon light. Tai came to a stop near the forests surrounding the fields, her light blue eyes tracking the trail of a seemingly downed cruiser. She had been one of the only ones left alive near their base, and the only one physically able to walk about, so she had been assigned look out.
As fate would have it, it was during her shift when this random ship decided to come crashing down into the forests of what was once her farm land. Because of the trees getting denser, she ended up having to leave her bike behind. Begrudgingly, the girl slid off her bike, landing easily with an almost silent thump, and began her walk into the ever darkening forest.
By the time Tai finally found the small crater the ship had made, her arms and legs were scratched up, small bullets of blood running down to her finger tips. The trees rustled behind her in the sudden breeze, causing hairs on the back of her neck to stand up. She shuddered slightly and thumbed at the offline energy sword at her hip.
Every time she moved or shifted, the sword pressed into her stomach, somehow managing to calm her edged nerves. As she carefully made her way towards the smoking ship, she let her mind wander, fiddling with the sword strapped to her thigh. If this downed ship held some sort of Covenant crew, she knew she wasn't capable enough to actually defend herself, even with a weapon she was well versed in. But, if it held someone who could actually help the civilians just over the ridge to her back, they could have some chance of survival, better than what they have now, anyway.
After what felt like ages, she finally made it to the site of the crash. In between the dense trees and shrubbery, she could see the massive form of a green Pelican ship. She let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding, her mind taking in the fact that the ship was of UNSC origins, meaning that what she'd just found wasn't the Covenant.
More rustling came from the trees in front of her and she carefully peeked around the sides of the practically destroyed Pelican. Suddenly, the leather strap around her throat felt a little too tight. A behemoth of a man lay before her slightly, his suit of metallic green armor holding him up in the branches like a widow-maker. She let out a small squeak in surprise when the tree groaned at the man's weight.
Tai heard the crackling of the sturdy branch starting to break, and suddenly, she was throwing herself on the ground and rolling away from the tree, her body acting before her mind could fully comprehend what was happening. Good thing she did, because not even a few seconds later, the branch holding the man up snapped like a twig, dropping the man's weight with a loud crash.
She winced and looked around the desolate forest. There was no telling where the Covenant was. After a few minutes of a very loud silence, the teen walked closer to the unmoving body. Tai studied the charred metal of the suit, the armor looking like a mix between a space suit and knightly armor.
As she got closer to the man, she noticed some dark red stains on the metal and ground surrounding the ship and the suited man. Tai winced when she noticed where the blood was coming from. From far away, it looked like small dents, but now that she was closer, the gashes in the armor had pierced through the metal, slicing through a black under suit. Blood was still steadily flowing from the claw marks, welling up in the crevices of the suit.
With the suns starting to set, and her time away from camp running out, Tai quickly shook off her light jacket, using a knife she kept against her back to rip the material to shreds. She knew of the Spartans' aversion to taking off their armor around those not in the medical field, Tai did what she could to press the cloth against the bleeding wounds, pressing the fabric into the suit.
She startled when she heard a low groan coming from the man, hissing when her hand snagged onto the torn metal. Tai let out a string of curses when the sound of wraiths could be heard over in the distance, slowly getting closer. Out of time, Tai violently shook the man, nervously trying to get him to come back to full awareness. Suddenly, a huge hand snapped out and clasped onto her wrist, squeezing it painfully.
Tai winced and tried to get out of the Spartan's grip, but it was no use. She watched as his cracked visor slowly lit up, signaling him finally coming back online. His head moved to stare at her, and she instinctively knew he was studying her. As well as the Covenant weapon on her side.
Slowly, the man stood up, her wrist still wrapped in his hand. Tai couldn't help but watch in awe as the Spartan just kept rising. The guy was massive! Even without the armor, she didn't have a doubt that he would tower over her. She had to stand on the tips of her toes just to keep from twisting her arm. She shuddered. She was pretty tall for someone her age, standing at just five foot six, and he still had a good foot and a half on her.
The Spartan glanced around quickly, before finally looking back at her. He let go of her wrist and she brought it to her chest, noticing the steadily darkening bruise in the form of his fingers. He hadn't even held her that tightly, but clearly there was more strength to him that she thought.
"Where am I?" The Spartan asks, his voice low and rumbling, even with the voice modulator in his helmet.
"You crashed onto the planet Talian. We're a mining and military planet. I'm Tai Hover. Do you remember your name? Who and what you are?" She replied, taking a gamble when subtly asking for his name.
Clearly, the man knew what she was doing. He hesitated slightly, gaging who she had said she was. "I'm Spartan-117. Master Chief Petty Officer of the UNSC."
Tai let out a slow breath. She might not have gotten his actual name, but a rank was still something she knew he'd respond to. It was better than nothing. She ran a dark hand through her cropped hair, trying to figure out how to tell the Spartan they had to leave. Turns out, she didn't have to.
"It's getting dark, and the Covenant are bound to come and find me. Do you have a camp or something we can retreat to?" The Master Chief asked, walking back to the crashed Pelican. He rummaged around for a bit, picking up a discarded bulldog and a pistol. The Master Chief slung the bulldog onto his back, cocking the pistol and attaching it to his hip holster, the guns clicking into place.
"Yeah, actually. It's not much, but just over that ridge there is where we're hiding out for now. But with the Covenant so close, we're gonna have to move. Again. But, there's a woman there, Lydia, she's versed in medicine and can do a much better job for your wounds then I could." Tai stated, starting to walk back through the woods, leading the Chief to her motorbike. Thankfully, it was the one that could fit two riders. But, with the Spartan's weight, she didn't know if it'd be able to carry them both.
It's as they're walking through the forest that it happens. It was sudden, with the only hint of danger being the haunting smell of burning flesh. A scream tore its way through Tai's throat, the pain pulling her to her knees, her right arm cradling her left to her chest. The smell of burnt flesh was hot in her nose, the coppery scent of blood only making it worse.
As more plasma bullets rain down around them, the Spartan throws himself on top of Tai, shielding the much smaller frame of the teen. He draws the bulldog from his back and takes aim, easily cutting down the Covenant grunts and jackals that had started to surround them. His senses warn him of a figure behind him, trying to sneak up on him, but before he can fully turn around, Tai has the grunt taken care of, the energy sword once on her hip now sizzling in the stomach of the triangle-looking alien.
Tai grunts as she forces the sword out of the grunt, shaking the blue blood off of it before putting it back on her thigh. She swears and covers the wound on her left arm with the scrap piece of leather and fabric she had over the scarring on her throat. Soon, the Covenant lackeys were taken care of, their bodies still steaming from where they were hit with the plasma bullets of a needler and the normal rounds of the Master Chief's bulldog and pistol.
With much more effort than she would've liked, Tai hauled herself up, taking the offered hand of the Chief. She wobbles slightly and looks down at her legs. When she'd fallen from the plasma blast, she must've twisted her ankle or something. The Chief takes hold of her arm and steadies her, letting her take the league back to her motorbike.
By the time they get to the entrance of the forest, the suns have long since set and the night had grown cold. Tai shivers slightly, goosebumps rising along her arms, her shredded jacket hanging across the Master Chief's major wounds. Her blue eyes study the vehicle in front of them before she lets out a tired sigh. This thing would never hold the combined weight of the two. Guess they were walking then.
That's it for the first chapter. Remember to follow and favorite this if y'all wanna see how the Chief and Tai get along. Have a good summer and until next time, with one of these fics lmao.