Prologue
Mike was having the time of his life. Here he was a ten year old child, yet still having fun playing duck, duck, goose. "Who cares what the others say," his mother had said, "just have fun!" The new kid was circling the others. "Duck, duck, duck, duck, duck..." Mike was wondering when it would stop when suddenly, "Goose!" Mike whirled around and tried to catch the kid with his hand but he was too late. He got up and circled as fast as he possibly could, but he was too slow. The new kid was awfully fast. Mike sighed. Knowing that whining would just ruin the game, he started to pat each kid on the head. "Duck, duck, duck, duck…"
Mike continued this game for several more rounds before deciding to return home. He ran as fast as he could as soon as his house was in site. His dad was coming home in a few minutes and Mike didn't want to miss a second. Just as he reached the front porch he caught a twinkle in the sky. He assumed it was just another transport from Earth and continued inside. Nothing. That's strange, he thought. He expected his aunt and mother to be excitedly talking, awaiting his dad's arrival, but it was quiet.
He slowly walked down the hall and turned into the kitchen. He looked curiously at his mother, but her blank face gave him no sign as to what the problem was. She stared at the TV on the other side of the room. Uhhhh….. The News. But even the news didn't provoke such silence as this.
"Mom?" Mike asked, "Is everything okay?"
No answer
"Mom?" Mike tried again.
"Mike," she said.
Relieved that she could still speak, he answered "yea-" but the door slammed open before Mike could finish. Mike turned to see his father filling in the doorway. Mike ran too him to give him a hug, but he slowed to a halt half way. His dad wasn't smiling as he thought he would be, but instead his face was stricken with fear.
"Honey, get Mike and get in the car," he said.
"Ken, what's wrong-" his mom started.
"Just do it!" Mike reeled back in shock. His father never yelled, especially not at his mother. Without warning Mike felt his body being pushed outside from behind.
"Let's go Mike," his mom said. "Hurry."
"What's wrong?" Mike asked, but there was dead silenced.
Quite again? Mike was getting sick of this lack of speech. He hoisted himself into the back seat of the car as his mom started to shut the door. "I can do it," Mike inquired, but the door had all ready shut.
The drive there consisted of even less talking than at home. "Where are we going?" Mike had asked several times. All that he got for an answer was "On a little trip." After about thirty minutes into the ride Mike was just starting to sleep when the car leached forward and ground to a halt. We must be here. Standing before Mike was two giant towers with spinning lights at the top of each. There was a large building in front of them and behind it was a giant paved area. Like a big black top from school, Mike thought. His mom held his hand as they moved from place to place in the building. Finally they came to what looked like a long tunnel.
"I'm afraid I'm not allowed to let you go any further," the guard told Mike's parents. "Only he can go past this gate."
"Mike, don't worry," his mother insisted.
"We'll see you soon again," his father assured.
"Where am I going?" Mike had not been told anything for the whole trip.
"Have you ever seen a rocket ship?" his mom asked. "You're going to ride a space ship! Just like a real astronaut."
"Really?" Mike asked, now very excited.
"Yes," his father said. "You're going to a planet called Reach.
Reach? Mike thought to himself. I've never heard of Reach. Mike had lived all of his life on Chi Ceti IV.
"Go on now," his mother said, "we'll see you in a few days."
Days? Mike was nervous. He had never been apart from his parents for more than a few hours. Now he wasn't going to see them for days?
"Don't worry. You'll be perfectly safe," his father assured. "Now get to the ship before it takes off without you."
"All……right…" Mike wasn't so sure. He took the guards hand and hesitantly walked down the tunnel. He watched his parents as long as he could before he had to turn. Little did he know, he was never going to see them again.
Chapter I
Mike ducked his head, plasma fire scorching the barrier in front of him. He clutched his Battle Rifle and prepared to lay down counter fire when a bright blue flash appeared next to him. Plasma Grenade! Mike dove to his right, under the cover of his warthog. When the explosion came the entire warthog tipped to the right. No! We can't lose the warthog! Thankfully the giant beast fell back and came to a rest. Mike flew out from under the hog and thundered down the hallway into the building. He plowed his rifle into the chest of the elite in front of him and quickly fell back behind a nearby wall.
"You all right?" called Zane, second in command in Delta Force and Mikes best friend for the past two years.
"Yah," Mike called back.
"Good, last thing we need is a ton of hungry elites smelling your fried corpse!"
Mike sighed. Always making light of even the most deadly situations. "Thanks!" he replied, "I'm glad I'm still breathing too."
Mike had joined the UNSC in the war against the Covenant at the age of sixteen, four years ago, by faking his age. After arriving at Reach, Mike spent six years in foster care, awaiting his parents' arrival. They never came, like so many colonized planets before; Chi Ceti IV was bombarded with plasma until its surface was black and shiny, the beautiful lakes, forests and even the atmosphere just burned away in a process now called Glassing. Mike's sorrow quickly turned to rage. He vowed revenge on this new alien threat and joined the cause. Within two years of his enlisting his passion had lead him to Delta Force, the UNSC special operations squad. Delta Force was revered even by the ODST's, (Orbital Drop Shock Troops). Not even Helljumpers could stand up to someone who qualified for Delta Force.
Mike was huddled up against the wall. He had strict orders to eliminate all information stored inside the bank's computer system and retrieve the AI that was held inside the structure that was once used as a UNSC HQ before it was overrun. He was in the city of Kali, a major business center. Though normally packed to the brim, it was now deserted and felt like a ghost town.
Mike rounded the corner and burst into a large, open lobby. He caught three grunts huddled around a methane tank by surprise and dispatched them silently with his magnum. A clash of growls and murmurs came from a nearby doorway. Mike climbed behind the front desk and awaited his prey.
Sure enough, two eight-foot-tall elites entered the lobby on patrol. Upon seeing the pile of grunts, the red armored elite raised his plasma rifle. Mike ducked down. I could take them out with a single grenade... but it will be sure to raise alarm. Better to take them out silently. Mike reached into his pack and withdrew a silencer. He attached the short barrel to his battle rifle and inserted a fresh clip. Take your time, aim over speed. Cross hairs lined up, Mike squeezed down on the trigger. There was a quick splash of purple blood as the red elite's head vanished. That's one. His companion turned just in time to hear a bullet ring past his head. Now for the other. The elite raised his rifle, but had no time to do any damage before it was peppered with two bursts form his rifle.
Chapter II
Mike dropped his Battle Rifle and grabbed his new MA3 Assault Rifle he then secured his pistol in the holster on his leg. The next phase will require a bit more punch. Zane's voice erupted in Mike's ear. "Report."
"Two elites and three grunts down. Lobby is clear. No alarms have been raised." Mike replied. "Good, then they should have no reason to suspect that we are here."
"I still don't know why we just don't nuke these things."
"You know that we need to be sure that the AI does not fall into their hands." "Right." Mike sighed. "I'll continue to clear out the first level." Mike had barely finished his sentence when a grunt waddled in. It made it to the northern doorway before shrieking. The grunt quickly sped out yelling. Man those things run fast. Mike got up and ran after him.
The hallway jutted into a corner and Mike stopped before turning. Peeking around the corner he saw that two jackals were holding the grunt. Mike swung his head back behind the corner. Great just perfect. He heard one of the jackals growl as the grunt babbled on. Mike pulled a grenade off of his belt. He yanked out the pin and rolled it down the hall. One of the jackals looked down. Hope you like hell. I hear it's kinda warm this time of the year.
The entire structure shuddered as the immense explosion thundered through the hall. "What the heck was that?" screamed Zane.
"The welcoming committee." Mike flipped a switch on his helmet and the radio shut off. I'd better work fast.
Mike came around the corner to see two more grunts running around with their arms flailing above their heads. They both fell as Mike fired bursts of lead from his assault rifle. Well, at least I won't have to worry much about grunts. He grabbed the large metal door at the end of the hallway labeled 'stairs' and pulled as hard as he could. Locked. Mike looked down at his small package of C4 on his belt. No, I may need that later. Maybe there's a key in the lobby.
Mike rushed to the front desk. Key, key, where are the keys. He started to rummage through compartments. No luck. As he was walking back to the stairway, he noticed a glimmer of light from the red elite's body. No way, Mike thought, but sure enough, a small keychain was dangling from the red armor. Without hesitation, Mike grabbed the keys and ran down the hall.
The first four keys were too large, but the fifth key fit perfectly. Mike pushed on the door and it opened up to a small stair case. He quickly climbed the first set and turned around to face the second set when a green flash almost melted his face. Oh Crap, A jackal charged its plasma pistol at the top of the stairway growling. There was no way he could get out of range before the blast hit him and it would take several shots to bring down its shield. Nowhere to run, Mike thought.
Suddenly the jackal fell, face first. "Man these things are ugly; Oh hey Mike!" It was Zane.
Chapter III
"Well, what are you waiting for?" The voice came from behind Mike. It was Taylor, the demolitions expert for his squad. Taylor may be a girl, but she was one of the roughest marines he'd ever met. On Mikes first day in Delta Force, he went up to meet her, but instead he got a boot between the legs. "Let that be a lesson. I'm a girl, but that doesn't mean that I can't make you eat dirt for breakfast," was her reply. Mike was sure to stay out of her way.
"Right" Mike trudged up the stairway.
At the top he could make out what looked like a large purple crate. It was very smooth, but tougher than any material he had seen. It was wedged against the door to keep intruders out. "It looks like we're going to need some big bombs to get around this one."
"I'm on it." Taylor immediately went to work. She set two yellow packages in the center of the crate. She then went down the stairs, to the safety of the hall below. Knowing it wouldn't be wise to stay in the stairway either, Zane and Mike followed in close pursuit.
Mike watched as Taylor pulled out a small device that resembled a COM pad. This was the modern version of a plunger. "Fire in the hole."
The trio marched up the stairs to find that not only had the crate been moved, but so had some of the walls. The entire doorway was scorched and smelt of fresh gunpowder. Zane smiled, "We're really good at this element of surprise thing aren't we?"
Mike grinned. While the situation didn't call for jokes, it felt good to put his mind on something other than the war.
The upper level was very hot. The end of the hall jutted in two directions. Mike took the lead, assault rifle drawn. At the end of the hall he took the left while Zane and Taylor took the right.
Mike opened the door and looked around the new room. There was a large assortment of bulky machines all along the walls. Crimson wires hung everywhere. In the center of the room there was a hologram projector and two large computers. This is it.
Before he could alert his two comrades, he heard gunfire behind him. Mike pivoted around and caught a glimpse of Zane firing his BR55 Battle Rifle across the room. Suddenly he felt his gut drop as a giant stream of plasma scorched the wall above Zane's head as he ducked.
Mike raced to the room, gun in hand. The first thing he noticed upon entering the room was the desk at the far wall. It was littered with papers, as was the floor. File cabinets lined the walls around the desk. But then he saw it; a gigantic creature was charging Taylor, who was behind the desk, using all the cover she could get. It appeared to have a large serrated shield on one arm and the other seemed to glow bright green with a plasma charge.
Bullets bounced off of its massive armor with no effect. Mike could make out what looked like orange muscle between the gaps in the armor. It was a Hunter, the strongest infantry unit in the vast Covenant army. With a wipe of its arm, it shoved the desk aside, leaving Taylor exposed. Raising up it's massive arm, it let out a stream of green plasma at Taylor's leg, much like the plasma that barely missed Zane. She screamed in agony as the plasma seared her leg, when the smoke cleared nothing was left of the once long limb.
The alien, apparently satisfied with this, turned towards Mike and Zane. It crept forward, bullets bouncing off of its armor having no effect whatsoever. Suddenly the massive beast crashed to the floor with a thunderous boom. Behind the creature Taylor held her smoking M6 pistol in her hand. She had shot the beast in the break of its armor behind its head.
Zane was silent as Mike radioed in to the rest of Delta Force. "We need a medic now!"
Taylor's head fell to the floor as she went into shock. Mike left the room, unable to see her there, but Zane stood frozen in place staring at the scorched stub of a leg.
Chapter IV
Mike felt sick for the rest of the day. He couldn't get the retched smell of burnt flesh from he nostrils; he couldn't purge his mind of the thought of Taylor's pain. True, Mike had been in battles before, seen people die before him, but he had never seen someone been so brutally tortured. The medics had waited no time and they got her back to base before she lost too much blood. Mike lay in his tent now, devoid of happiness. It had been a rough day.
The AI that they were after had been no more than a false alarm. He knew it wasn't his fault but he couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt, that he could have done more than just sit there and waist ammo.
Mike decided to review what he had seen. He flipped a switch on his helmets camera and the recorded battle was displayed in his visor. He saw the bullets clang against the armor. He fast-forwarded to the part where Taylor had killed this goliath. That's when he saw it, she had not merely shot at the alien as Zane and Mike had, but had aimed for the center of the orange muscle. It has a weakness, he thought excitedly.
He quickly compiled a report and marched to the commander's desk to relay the news. The commander's tent wasn't far from the bunker, a ten minute walk at most, but Mike was now sprinting. As he ran past the field hospital, he once again felt sorrow. He slowed to a walk with his head hung low. I should have seen this weakness before, not just fired wastefully at it. The grey skies started to let a slight rain reach the ground. Time moved slowly as he finally reached the commander's tent. "Permission to enter."
"What's the password?" Came a rough voice from within the tent. Commander Healy was in command of Delta Force, but, unlike Zane, was always serious no matter what the situation. It is rumored that he was there when the aliens first arrived at Harvest.
"Sir, I have some important information regarding our last mission."
"Then by all means, enter."
Mike lifted the flap and entered the warm, dry tent. A small, portable desk sat in the middle of the room holding Commander Healy's laptop, but the only other objects in the room were two small chairs in front of his desk.
"So, let's hear it."
"Well, the creature that injured Taylor-"
"Ah yes," Healy cut him off "rest assured she will be fine. You know I was a medic not to long ago?"
"No sir."
"Well, that's a different story now back to your report."
Mike handed Healy a video chip from his helmet. "See for yourself sir."
The commander put the chip in a small adapter on his laptop and the screen filled with the grainy recording from Mike's helmet.
"As you can see, this is a new contact. It appears to have a large, bladed shield and a plasma weapon even more deadly than what we have seen before. Both seem to be attached to the creature's arms."
"Interesting."
"What's even more interesting is yet to come. Skip to the creature's death."
As the commander did this, Mike continued his report. "It has a weakness. The center of it's orange muscle-like body seems to have a weak spot. It was taken down with just one round from Taylor's M6."
"Very good. I will relay this information to Gama Station at once," Healy trailed off, "and as for you, you are promoted to second in command as of today."
Mikes eyes grew wide. "Second in command, sir? Isn't that Zane's position?"
"Yes, but he had decided that he could not take the pressure of Taylor's death. He has stepped down. You will report to my tent at oh-eight-hundred tomorrow"
It felt as if a rubber ball was lodged in his throat. "Yes… sir…" Mike saluted and slowly backed out of the tent.
Second in command… I'm second in command. The rain had stopped and Mike raised his head to catch the sight of one of the most beautiful rainbows he had ever seen.
Chapter V
"Keep your eyes open," Mike encouraged as his troops marched through the empty fields. Ever since the Covenant troops had landed on Reach, they had been pushing with immense force. As soon as they reached Kali, the front door to Delta Force's main base, Commander Healy had ordered recon patrols. Recently there had been a large amount of air traffic on the outskirts of these patrols and this could only mean one thing, they are preparing to attack Delta Force.
Mike clutched the LAAG turret on his warthog. These guns were originally meant to be anti-air weapons, but having proven inefficient against anything but the banshee, the weapons are now used to mow down infantry coming out of drop ships instead of the ships themselves.
He was not required to be on this patrol because of his newfound position. Mike had held his position for no longer than 24 hours, but he already yearned to be back on the field rather than cooped up at base.
Taylor was still in the hospital and Zane was a mess. Healy told Mike he had given Zane two days of rest and Mike jumped at the opportunity to replace Zane during this time.
While there was no complaining, Mike knew that the marines were dead tired. They had been called up at oh-two-hundred last night and woken up less than five hours later. The immense heat didn't help either. The star in Reach's solar system wasn't particularly hot or bright today, but the heat from constant plasma fire being rained down from the Covenant War Ships had drastically changed the temperature.
Everyone knew that Reach wouldn't last much longer. Even if it survived the Covenant attack, they wouldn't leave without smothering the planet in plasma. So why are we here?
Less than a week ago, the already famous Battle of Reach occurred. While the navy took a major toll on the Covenant ships, they couldn't overpower them. During the battle, it was rumored that a ship of Spartans was headed down to Reach, but never made it. While this would be top classified information, it wouldn't be too hard to believe that it was leaked.
"Three targets, buggers, two o'clock." Lt. Carson called in his sighting.
"Confirmed," replied Mike, "engaging." It didn't take 10 shots to nail all three Drones. These giant insect-like creatures were fast and always moving, but their armor wasn't particularly useful.
Not one alien was seen for the rest of the patrol. "Let’s head back to base," Mike said after another hour, "there's nothing here."
The warthogs rolled through the gate. The fence surrounding Delta Force wouldn't do much to stop the Covenant, which was exactly why it was there. In front of the fence was a large mine field, big enough to take out several squads and enough to slow down the Covenant enough to ready for an attack. Behind the fence were several auto-cannons, ready to halt any aerial assaults.
"How'd the patrol go?" asked the guard.
"Good," Mike lied. He had noticed that there was a definite lack of Covenant activity. This meant they were ready, but didn't know the guard and had no clue how much he could tell him.
"You can drop me off here." Mike said as the warthog neared the Commander's tent.
The warthog slowed to a stop. Mike dismounted the turret and lifted the flap to the tent.
"What's the news?" asked Healy, not even bothering to look up.
"Three drones, nothing more they appear to be doing the same thing we are; Sir I think we need to get ready for an attack, the air recon forces say that something big is on its way." Healy lifted his head, an unreadable expression on his face.
"I want all the firepower you can get out on the front line. If they want a fight, we'll give them one their ancestors will remember."
"Sir, what if we lose?"
"Excuse me?" the commander had a cold look on his face.
Though it was unwise to make a commander angry, he knew that it had to be said. "Sir the Covenant are no pushovers and as much as I believe in Delta Force we are severely outnumbered. If we lose, we need to have a line of retreat. I suggest we pack up all unneeded gear, just in case."
Commander Healy's face seemed to loosen, apparently surprised by Mikes proposition. "Fine, spread the word that there's an attack on its way. Pack your things or leave it here."
"Yes sir." Mike exited the tent, going about to spread the news. There's an attack coming, and this base will be ready for it.
Chapter VI
Mike looked up as the cool breeze swept around him. The calm before the storm, he thought. All around him marines were busy establishing turret emplacements. Some were already suited up for battle, eager to be ready for the first wave.
He strode over to the field hospital. It was very early, before the sun even rose above the horizon. I wish I had brought my watch.
Upon entering the tent, Mike was welcomed by the musky smell of blood and death. All around him were marines with various injuries, some with casts, and others with complete amputations. At the far side of the tent was another marine, screaming and struggling to break free of the two other marines holding him down. A nurse was trying to give him a shot below the shoulder on his right arm. Mike was here to drop off pistols to the injured in case the base perimeters were breached; everyone on Reach knew how the Covenant felt about mercy, but that's not all why he was here.
Taylor's bed was the third on the left side of the tent. Though her entire leg had been amputated, she looked fairly cheerful. "Doc said that I'd be out in a few hours," she said calmly.
"I'm so sorry," Mike began.
"Stow it," she confirmed, "you did what you could."
"No, I could have killed it,"
"No you couldn't have, nothing prepared you for such an encounter."
There was dead silence.
"How did you-"
"Know its weakness? I don't know. I just guessed and hoped I got it right."
"Nobody gets that lucky with sheer guessing." Mark implied.
"Maybe, maybe not. But from what I can tell, the human race will need a lot of luck soon.
"What do you mean?"
"You know exactly what I mean." And he did, though he regretted thinking it.
It was the whole reason Mike had wanted to take such precautions when meeting with Healy. If we didn't get the kind of luck that Taylor was talking about, then the entire Delta Force was doomed. Then where would Earth be? No more Delta Force, no more Spartans… it would be mass slaughter.
Light enveloped around Mike and he turned to see what had happened. Zane had lifted the flap to enter the tent. As he walked over to Taylor, Mike could see the grief in his eyes. If I felt this guilty, I can't imagine how mortified he must feel.
"Mike."
"You stepped down?" This was the first time Mike had seen Zane since he was promoted.
"I can't-" but before he could finish, another person entered the tent, Private Don Cozan.
He marched over to the three of them and saluted towards Mike. "Message from Commander Healy, report to his quarters immediately."
"Can do," Mike looked at Zane, "keep her safe." Taylor growled from her bed, obviously insulted by the order.
"Then who's going to watch his sissy back?" she joked, but Mike was already out of the tent. The captain's quarters? He never invites people to his quarters. He was perplexed. Did I do something wrong? Mike began to think through everything he had done that morning, making sure nothing was out of line.
Mike located Commander Healy's tent fairly fast, as it was the only tent that had two guards. Though they looked as if they wouldn't let even the most innocent of flies past them, they each stepped aside when they saw Mike. Each saluted as he pulled back the flap and entered the tent.
The tent was much like his office. A lone table with his laptop rested on it. It was almost completely devoid of furniture aside from the commander's rough metal bed and stool, which was behind the table.
"You wished to see me sir?"
"Yes." There was an uncomfortable silence.
"May I ask why sir?"
"You are a very talented soldier," the commander began, "this is why I chose you to be my second in command." Mike blushed.
"I-"
"The truth is that Zane didn't step down from command." Mike was confused. But even Zane acknowledged that he chose to give up his position. "I relieved him of his duties."
"Sir… He-"
"He was torn apart by the last battle. While he was ready to do his duty as a good soldier always is, I knew he would be more of a loss in his current state than an asset. However, he is still a valuable soldier, which is why I chose him to be one of the members of your team for your new mission."
"Team? Mission?" Mike didn't know what was going on.
"Answer this, what do you know of the Spartan Program?"
Chapter VII
"Sir? The Spartan Program is classified information. All I know is the rumors that I've heard, most of which sound unrealistic to say the least."
"Well soldier, we need you for this mission which is why you are being promoted to top security clearance." Mike was stunned.
"But sir, you don't have the-" but before Mike could finish his objection Healy slammed down a manila folder on his desk. It was labeled 'Spartan'.
"I have orders strait from command. I don't know much of the details, but I will give you a brief summary of your main objective," the commander paused for a while, as if to wonder whether or not he should carry on, "It seems we have a few MIA soldiers."
MIA soldiers? Mike thought, what could this possibly have to do with Spartans?
Healy continued, "What I am about to tell you, you cannot repeat to anyone except your team. During the Battle of Reach just four days ago, a large group of Spartans were shipped to land via pelican. We haven't heard of them since, they are now MIA."
By then Mike knew his mission, but he couldn't understand why it was him. "Sir, why me?"
"Because you are the only one with enough balls to do this correctly. Believe it or not, you are one of the best soldiers of Delta Squad." Mike was blushing again. He had noticed that his missions were getting more and more dangerous, that last one was pure luck that Zane had showed up when he did. "We have one shot at this before these alien bastards are crawling all over the crash site. We believe that some may still be alive, but not for long."
Now Mike was sweating. The Spartans themselves? But if they won’t survive the onslaught, how will we? "Sir, may I ask who my team is?" He asked as he reached for the manila folder.
"Yes, I have assembled all that I could for you without compromising our bases defenses." Mike knew that couldn't be much, which only served to increase his nervousness. "Zane Tanners, Don Cozan, and Vasili Yakamof will all accompany you on your mission."
Vasili Yakamof? The Russian brute? If Mike was worried before, he was in a full state of panic now. Vasili was Russian. After the UNSC had finally united humanity, most people had grown a more American accent, yet the Yakamof family kept their rough Russian accent. Vasili was a vehicle and explosives specialist, much like Taylor, but twice as mean. Nobody crossed Vasili, though it wasn't hard for he mostly kept to his own.
The commander continued, "You leave for the crash site at oh-nine-hundred. Make sure you are fully loaded. We will supply you with any vehicles and weapons that you may need.
"Yes sir," "You will be debriefed later today on the full extent of your mission. Until then, make sure you can get as much as you can out of that," Healy said, pointing to the manila folder. "Dismissed."
With that, Mike saluted and strode out of the tent. For the next five hours, he would be in his tent learning what he could from this small folder. Why does this stuff always happen to me?
Chapter VIII
The wind felt good as Mike traced the horizon from the back of his transport hog. While they could have opted for a tank, it would have dangerously slowed them down and been very easy to spot. Besides, Mike thought, we need the extra space.
Stacked in the rear where the turret would normally be were five turret crates, gutted and loaded with ammo and munitions. While the marines hoped that they themselves would never need that much firepower, the Spartans would surely be running low by now. Five days… we'll be lucky if the ship is even there.
Mike, Zane, and Don all shouldered their BR55s while Vasili preferred a bit more punch. Strapped to his back was a large, brown rocket launcher. Though the casing is only big enough to hold two rounds it can lock on to targets, making up for its lack of shots. Vasili also boasted a single M7 Sub-Machine-Gun (SMG) attached to the armor plating on his right leg. He sat on the opening at the rear, cleaning his rocket and making sure everything was ready.
Silence filled the marines as they prepared for the fight of their lives. This is suicidal, Mike had thought as he was reading his full debrief via com pad. However, Mike was determined to follow through with his mission.
"5000 meters and closing" Don said from the passenger seat. Sure enough, a pelican was sitting atop a hill dead ahead, completely destroyed beyond recognition. Five or six grunts were sitting around the site, no doubt unaware of the fight ahead. Fairly close to the pelican debris was a large, glowing antenna with three hooks jutting out at the top.
"They have communication," Mike alerted his team.
"Not for long," Vasili confirmed in his thick Russian accent. It wasn't long before the rocket made contact and grunts were scrambling to find cover. The marines slowly picked them off, not stopping the hog to take cover from the wave of plasma fire.
The plasma was quickly thinning as more than half of the force was knocked down. The warthog burst into the camp and the marines swiftly switched to fully automatic, finishing off the survivors. The only damage that could be found was burning paint on the front of the warthog and a melting area on the windshield. We caught them by surprise, but we won't be so lucky with the next group, Mike thought, viewing the obliterated antenna.
"Command?" Mike radioed in.
"Go ahead Mike," replied the commander's gruff voice through the static. Gun fire could be heard in the background and he knew the attack was underway.
"As expected, the Spartans packed up, no survivors at the crash site."
"Affirmative, any bodies?"
"No sir, it seems the Covenant have packed them up, along with all weapons and radio gear on the ship."
Mike could hear Healy swear under his breath as a few bursts exploded from a nearby gun. "Continue onward."
"Yes, sir, out!"
"Healy out."
Chapter IX
Of course the Covenant came right as four of his best men left, Healy thought to himself. The second Mike’s platoon left, twelve Covenant Banshees screamed over the base firing plasma cannons on the communication towers below. Healy had walked outside just in time to watch as ten ghosts flew over the lotus tank mines that were planted around the base and exploded into heaps of wreckage that came to a stop as they crashed into the fence perimeters. An alarm was sounded and the 800 men and women of Delta Squad threw themselves into trenches and behind sand bag barriers. As the smoke began to clear the only thing that was heard was the barking and growls of the nearly 2,000 grunts that were charging at the men. As if the soldiers were one giant machine, they fired simultaneously.
The fine men and women of Delta Squad screamed with adrenaline as they poured every last round into the oncoming horde. The grunts that were unlucky enough to have been at the front of the charge began to pile up and act as barriers for their remaining comrades. As the remaining grunts halted their attack and began to find cover Healy noticed something in the sky. He was confused for a moment as he saw over a hundred of these beautiful blue balls launched into the air, and then it hit him, “MORTARS!” These blue balls of plasma were launched into the air by the Covenant tanks called Wraiths. When the plasma battery came crashing down Healy’s entire world began to spin. He saw the trenches that were filled with his men burst apart and he covered his eyes as their blood rained down on him. He began to walk backwards as the armory was hit sending fire and now wasted munitions into the air in a tremendous boom.
Healy began to run now towards the field hospital and refused to look back at the men that he could hear screaming. When he reached the tent he glanced to his left just in time to watch as over 500 Elites walked into his now wasted camp. The elites were the Covenant’s version of Spartans except much more plentiful. These 8 ft beasts wielded two energy swords that could cut through almost any type of armor short of a tank. Healy watched in horror as his men were slashed down one by one in a failing effort to hold their second line of defense. Healy rushed inside to find two medics holding MA3 Assault rifles leveled at his head, they quickly lowered their weapons and saluted, Healy just pushed by them, the entire base is overrun and there worrying about being formal. He noticed how another medic and a corporal were helping some wounded onto the back of a warthog that was parked behind the tent. He also noticed that Taylor was one of the few that weren’t already onboard and decided to go help her.
“Commander?” was the only thing that Taylor could think of to say when she saw Healy. She was half surprised to see him alive due to the fact that his tent was so close to the front lines. She tried desperately to hold back tears of pain while staring into Healy’s eyes. She had refused her pain pills because they were making her tired and throwing off her aim. She was still holding on to the pistol that Mike had given her before he had left.
“Why aren’t you on that hog” demanded Healy.
“There were others that -”
“No, you need to get on it NOW!” the commander could sense he was yelling but was in no mood to deal with Taylor’s typical bravado attitude.
The second that the order left his mouth two things happened. The first was the driver of the warthog yelling he was full as he began to drive away. The second thing was that four blue armored elites walked into the tent, followed by one red armored elite that seemed as though it was smiling at its new prey.
Everything happened so fast… with quick precisions of their arms the five elites moved through the tent slicing and stabbing every one. They showed no mercy. Men screamed as they were cut down in their beds, one began to pray until an energy sword relieved him of his head. Healy watched motionlessly as Taylor fired her clip into the skull of one of the elites, its shield flickered with the first three shots then gave way with a pop followed by the crumpling of the aliens head. She began to change her clip when one of the blue elites plunged it’s sword into her abdomen. Taylor let out a scream of anguish and then remained silent.
Healy turned and began to run until he felt himself being lifted off of the ground. He looked down at the site of an energy sword that had come through his lower back and was now sticking through his body. Healy didn’t understand, wasn’t this supposed to hurt? He watched one of his legs twitch and realized the blade must have severed his spine. The blade was pulled free and he crumpled to the ground. He began to dream of a time before the war; he remembered his wife and his new born on a summer day on Earth. He closed his eyes as he became lost in his own memory, they remained shut forever.
Chapter X
The rest of the day was spent sweeping the area around the crash site, trying to find some clue to the whereabouts of any surviving Spartans. It wasn't until the sun was nearly set and the skies turned a beautiful orange before anyone spoke.
"Sir," Don said, "it's getting dark and the Covenant are likely to have a scout team here within a couple of hours. If we stick around, we are sure to be spotted."
"One last round," Mike replied, "we can deal with a scout team, but I don't think we can deal with the commander if we go home empty handed."
"Yes sir." Don shifted the warthog into drive and they were out for one last sweep of the area.
Not two minutes later Vasili's voice could be heard. "I think we got something," he said, pointing to a Phantom Drop Ship far off on the horizon northwest of their current location. One could barely make out the faint stream of purple and blue plasma strafing the ground below it.
This was enough to satisfy Mike, "I think you're right. Don, pull the hog around and get up on that hill to the North. I want to get a better look." Don did as he was ordered, but not without hesitation. The last thing the marines wanted was to be spotted, and it was still bright enough that any units could make out the armored vehicle for miles once on top of that hill. As the warthog slowly climbed the hill, Mike activated his radio. "Command, we may have found them."
There was nothing but static on the other end. "I repeat: we may have found them, Commander are you there?" Still no reply.
"The Covenant must have knocked out the radio during the battle," Zane said.
They finally reached the top of the hill and Mike turned on his radio again, still static.
Mike was just turning off his radio when he heard Don yell, "Look!" Sure enough, streams of rockets and the bright lights of assault rifles could be seen in a small valley just eight or nine miles west of their location.
Mike climbed out of the warthog to get a better look, as did Zane and Vasili. "Pull the warthog down the hill a little so we don't get spotted Don." From the hill the marines could clearly make out two phantoms circling around three small cement buildings. The sound of the battle was drowned out by the Warthog's engine, but Don soon shut it off and was racing back up the hill.
Just as Mike could hear Don's panting he noticed a small purple flash on the underside of one of the phantoms. He fixed his vision on the flash as it slowly grew brighter. Soon more flashes started appearing all over the phantom much like the first. Then arks of blue electricity appeared on the sides just before the entire phantom was engulfed in a fiery purple blaze. The explosion was big enough to rock the other phantom from side to side and loud enough to be heard by the marines as they watched what was left of the phantom fall to the ground in pieces.
This is defiantly them.
Chapter XI
"Get into that warthog now, we need to provide support for the Spartan team," as Mike yelled his order to the men under his command he watched as the other phantom lifted up into the sky and moved at top speed in the complete opposite direction of the his and the Spartan teams' position. Since when did the Covenant run? As the warthog pulled up to the bunkers Mike ordered Don to stop.
MA5B....$50,
10,000,000 Bullets....$500(with military discount),
Saving Earth's Ass AGAIN!!!......PRICELESS