- MaxRealflugel
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- Elder Mythic Member
Part 21
Otterburn Firing Range Cave System, United Kingdom
Olivia carefully hugged the craggy wall of the cave as she quietly made her way deeper inside the subterranean maze.
The dull, dark walls were covered in a mix of algae and a thin coating of water, which filled the cave with a steady drumbeat of water drops as they splashed on the cave floor below. Olivia, despite being the ideal candidate for this kind of task, had to move slowly and cautiously. Any sudden or sharp movements could bring a storm of spiker fire, or worse still, she could slip.
Almost ten minutes had past since they entered, but the only thing that they had encountered was darkness and silence. If there were any more Brutes alive in the caves then they were doing their utmost to remain undetected.
"You see anything Olivia?" John asked.
There was a brief moment of silence before a quiet whisper fluttered over the COM. "I'm not sure. There's something ahead, but I'm not sure what. All I could see was a small amount of movement."
John weighed up the options-which at the moment were somewhat limited. Even with their night vision as an aide the route down in the cave system was just a wash of blackness. John hated the intense silence that came with this approach to fighting, but there was little he could do until they had cleared the caves.
Suddenly there was a loud burst of automatic fire, the familiar sound of grenades bouncing around on the hard stone floor and the bright yellow glare of another flare. The section of the cave ahead of John was illuminated by the intense light which now enabled him to see what was happening. Ahead were the glowing outlines of two brute stalkers. Both were stood rooted to the spot, half blinded, with their large heavy arms raised to shield their eyes from the light.
John could see that Olivia was already using her HHAG rifle to good effect as one of the brutes fell to the floor. The other, dazed and confused, attempted to run but only succeeded in colliding with the cave wall. John and the other Spartans followed Olivia's lead and peppered the remaining brute with a handful of HHAG rounds.
"It's down," Olivia announced.
John and the others moved forward to check the bodies. Unlike the methodical approach to combat that the elites had employed, brutes were always sloppy and constantly carried map coordinates, battle orders or even holographic images of their objectives on data pads.
"Ash, Mark, carryout a thorough check. I want to know why they were here. Kelly, push through and provide cover," John ordered.
Three of the status lights in John's display winked green in acknowledgement before all three of them cautiously moved ahead. The cave slowly descended into darkness again as the flare completed its short, fiery display.
"Everyone use your tactical lights-that should be the last of the brutes, but proceed with caution." John said.
Everyone activated their tactical lights and moved forward, sweeping the immediate area for any signs of further danger. Ash and Mark rolled over the brute bodies and checked them for any Intel, but there was little to go on. The only item of any interest was an old aerial image of the cave entrance and the surrounding area. This was obviously their drop zone.
Kelly pushed ahead of the remainder of the squad and glanced down the next section of the path. She was surprised by what she saw.
"I definitely think that's the last of the brutes," Kelly reported.
"Why's that?" John asked
"I think you should come and see for yourself."
John walked up to where Kelly was and peered towards the area she was looking at. Before him was nothing but a dead end. "I don't get it. The brutes were quite interested in this cave, and there was the energy reading; why a dead end?"
"Maybe they just wanted some protection from the Hornet's outside," Fred offered.
"I'm not so sure," John said. "They landed here specifically. That mean's that there's something here alright. The brutes just couldn't find it. If only Cortana was here."
"You called," said a familiar voice.
"Cortana?" John probed.
"The one and only, Chief," she replied.
"ButI thought," John began. "I thought you were being repaired. And how did you get back? Your chip housing is empty."
"You would be surprised by what they can do. I'm all better now anyway."
"How long do you have?" John asked. The idea of her only have a short space of time left was a disturbing thought, one that sent a cold shiver down his enhanced spine. He'd always thought that if she was to die as an AI then it be because his luck had finally ran out and he'd been too slow to move or duck. Not the AI equivalent of old age.
"Another four years, give or take," she replied calmly.
He was pleased to hear the time was in years, instead of months or weeks. With his concerns of Cortana's well-being all but satisfied, for now at least, he shifted his attention to their current dilemma, the blank rock face that stood before him.
"Any ideas Cortana?"
"Move a little closer. So I can get a good look at it."
John moved closer to rock face, extending his hand. Cortana suddenly appeared in her usual guise of blue and purple, in the palm of his hand. She stared at the dull slate-grey surface, lines and shapes flashing along the length of her holographic body.
The rest of the Spartans moved forward, watching Cortana as she analysed the weak power signal and the face of the wall. As quickly as her skin had turned into a flurry of striking blue lines and shapes, her glowing form slowed to a steady stream of light. "Touch the wall Chief," Cortana said.
"Touch it?" John questioned. "I'm sure the brutes would've tried that already."
"Just try it."
John moved his hand even closer until he touched the dry surface of the wall. And that was the problem; it was dry and not dripping with moisture. There was also a distinct lack of plant life, such as moss. It was just a plain old cave wall. John expected something unusual or extraordinary to happen, but all he encountered was the hard surface of the wall, and nothing else.
"Well, what now?" John said with a sarcastic tone.
Cortana thought for a second--an eternity to her, before coming up with a suggestion.
"Try it again Chief, but take off your gauntlet. Use your bare hand."
Cortana's glowing face was strained with concentration and filled with hope. John assumed that whatever it was she was doing, it wasn't the standard way of operating. But he trusted her judgment and reached towards the wall.
The previous hard and dry surface had become soft and malleable, like jelly. But the resistance to John's hand only last a moment before the rock face disappeared completely, revealing a long, and obviously Forerunner constructed, pathway that descended steadily for two hundred metres or so. John immediately raised his HHAG, but no threat presented itself to him or the other Spartans. He pulled on his armoured gauntlet and began to walk along the pathway.
"John, there might be sentinels down there," Ash stated.
John pausedmid stride. "Something tells me we're expected," he replied.
Kelly walked up to him and nudged him in the ribs. "I see Kurt's sixth sense has rubbed off on you."
"It's either that or all the Forerunner stuff I've encountered. You get used to it eventually," John replied.
Olivia moved forward to take point, but John stopped her with an outstretched hand. "I'll take point this time Olivia, just in case."
Olivia nodded and followed closely behind.
"What do you expect to find?" Fred queried.
"Answers," John replied.