I'll post the finished product in the Library, of course, I was just wanting to throw a "display" of sorts out there; give people a look at what I'll be doing.
Inside
the Artifact
February
4, 2531 / 00:52 / Unknown Artifact, Harvest
Anders walked cautiously alongside Sergeant Forge. He smelled like
combat; a musky mixture of blood – both Human and Covenant, gunfire
gas residue, and adrenaline fueled sweat. Not an entirely pleasant
smell, but one that the young Professor had grown accustom too.
She looked around at the surrounding structure. Large arches, crafted
by what ONI called the Forerunners, swept upward from the ground; all
of them leading to a large, chandelier looking structure. The
structure hung over an artificial island, surrounded by a moat that
fell down into a chasm. If Anders were to guess, the chasm was at
least five kilometers deep, possibly more.
“Sergeant,” she asked, “is this what the aliens were after?”
She continued to follow him, turning as she walked to get a better
view of the structure.
“Seems so, ma’am,” Forge responded, “They sure paid a price
defending it.” All around the group, several Marines worked to
gather the fallen Elite and Grunt bodies and move them out of the
way. “All quiet now,” he confirmed.
Anders rolled her eyes; she wasn’t an idiot. They had just fought
through several Covenant forces; Ellen herself had fired at more than
a few Grunts with her M6C – given to her as a precaution by the
Sergeant. To tell her what she already knew was redundant.
Her annoyance soon diminished as they crossed a small bridge leading
to a large, ornate console. Forge held up a hand, silently ordering
his men to hold position. Well, Anders thought to herself, I’m
not one of his men. She walked ahead, carefully approaching the
foreign console.
A large blue orb, comprised of perhaps a thousand hexagons, sat in
the center of an artistically crafted base. A symbol was on each
geometric facet, symbols that seemed familiar to Anders, though she
couldn’t place them. Without actively thinking, she reached out to
touch the orb.
“Hey!” Forge grabbed her hand, stopping her from touching the
ob’s surface, “What’re you doing?”
She looked at him with a glance of annoyance. “Nothing ventured,”
she said as she pulled her arm from his grip, “nothing gained.”
Once again she reached to the orb, this time purposefully. The
surface tingled with energy, a calm electrical current that sent
tendrils of excitement and anticipation down Anders’ spine. The orb
rotated as her hand approached, groaning with age yet still moving
gracefully.
As she touched the surface, the hexagons under her fingertips glowed
a bright blue. A split second later, a pulse of energy raced along
the orb. The structure in front of them rumbled deeply, its inner
mechanics moving for the first time in centuries. Anders took a
tentative step back, watching the machine with a mixed look of worry
and wonder.
A thin beam of light pulsed in the center, connecting the ground
structure to the hanging one. With a sudden flash, it expanded
rapidly. Anders blinked, the flash blinding her for a moment. When it
cleared, dozens of stars and planets orbited the structure slowly,
crafted from light, yet surprisingly accurate.
“Now that’s not what I expected!” she gasped. The
planets displayed began to trace lines, possible paths, between the
systems’ sun and the orbiting planets. It’s our galaxy, Anders
thought to herself. One of the planets blinked red. Though several
were a faded shade of red or blinking as well, this one caught
Anders’ eye especially. Home! She realized, is it in
trouble?
“What is it, Professor?” Forge asked, giving her a concerned
look.
Ellen turned from the display to face the Sergeant. “The
star-chart,” she explained, “For some reason it’s indicating
Arcadia.”
“How can you tell?”
“Because it’s blinking red, Sergeant,” she snapped. She tried
to find their current position, the planet spinning by them slowly.
Harvest was a dark red, the color staying solid.
“There’s a lot of them blinking, Doc.” The Sergeant pointed
out.
“Yes, I see that,” Anders thought quickly, “But Arcadia lit up
first. I would think that indicates a certain level of urgency.”
She knew she was taking a risk in manipulating the mission, but the
fighting on Harvest was all but over. The UNSC can mop up whatever
Covenant remain, she justified herself, but Arcadia needs
help. Oh, father, she suddenly worried, What if I’m too
late?
Forge shrugged. “Alright Doc,” he resigned. He had no reason to
argue. If there was a fight that called for the UNSC, then he would
fight. The decision on whether or not to head to Arcadia would fall
to Captain Cutter.
There was a slight pop of compressed gas, followed by the shattering
of crystal. A Marine at the back of their formation went down with a
grunt, pink shards scattering around his body. “Take cover!”
Forge shouted. The other Marines, as well as Forge and the Professor,
quickly ducked behind whatever they could find.
Anders watched as the star-chart quickly disappeared, the
still-blinking Arcadia fading from sight. She would worry about
convincing the Captain later, surviving to do so now.
Forge searched frantically for his M6, realizing that he had given it
to the Professor. “Sh*t,” he muttered, glancing to his right. He
caught the attention of a Marine, who nodded and tossed an M90
Shotgun Forge’s way. “These guys just don’t know when to quit!”
he mused. The Sergeant caught the weapon, smirking with satisfaction.
Time to play hardball, he thought in amusement as he cocked
the gun.
He ducked around the corner, firing into an Elite’s belly. The
rounds connected, sending the big alien dead on his ass. He continued
to fire, wounding or taking down his targets. The ones that he didn’t
kill he left, knowing that without their shields they would fall
quickly to the Marines’ MA5B’s.
His concentration broke as he heard a cry of pain. The Marine to his
left clutched a pink shard protruding from his chest. Forge dropped
his gun, catching the Marine as he fell. He quickly pulled the
shard out, tossing it aside as it shattered with minimal harm.
Another Marine fell, the needle shattering before Forge could react.
“Uh, Spirit this is Forge,” he shouted into his comm as the
Marine beside him nursed his wound, “We’re gonna need a little
backup.” He quickly swept up his shotgun, hoping that the call was
received and responded too.
The Sergeant looked at Anders, fear and panic displayed plainly on
her face. Her hands holding the M6 were shaking; she would be very
lucky to hit anything. “Don’t worry, Doc,” Forge comforted,
“They’ll come. We’ll make it.”
He emerged from cover, continuing to fire on the attacking Covenant,
hoping that he was right.
Current Fan Fictions in the Library:ODST: Hellbound
The Interrogation of Ellen Anders
Halo: Archangel