Chapter 8: Fural

Fural sat in the corner of the Unwavering Soul, holding his head up with a hand. Dom's endless droning about Halo's magnificence was wearing him out. It was almost agonising.

"I cannot wait," Dom said. "We are about to feel Halo's glory around us, and finally tread the blessed path!"

Dom hadn't noticed that Fural wasn't responding to him, he just kept going on. How much longer must I endure this suffering? He wondered.

He didn't even have the strength to silence the unggoy when they conversed with his brother; their high-pitched voices faded in with Dom's, becoming simple background noise. Halo would end up being his salvation if only because it would give him a chance to get away from his brother.

"We have arrived," 'Cinatee's voice echoed in the troop bay. "Welcome to the promised land, brothers."

The gravity hatch opened, and Fural sprang up to be the first one out. Dom's hand on his shoulder stopped him, like always.

"Please, brother," Dom said. "I would like to be the first."

Fural stepped aside, angrily eyeing his brother. "Go on, then."

Dom descended through the hatch, and Fural followed. Their feet touched soft grass, finding themselves in a brightly-lit valley surrounded by trees, and rocky cliffs. The foliage and rivers running between the grass was just like the preserve, the ring curving into the sky was a magnificent sight. Even someone who paid little attention to the environment around them could appreciate Halo's beauty.

The Phantom left after releasing their unggoy, returning to the Supreme Crusader to ferry the next squad down. Fural took in his surroundings quickly, while Dom wandered ahead, mesmerised by the landscape surrounding him.

"It is even more beautiful than I imagined," Dom said. "I never thought I would actually be here."

"You keep saying that," Fural grunted.

"Because it is the truth," Dom replied. "Dare I say this puts Rahnelo's natural beauty to shame."

"Mother would not enjoy hearing that."

"If she were here, I believe she would agree with me."

"If she were here, she would remind you that we have a mission," Fural growled. "Have you forgotten? Or has Halo's promise blinded you?"

Dom looked at his brother suspiciously. "Usually I am the one reminding you of the mission."

Fural snorted, and continued past his brother. Near their drop zone was an escape pod from the human ship, 'Cinatee spotted it on the way down. It was likely there were dozens of pods scattered all over the ring. Tracking them all down would be nearly impossible, but they had to start somewhere.

Cleansing the humans from the galaxy had been a long process to begin with, Fural was getting used to it. And as long as some of them remained, he had something to kill. He wouldn't stop until every single one was dead.

They found the escape pod quickly, the exterior scorched. Ammo and weapons were scattered outside, but the survivors were nowhere to be seen. The pod itself was large, and lumpy. It looked almost like a giant piece of excrement.

"Blasphemous creatures," Dom cursed at the sight of the crash. "They've already turned this land foul with their presence."

"Then we shall remove them," Fural said.

"Yes, we shall," said Dom. "Unggoy, spread out and search this area. Report immediately if you find any sign of our adversary."

"Yes, boss!" an unggoy said, giving Dom a goofy salute with its forearm. The runts picked up the gesture from watching humans, giving Fural another reason to despise them.

The unggoy moved out, waddling their way into the wilderness around the pod, disappearing into the foliage. Fural wouldn't count on them finding anything; Dom's orders were just going to get them killed, which he wasn't entirely opposed to.

"You trust them to find the humans?" Fural asked.

"Not entirely," Dom said. "But extra eyes are needed for this mission, no matter who they belong to."

Fural grunted. At least the unggoy wouldn't be around to bother them. He watched the trees for movement while Dom investigated the ground for footprints, spotting a number of animals moving through the foliage.

Some of the creatures there reminded him of home, where he saw all kinds of wild beasts outside of Nasam keep. Halo's ecosphere was familiar, yet strange; almost like it was a combination of many different worlds. But nothing he saw resembled humans, so none of it truly mattered.

"I believe they went this way," Dom said. "The fools left tracks to follow."

"Lead the way," Fural grunted, following his brother.

Dom and Fural followed the tracks into a forest, where they became intermingled with the footprints of the local wildlife. Combined with the dense foliage on the ground, it was impossible to follow them further.

"They cannot have eluded us," Fural growled, his blood heating.

"Not for long," Dom said. "Patience, brother. They will be revealed in time."

"So you say," Fural sighed.

As rowdy and unpredictable as the humans could be, they weren't entirely stupid. When given time to prepare, they rarely made mistakes. It was an element of his enemy that made fighting them either more exhilarating, or frustrating. Dom was one of the few in the Covenant who always found ways around their schemes.

"There," Dom said, pointing into the trees.

Fural couldn't see what he was pointing at, only a group of pine trees surrounded by rocks. When they moved closer, they found bandages, and packets of some kind. As if they couldn't ruin Halo's beauty enough, they littered the forest with their waste.

"Blasted infidels," Dom cursed. "They have no respect."

"So, have they revealed themselves?" Fural asked.

Dom glanced at his brother, snorting at his amused expression. His eyes scanned the cliffs, looking for any sign that they might have scaled them. Without any sort of climbing equipment, Fural couldn't imagine they made their way up there.

"Hey, um, boss!" an unggoy squeaked over the communicator. "We see bad guys! We think!"

"What is it?" Dom replied.

"They're moving on top of rocks!"

"That really narrows it down!" Fural chimed in, almost shouting into his communicator. "What rocks?"

"Big, tall ones! Up there!"

Dom cloaked, and rushed to the edge of the trees. Fural chased after him, moving to a clearing where they could better see the cliffs. There was still no sign of the humans; Fural was ready to kill these unggoy for wasting their time before Dom spotted something as well.

"Perhaps that is where they went," his brother said, pointing to an opening in the cliffs.

A structure sat embedded in the rocks, a wide-open entrance facing outward. Normally it would have been a foolish place to hide, but on a world filled with Forerunner construction, it was perfect.

"How do we get up there?" Fural asked.

"If the humans found a way, so shall we," said Dom. He turned back to his communicator. "Unggoy, regroup with us. We will defeat them together."

"Got it!" said the unggoy.

The brothers rushed to the base of the cliff, and waited for the unggoy to waddle over. It took an uncomfortably long time for the squad to regroup, Fural fighting the urge to strike the unggoy for actually wasting their time. Dom kept a close eye on him, knowing his urges too well.

"We will remain cloaked as we climb," said Dom. "Stay in the entrance until I give the order to fire. Choose your targets well, and the humans will fall without incident."

The unggoy stared up at Dom as he gave the orders. Fural couldn't imagine much was going on behind their masks. If they remembered a single word that was said, it would astound him.

"Okie-dokie!" one unggoy said, bouncing on its feet.

Fural was the first one to cloak and grab hold of the rocks, wanting to get away from the squeaky-voiced creatures as fast as possible. Dom followed him, climbing quickly enough to surpass Fural right away. He bared his teeth, even when it couldn't be seen. He just has to be better than me at everything.

The rocks on the cliff face were jagged enough to pull themselves up. The unggoy lagged far behind, but they managed to make their way up regardless of their stature. Fural groaned, trying to catch up with his brother.

"How can you stand those incompetents?" Fural asked.

"The unggoy may surprise you," Dom replied, grunting as he reached for a handhold above. "Like most things, they are not to be underestimated."

"I've estimated them enough to know that they're useless," Fural grunted. "I don't doubt they will cause us to fail."

"Ah, like you did aboard the human ship?"

Fural raised his hand to strike his brother, only to be reminded that he was scaling a cliff. He slipped, and lost his footing, throwing his hands out to grab onto the nearest rock. As soon as he felt a handhold, he gripped it tight. He hung on for his life, finding another rock to place his feet.

"And here I thought you were done embarrassing yourself," Dom called from above.

Fural remained in his place, closing his eyes and taking deep breaths. His rage breaking out nearly cost him his life, and it was ready to break out again. This cannot continue.

He'd fallen so far behind that the unggoy were catching up to him. Having calmed down enough to continue, he pulled his way back up. They reached a path halfway up the cliff, where Dom had been waiting.

"Are you ready for this?" Dom asked.

"I am always ready," said Fural.

Dom stared at him. Though he couldn't make out the details of his face while they were cloaked, he could tell it was a judgemental stare. The sound of sniffling told him that the unggoy had made it as well.

"Where to, boss?" one unggoy asked, failing to keep its voice down.

"Quiet," Dom ordered through gritted teeth.

They followed the path, circling up the cliff until it led to the entrance. It was much larger now that it was in front of them, almost wide enough to fit a Wraith through. Whatever function the structure had was unknown to Fural, the Gods were always a level above his understanding.

The opening led to a long hallway, running deep into the cliff. It turned out the unggoy were correct, and there were humans inside. About a dozen of them were scattered through the structure, two watching the entrance, and a group tending to a wounded soldier further in. Fural could hear them conversing, but couldn't make out any words.

Despite being invisible, they couldn't just walk in undetected. Their footsteps were still loud enough for a vigilant human to make out. The unggoy gathered behind them, lining their pistols up as they waited for Dom's command.

"Fire!" Dom roared.

Plasma barraged the humans watching the door, melting them before they knew what was happening. Dom and Fural rushed in as the unggoy fired around them, plasma splashing all over the hallway with the hope that some shots would hit their targets.

The unggoy stopped shooting, leaving the panicked heathens to return fire on an enemy they couldn't see. Dom and Fural used the banging of their guns to mask their footsteps, and get behind them. They ignited their swords together, cutting down two more humans.

Now the others were alerted to their presence, but they weren't given a chance to do anything about it. The unggoy opened fire again, forcing their enemy into cover once more, only to be cut down by the invisible sangheili.

Three humans remained, one returning fire on the squad in spite of the plasma flying at it. One unggoy was cut down by the human, who in turn was stabbed through the back. Dom kicked another down, and sliced its throat.

The final human was already wounded, back against a wall with a pistol in its hands. It fired frantically at the entrance as the unggoy faded from view, hoping it would miraculously get a kill. Fural kicked the pistol out of its hand, and grabbed it by the throat, decloaking to reveal himself to the terrified infidel.

"Your foul presence will defile this place no longer," Fural growled.

The human didn't understand a word, and only tried to scream through the chokehold. Fural snapped its neck, and tossed it on the floor. Dom searched the rest of the hallway to make sure it was clear.

The unggoy decloaked and cheered over their little victory, barely taking time to mourn the loss of their fallen comrade. Dom moved through the structure at a slow pace, analysing every angle of its construction for even the slightest sign of danger. Or perhaps he was admiring it. His frustration at finding a sealed door proved the latter.

"We should have brought lockpicks," Dom said, searching the door for a way to open it. "Or a Huragok. Think of the wonders that could be through this door!"

"If it is locked, I doubt the humans made it inside," Fural said.

"There must be things far greater than humans here," said Dom.

"Need I remind you again?"

Dom sighed, turning away from the door. "You are correct, brother."

There was a sense of satisfaction in telling Dom that he couldn't wander off and do what he wanted; for once their roles were reversed. Beyond that, seeing Dom frustrated was a rare sight, and Fural enjoyed every moment of it.

They returned to the unggoy gathered in the entrance, all of whom had already gotten over their friend's death. Fural heard popping in the distance, initially believing it was gunfire. A flare shot into the sky, leaving the bounds of a beam tower further away, disproving his thoughts.

"'Nasamai, I have spotted an additional escape pod near your position," 'Cinatee reported.

"Understood," Dom replied. "We will make our way there."

A marker appeared on Fural's heads-up-display, pointing between them and the beam tower. It was going to be a long walk, after an already long climb. Fural was thankful he had so much energy, a lesser sangheili would already be exhausted by now.

"Forward, warriors!" Dom ordered, leading them to the edge of the cliff.

Climbing down was much easier than going up, Fural was able to drop down through most of it; landing on tight edges, and grabbing onto rocks as he passed. He and Dom reached the ground together, landing gracefully on the grass. The unggoy were a different story.

The useless creatures were inching their way down the side of the cliff, seeming to take as long as possible to even reach the halfway point. No matter what they did to make him even consider changing his mind about them, they found a way to remind him how incompetent they truly were.

"Surely they can move faster than that," Fural grunted.

"I don't believe they're built for climbing," Dom said, watching the unggoy inch down with amusement. But this was not the time to be amused.

"I know how to speed them up," Fural said, drawing his carbine.

Dom's protest was cut off by the carbine's bark, firing three rounds into the rocks above the runts. The attack frightened them, causing them to drop from the cliff face, and land in the grass.

"Must you always be so careless!?" Dom shouted.

The unggoy stood up, mostly unshaken by the fall. Fural turned to his brother, cocking his head as the creatures waddled over unharmed.

"I waited until they were at a safe height," Fural said, failing to appease his brother's anger.

"We get message, boss!" one unggoy said. "No slow climbing from here on out!"

"See? They're fine."

Dom eyed him with a rage he rarely got to experience; seeing it provided even stronger satisfaction than before. His brother grunted, and gestured for the squad to continue moving.

Silence fell upon them as the brothers' bickering began to wear them out. Dom led the way through the trees, cutting through the foliage when it got in his way. Fural made sure the unggoy kept up, turning to watch them every few steps.

The trees beside them bristled as strong gusts of wind blew through the valley. Dom moved slowly, his eyes darting between the bushes and undergrowth. Now who is the one slowing us down?

"What is it now?" Fural asked. "Are the trees so beautiful they make you want to cry?"

"Silence," Dom said.

All Fural could hear was the brushing of wind blowing through the forest. Perhaps Dom was going insane.

"It is just wind," Fural said.

"No, brother," said Dom. "We are being stalked."

"No humans could sneak up on us," Fural grunted.

Something sprang out of the woods, tackling their unggoy. Fural turned to see a creature, not much bigger than the runt, sink its teeth into its throat.

"By the rings!" Dom cursed, drawing his plasma rifle.

He fired a stream of plasma into the animal, killing it almost instantly. Fural spotted more of them charging through the undergrowth, one clawing another unggoy across the chest. He aimed for the creature's head, and killed it with a single shot from his carbine.

Fural couldn't tell how many there were, but the remaining creatures retreated. The wounded unggoy clutched its chest, dramatically falling to the ground. It coughed and choked behind its mask.

"I hurt!" it cried. "Not… going… to make it…"

"Calm yourself," Fural grunted. "You will be fine."

Dom inspected the dead creatures as Fural made sure the rest of the unggoy were still alive. If they returned with half their squad missing, 'Rylanee would be sure to blame him for their deaths.

"Curious…" Dom mumbled. "These creatures have no eyes."

Fural returned to his brother, inspecting the animal with him. It looked almost like a huge reptile, a long tail and rounded head. Giant fangs stuck out of its jaw, and sure enough, there were no eyes in its head. The creature didn't even have arms.

"If they cannot see, how did they know to attack us?" Fural asked.

"Perhaps they followed the sound of your noisy carbine," said Dom.

Fural growled, but knew his brother was right. Without eyes, the creature's other senses would be heightened significantly. There was no telling just how good its hearing was. Then it is my fault if our squad gets killed.

"Do you think they will return?" Fural asked.

"I cannot be certain," Dom said. "But we must stay vigilant, and continue carefully."

Being careful was not one of Fural's strong suits; he would have to follow his brother's example. Usually he would be annoyed, and see this as pointless. After having much time to think, he now saw it as an opportunity to learn.

With the knowledge that they could be tracked by sound, nobody said a word. Not even the unggoy made so much as a whisper. Fural noticed the same signs as before, trees and bushes bristling, leaves crunching. When he actually paid attention, he realised the wind wasn't blowing hard enough to produce such sounds.

Dom's head didn't move, but his eyes were constantly scanning the environment. They twitched every time a bush rustled, or a twig snapped. Fural imagined his mind was completely blank, allowing him to focus on every detail around him.

The unggoy kept in step, the wounded one having regained enough energy to stay close. Fural was surprised by its restraint, as it didn't whine about its injuries at all along the way.

The creatures were keeping pace with them, determined to finish the job and kill them all. The simple sound of their footsteps was enough to give their position away. Fural saw the shape of one, but it dashed out of sight when he raised his carbine.

Even without eyes, these creatures were much smarter than he thought. But they were still just animals, and could be outsmarted.

"Brother," Fural whispered, looking between Dom and the unggoy.

"Quiet, you fool," Dom whispered back.

"They already know where we are," Fural said. "We need to take them out."

"And what kind of plan have you thought up?" Dom asked, his tone accusing him of not actually having one.

"We use the unggoy as bait."

Dom stopped, slowly turning to his brother. His torn expression told him everything he needed to know.

"They are small, and noisy," Fural continued. "And can move quickly when threatened."

"I do not like it," Dom sighed. "But I agree."

Fural turned to the unggoy, who stared blankly at him.

"Me not hear you say we bait," one unggoy said. "Right…?"

"That is exactly what I said," Fural growled.

"But what about… uh… we lure it out with grenade!" another suggested.

"If those creatures don't kill you, I will," Fural growled. "Get out there, and stay quiet until I give the order."

The unggoy groaned, and they made their way into the trees. The wounded one was allowed to stay behind, and watch as its friends were used to lure the deadly creatures out. They stopped to look at Fural, and he motioned for them to keep going. Dom glanced at him with dread, probably thinking that Fural was going to get them killed. He didn't want them to die, if only for his own sake.

"I do not see this going well," Dom sighed.

"Fear not, brother," Fural said, drawing his carbine and scoping in. "I have it under control."

"I suppose I will just have to trust you," said Dom.

"When has that ever gone wrong?"

Dom responded with another sigh, and they waited for the unggoy to get into position. They turned back to him, and he held up a fist, telling them to stop moving. Fural never thought he'd be ordering unggoy to speak, it was the complete opposite of what he normally wanted. It seems Halo is changing me already.

"Now, unggoy," he said through his communicator. "Be as loud as possible."

"Hey! Big bad wolf!" one unggoy shouted.

"We got food for you!" yelled another.

"At least they do as you say," Dom commented.

Fural snorted, this wasn't going to change his mind on the unggoy in any way. He spotted the creatures stalking through the brush, their shapes moving slowly and stopping outside the unggoys' view. Dom raised his plasma rifle; it wouldn't be much use at their distance, but he always found a way to make it work.

"Yeah! Who wants a piece of me!" another unggoy shouted.

The beasts pounced out of the foliage, and Fural took his first shot. He struck one in the head, turning to shoot another as it encroached on the unggoy. The little runts fled in every direction, only one of them taking the initiative to blast a beast with its needle launcher.

Dom fired a burst of plasma, hitting one in its stomach, and causing it to collapse onto an unggoy. The fifth beast tackled another unggoy, slashing its side with its claws before Fural shot it down, three shots hitting its neck.

Silence fell with the beasts' demise. They couldn't be sure how many there were, but Fural heard no sign of others retreating. He was content to believe they killed all of their attackers.

"Excellent work, brother," said Dom.

Fural grunted, and called the unggoy back while slapping a new cartridge into his carbine. To their surprise, none of them were killed. One had to stop and lift the dead beast off of its friend.

"Did we win?" an unggoy asked.

"Yes, we won," said Fural. "Now quiet."

The unggoy nodded, and remained silent.

"Crusader, I am requesting a replacement for our unggoy," Dom called. "We will find a clearing for you to set down."

"We do not have time to wait," Fural protested. "We are already falling behind."

"And three of our unggoy cannot fight," Dom said. "The humans are no longer our only concern, and if we want to survive, we must stay at full strength."

"We do not need more unggoy unless there are more of those beasts out there."

Dom squinted at Fural. "That is exactly my point."

Fural growled. He hoped that killing the creatures would have sent a message to the rest of them. But, like always, Dom was right. Even if he wasn't, Fural had no power to dispute the matter.

They found a clearing outside of the forest, and were greeted by a Spirit descending from the sky. Fural failed to consider the volume of dropships landing on Halo, it didn't take much time to redirect one. The unggoy reinforcements helped their wounded brethren aboard, and the Spirit returned to the Crusader as quickly as it arrived.

"Where to now, boss?" an unggoy asked.

"Now, we cleanse the filth from this ring," said Dom.

The journey to the next escape pod wouldn't have been long if it weren't for Dom being overly cautious. No one was allowed to speak, or even move faster than a brisk walk until they were out in the open.

As soon as they left the trees behind, the pod came into view. It was abandoned, the door ajar as if the occupants had to force their way out. Fural was hopeful that meant they weren't able to travel far.

"Search the area," Dom ordered the unggoy. "Report anything suspicious immediately."

"You got it!" the unggoy obliged.

Dom and Fural were left again to do the real work. They knew the heathens would have sought cover immediately, and spotted another forest nearby. When they investigated the area, they found signs of their presence. A folding stool, bloody bandages, wrappers and waste scattered across the grass.

"What vermin," Dom breathed. "They cannot leave a place undisturbed."

Fural searched the area, the camp didn't extend much beyond the trees surrounding it. The foliage in the area was too dense to make out any tracks on the ground.

"This place has been abandoned for some time," Dom said.

"Perhaps they followed in the others' footsteps," Fural suggested. "They could be at another structure."

"Perhaps…"

Dom turned to his communicator, checking with the unggoy to see if they spotted anything. Fural wandered to the edge of the tree line, spotting a bright flare shooting above the cliffs. He remembered the beam tower, now they were closer to it. That is where they hide.

A group of Spirits flew through the air, on an approach to the tower. Fural closed his eyes and cleared his mind, his suspicions being confirmed when he heard the distant cracks of gunfire.

"Brother," Fural said. "The humans are there!"

He pointed to the Spirits, another flare shooting above them.

"Good find, brother," said Dom. "Unggoy, regroup!"

"We cannot wait for them! They are already in battle!"

"They are our squad," Dom growled. "We do not leave our warriors behind."

"Unggoy are no warriors!" Fural snarled. "They are a joke!"

Dom looked at his brother with a tired expression. He understood his brother's exhaustion, he too was growing tired of repeating the same points, and never being heard.

"Go on, then," Dom said. "See how much success you find. I will join you when our team is ready."

Fural suspiciously eyed his brother, it had been a long time since he was allowed to fight on his own. When Dom nodded, Fural left him. He sprinted across the field, pushing himself to move as fast as he could. The distance between him and the tower was much greater than he anticipated, his energy running low as he tried to cover it in a short amount of time.

The sounds of battle drew closer. Guns cracked, explosions boomed. Wraiths screamed as they launched plasma mortars at their targets. A massive hill stood in his way, leaving him exhausted when he reached the top. He was already out of breath before getting to join the battle, a bad sign from the start.

What was worse was seeing a group of Wraiths bombarding the beam tower, transforming what should have been a beautiful construction, into a charred warzone. He took cover behind a wrecked tank to get a better view of the battle.

He couldn't see any humans, as they would have sought cover from the bombardment. More explosions in the distance caught his attention, and he witnessed a human gunship barraging the Wraiths with missiles. This cannot be!

He sprinted into action, already pushing past his limits as he tried to get there before the human transport. A large group of heathens rushed to the ship as it landed between the structures, frantically carrying their wounded inside. The gunship's nose cannon turned toward him, and he cloaked on instinct.

The ship departed, leaving the Covenant behind. Fural cursed and slammed his sword into the nearest wall.

He was too late, and this time he didn't know who to blame.