- Sergeant Murph
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- Noble Legendary Member
“Good-riddance!” he exclaimed. How had this shy little boy gone absolutely insane? I burst forward and grabbed hold of his right arm, twisting it back toward his shoulder blade. There was aloud pop. Kari screamed and fell to the ground, dropping the SMG. I shot my leg into his chest, winding him.
“I… I sorry,” he said, tears rushing to his eyes. “Dey said dey would cut off ma arms and legs if I didn’t spy on you.”
I looked at the boy who had almost killed my best friends. He looked at me with such guilt that it was difficult to not feel sympathetic.
But not too difficult.
“Where you’re going, Kari, it will be much worse than losing you’re limbs,” I said blankly. A look of horror wound up on his face. I was about to kick him when I suddenly lost view. My eyes were blinded by bright blue lights. I didn’t run. It was too late.
They had already found us.
One by one, the four Banshees flipped around and started toward us.
“Ready yourself!” Anderson yelled, carrying Hunter over to the Pelican. The weapons were spread out around the campsite in case we needed to protect ourselves. I picked up a Covenant Carbine and sucked in a long, painful breath. Once more I asked myself how I had gotten myself mixed up in this whole thing. My answer was the whine of a Banshee growing closer with every second.
Burns stood beside me, his Battle Rifle in hand. He nudged me.
“Nervous?”
“Must you always ask me that before a battle?”
“Must you always look like that before a battle?”
He had me there.
“Look, we’ll get through this. We always do. We’ll work together on this one.”
I nodded and raised my Carbine. The Banshees were less than twenty yards away now, sweeping through the air and leaving blue vapor trails. What had happened to the days where I was always out of trouble? Had life without death really strayed this far?
The first of the Plasma darted in, vaporizing the dirt ground.
And the battle had begun.
I dove to the side as a fuel rod slammed into the ground where I had been standing. I shuffled back and stood beside Burns.
“Spread out!” Anderson called. I saw him kneel beside Hunter, who was pale. Blood dripped out of his combat jacket from where Kari had struck him.
The four Banshees had unfolded around us. Gun and plasma fire mixed in with each other. Martin produced a Rocket Launcher.
“Heads up!” he yelled. Even though I couldn’t see his face behind the ODST visor, I knew he was grinning. There was a loud thump as the rocket broke loose from its holding place and sprang out at one of the Banshees. The night sky was lit up with a glorious explosion and raining Banshee parts. I almost laughed.
Another, seeing its partner destroyed, the Banshee gracefully flipped around and leapt at Martin, who was reloading the launcher.
Noticing this, I sprinted forward toward him. As the attack ship blazed low, I caught hold of the right wing. I dropped the Carbine and used my spare hand to pry the Banshee door open. As the Brute felt the night air meet him, he twisted the Banshee around again and glared at me. I yelped and swung around the front of the Banshee just as he lunged out and met nothing but air. Somehow, he managed to keep hold of the controls with his other hand. I grabbed a plasma grenade from my belt and slammed my first into the front side of the ship. As we soared over the cliff, I jumped off and landed with a thud on the ground.
The Brute screeched all the way down to the trees below.
The Phantom had dropped eight Brutes, six Grunts and four Jackals. Cholahee, camouflaged, crept behind one of the Jackals and punched it hard in the back. He kicked up the energy shield and turned to me.
“Sol!”
He flipped me the energy shield. I activated it, unveiling the blue light of plasma, illuminating the night. I trudged back into the battle, shield up and ready. A Brute Ultra noticed me and whirled around.
“What have we here? Sangheili scum? Aaah, the more pleasure in ripping your throat out,” he sneered. He slowly started to close in on me. I ripped the old black handle from my belt and activated my Battle Blade, focusing the point on the Brute’s head. He stopped at that and broke out laughing.
“You think that wretched thing is going to protect you? You’ll be dead before you swing.”
“Talking will get you nowhere. You want my head? Take it now,” I challenged. The Brute lunged forward, hairy fingers crumpled into a fist. I lunged at exactly the same time, thrusting the sword and shield forward. Amazingly, he drove himself left and smacked a rock hard fist into my chest. For a moment I couldn’t taste the breath of life. I slid across the ground, right to the edge of the cliff.
The Brute picked up my Battle Blade and ran across the battle field, fire igniting his eyes. I tried to stand, but couldn’t. I felt as if someone had hit me with a tree. I couldn’t even talk anymore. My tries for words came out as horrific squeals and croaks. Everyone was fixed on their own battle. Anderson was tending to Hunter, Burns and Kate were knelt behind a rock, picking off Brutes with their Battle Rifles. The ODSTs, Troy, Martin, and Sanchez were taking on four Brutes, ducking and rolling to the side and avoiding plasma with inimitable agility. Cholahee and Sikanoy were in heated battle with the other three.
My point?
No one was coming to save me.
The Brute leapt into the air, pointing the sword down at me. As he hit his highest point, a blue light latched itself to his face.
A plasma grenade.
I heard the click of the adhesive grenade just before the Brute refracted sideways and away from me. He thumped to the ground and didn’t move.
I looked around for who had thrown the lifesaving grenade. No one. Everyone was still where I’d left them. It was only when I saw the faintest sparkle in the hills that I saw a silver Sangheili in Honor Guard Ultra armor plating that I knew. Suddenly, I had a pained feeling in my stomach and head. There was something about that Elite that I didn’t like. Something felt… similar. All too familiar. The Brutes looked up from their battle. The Grunts jumped up, confused. The Jackals snickered.
“Your prophets have lied to you! They have used you as nothing but toys! And yet, you still allow them to! That, Jiralhanae, is heresy beyond all other.You are the true heretics!” he boomed. “We will give you one chance to turn from a certain death!”
The Captain Major laughed aloud. “We are the prophet’s toys? You Sangheili never saw the intention of our Great Journey until it was too late. Our path to godly hood is one that you will not see,” the Brute crowed, gesturing to the rest of his infantry. “You see these Brutes? They are the true guardians of the Great Journey. They outnumber you in body and in heart. You cannot win this battle.”
The Sangheili held his ground, leaning to one side in relaxation. “Perhaps there are some things the ignorant cannot see.”