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This topic has moved here: Subject: [Story] Halo 3: Insurrection (Part 44 is now available!) ~ 06 April
  • Subject: [Story] Halo 3: Insurrection (Part 44 is now available!) ~ 06 April
Subject: [Story] Halo 3: Insurrection (Part 44 is now available!) ~ 06 April

More please!

  • 04.28.2010 4:37 AM PDT

Acta Non Verba

DarkFus10nz

Check out www.nextgenwalkthroughs.com for the ultmate walkthrough experiace!

please!!!

  • 04.29.2010 1:39 PM PDT

Sorry about the scarcity of parts lately, it's just been a bit hard to focus, what with my exams looming like evil harbingers of death. So whilst I can't manage churning dozens of chapters in a month like "The Munchies" or "Kingwrench" can, I'll still keep updating sporadically. Thanks for reading, I appreciate it very much.

Part 46 - Bad state of affairs

"Well this is just peachy. Harper's dead, the rest of the Admiralty is dead or wounded, and Captain Daniels is MIA. Now what?" Lieutenant Dominique of the UNSC Navy moaned over an open channel to the rest of his fleet.

"The important thing is to remain calm. You're going to have to take command Lieutenant," the enigmatic, nameless ONI Admiral supplying the fleet with up to date intelligence told him firmly, opening a private communications link.

"What? Can't you do it?" Dominique replied, terrified. The female ONI officer sighed patiently.

"No, Lieutenant. My work lies in intelligence, not warfare. I don't know the slightest thing about commanding a fleet," she said in a patient, level tone. Dominique didn't know here name.

"And you think I do?" he replied, frantic.

"You can command a ship can't you?"

"It's not the same!"

"Isn't it?"

"No! I can relay small commands to my ship, sure, but not an entire fleet!" Dominique felt like he was about to pass out any moment, and the ONI officer evidently saw this.

"Lieutenant, calm down! That's an order. Just take deep breaths, and focus on the task at hand. A fleet isn't so different from a ship. You helped the Elites and Covenant escape from the Flood didn't you?"

Dominique stared around the bridge, and was painfully aware that his crew was staring at him. Most had sympathetic looks on their faces.

"That was different, I had instruction from Captain Daniels. I have enough trouble as it is commanding my ship, Spook, I can't handle an entire fleet. Can't an AI do it?" he suddenly had a revelation, face brightening. The ONI officer's expression turned stony.

"That would not be wise; AI units are neither fit nor programmed for command, it can accelerate their descent into rampancy. I can, however, have one advise you -- moderately. Now stand tall Captain, and look out the window at your people. They need you now, more than ever."

"Okay," Lieutenant Dominique replied quietly, almost as a whisper.

"What?"

"I said okay. I'll do it."

"Good man Lieutenant, pull this off and I'll make sure you get a Colonial Cross."

Dominique walked down the aisles, hands behind back, breathing deeply. He came to his observational window, and looked out at the UNSC fleet in all it's glory. Hundreds of ships, lined up...full of life...dependant on him...placing their life in his--

"Sacre bleu," Dominique groaned, before promptly fainting on the spot.

* * * * * * * * *

"Well, here were are," Mendez stated blankly, sitting himself down on a crate and staring down into his grimy, leathery hands. The Flood beat on the heavy blast doors outside, and every scream made him wince.

"Do not worry Reclaimer, they cannot penetrate those doors," 343 Guilty Spark replied optimistically, spinning gaily in the air.

"Don't be so sure Spark, the Flood are tough and this ship's taken a heavy beating in recent times. Even if they can't break through, they'll realise that they can just hack the computer systems soon. Then, they'll either open to doors, and we'll go down fighting, or they'll drain the room's oxygen levels, and we'll die of asphyxiation--" Mendez broke off, not trusting his voice to remain level and sturdy. He was terrified he would die gasping. At times like these, he wished he was religious so he had a God to pray to and make peace with.

Eden has probably escaped, and the Captain's either dead or a hostage. I was an idiot to take my eyes off him. This is all my fault.

"Spark, if they breach this room, I want you to cut a hole in the hull and get out of here," Mendez gravely informed the floating monitor, who paused for a moment.

"But--that will kill you, Reclaimer," Spark protested, evidently baffled.

"Yes," was all Mendez dared say.

"And this doesn't bother you?"

"Well, yes, but there's no sense in us both being killed. You're needed to tell the Didact if Halo needs to be--wait a second. Spark!" Mendez's brain finally engaged, and he stood up, facing the floating ball of pure joy with exuberant exhalation. "You can teleport us out of here!"

"Oh, I suppose I can! How forgetful of me. When do you want to leave?"

Mendez rolled his eyes.

"Gee Spark, I was thinking we could go some time next week. I'll go pack the bags and ask my parents if they want to go too, they could do with a break. We'll have to find someone to baby-sit the kids and dog though. When do you think I want to go? Now!"

"Ah. Well, then that could prove to be a problem. I used up most of my power rebooting and keeping the bullet in a field of electro-magnetic stasis so it wouldn't interfere with my internal circuits. I lack the energy needed to even teleport us to the other side of the room."

Dammit! Mendez forced himself to remain calm, keeping what would have been an explosion of nuclear proportions down to a mere swear word or two. The Flood were doubling their efforts, and the blast door was beginning to show signs of strain. It wouldn't be long before they'd break through.

"What powers you anyway? Did the Forerunners use batteries?"

"Hardly. I'm powered a fusion source. You see, two light weight atomic nuclei fuse together to form a denser nucleus, which releases a greater amount of energy. That's how your sun works, incidentally--"

"I know what fusion power is Spark, I'm not a dunce. So what's the problem?"

"It'd be too hard to explain in human terms. The basics of it is that I'm out of power for now. Well, aside from the backup generator," Spark answered.

"Backup generator? What's that powered by?"

"Anything really. To use human terms, kinetic energy converted, heat energy converted, electrical energy converted--"

"Would this backup generator be able to fuel the energy needed for a teleport?"

"Well, yes, theoretically. But it takes time to charge."

But Mendez was already moving towards a console embedded into the wall. He ripped off the maintenance panel, exposing the wiring and circuitry beneath.

"Would this ship's fusion reactor be enough to charge that generator up?" Mendez wondered aloud, talking to himself more than the monitor. Spark evidently heard him though.

"It depends how powerful it is. But yes, theoretically it could. But we haven't the time to establish a safe and secure connection to said reaction."

Mendez ripped out the tips of several wires, smiling when he saw them crackle with raw, dangerously powerful electricity leeched from the ship's core.

"Who said anything about safe?"

* * * * * * * * * *

Graham Daniels' unstable escape pod crashed into a soft, spongy cushion of Flood biomass. Lucky in one sense, unlucky in another.

Eden's gone. Thousands of brave men and women died in this battle, and the most devious, pathetic merciless bastard in this galaxy lives. Life isn't fair.

The Admiral had spared his life though. That was something, right? And to be fair, Eden had truly believed he was doing the right thing. Much like the Insurrectionists once had. That hadn't made it right though. Where would he go now? As soon as Graham got back to Earth, he'd make sure that a bounty of staggering proportions was placed upon Eden's head.

"Hello traveller, you seem to have crashed. Scans show you are still living. Well done!" an artificial voice suddenly cut through Graham's thoughts, shocking him back into reality. He unfastened his seatbelt, and looked around for the source of the voice.

The avatar of an AI was displayed upon the deck of the control panel. And unfortunately, not a smart AI, but a "dumb" one; programmed, not sentient.

"This is just what I need," Graham muttered, sighing. Well, it was better than nothing.

"If you require any medical aid, you will find a small cache to your immediate right. If you are unable to move, say so, and I will attempt to activate the auto-surgeon if it is still functioning," the AI droned on.

"I'm fine!" Graham replied irritably, pushing himself up. He felt a little shaky, but other than that he was fully functioning. "AI, where am I?"

  • 04.30.2010 4:38 PM PDT

"Location unknown Captain. Can I help you with anything else?"

"Unseal pod hatches AI, and prepare yourself for a hard transfer. You're coming with me," Graham ordered.

"Certainly sir. Opening hatches in 3-2-1--" The large door near the rear of the escape pod swung open with a hydraulic hiss, shortly before a crystalline chip ejected from the control panel, which contained the AI. Cursing once again at his bad luck, Graham pulled the chip out from the slot and inserted it into the slightly beaten wrist computer he wore.

"Transfer complete!" the annoyingly chirpy tones of the AI sung through the speakers of the wrist computer. Ignoring it, the beaten captain began to gather up the supplies he would need; weapons, food, water, camping supplies, and a whole other array of useful things. Once the MA5C was securely in his hand and fully loaded, he felt a lot better. With a grunt, Graham stepped out of the pod, into the horrific world around him.

Some years ago, Graham had needed a small operation after he'd developed bowel cancer. With a morbid curiosity, Graham had opted to see the procedure on video after it had been completed. His insides had looked disgusting and completely alien.

That's what the world around him looked like now, albeit it was even more putrid, and everything seemed dead.

"Holy sh­it," he breathed, staring in amazement at the world around him.

"AI, which way is north?" Graham questioned the program on his wrist, who took a few seconds to respond.

"I shall place a waypoint over your neural interface showing a compass," the AI complied, and in a few seconds Graham saw a digital compass appear in the top left of his vision. Neural interface freaked him out at times, the image was being artificially fed into his retinae which then sent signals to his brain, overlaying the image over the real world. Or something like that.

"Thanks."

Now at least Graham sort of knew his bearings. He needed to find a way to contact the fleet before it was too late for him. There had to be a settlement around here somewhere. Right now though, it was dark and late, and Graham didn't care for the idea of walking blind through enemy territory.

After around half an hour of effort and fumbling around, he'd set up a camp, in the loosest sense of the word. At the very least, the tent would protect him from the howling wind and bitter cold. Realising how tired he was, Graham climbed inside his shelter, and immediately felt safe. He knew he wasn't, but the illusion of safety was there, and that would have to do.

Ten minutes later, he fell into a fitful sleep plagued with nightmares and other horrors of the mind.

* * * * * * * * *

"Spark?" Mendez wondered with a tinge of fear, staring at the buckling blast doors. Parasitic tendrils were already snaking their way into the room through the gaps.

"Not yet Reclaimer," the Monitor replied in a level tone, as if he'd just been interrupted whilst reading the morning paper. The Forerunner AI was currently surrounded by several power cables somehow suspended around its metal chassis. Electrical sparks crackled in an encompassing nexus.

"This had better work," the CPO replied, settling into a sturdy position in the centre of a group of crates. It was hardly brilliant protection, but then it was better than nothing.

"Have faith, Reclaimer," Spark chimed, sounding under duress.

"Faith? After what I saw in the war? There is no God, Spark. And if there is, he sure as hell doesn't give a damn about us," Mendez replied with a grim laugh.

"You mean your war with the Meddlers? Correct me if I'm wrong Reclaimer, but am I not right when I say you won that war?"

"Yeah, eventually, if you can call it a win. Scores of planets glassed, and the human population whittled down to a mere 200 million."

"But still...you won. So as I said Reclaimer, have faith," Spark answered self dismissively, as if he found the notion that there was no divine deity guiding their paths ridiculous. It had probably been programmed into him.

"The only thing I believe in is the ability of my gun to keep on firing. Believe you me Spark, I was once a very devout Christian. But over the years, I came to realise the truth -- God either doesn't exist or doesn't care. Besides, the arrival of the Covenant and Flood contradict dozens of things in the Bible to the point where its preposterous. You're welcome to fight alongside me Spark; God ain't."

"Faith doesn't have to be about gods, Reclaimer. Remember that."

Mendez was starting to feel uncomfortable about the topic, and so changed it.

"You done yet? This situation ain't getting any prettier Spark."

"Be patient Reclaimer, these things take--"

The Monitor of Installation 04 was suddenly cut off mid sentence as the huge, heavy blast doors finally caved in, and Flood poured in the room. Mendez immediately opened fire, dropping several of the slower, more clumsy ones.

"Time?" Mendez finished Spark's sentence for him, voice straining to sound over the cries of the feral Flood. "That's something we don't have Spark. Hurry!"

One of the Flood forms broke past his barrier, and lunged at Mendez's unprotected back. The CPO turned around, reaching for his knife frantically. The Flood form knocked it away, wrapping a molted, powerful tendril around Mendez's lightly armoured neck.

Suddenly, the pressure was released as a highly concentrated laser smashed into the Flood form's torso, practically disintegrating it.

"Well, that will set us back a little bit. Try not to force me to waste power Reclaimer, it doesn't help in the long run," Spark rebuked Mendez, red lens reverting back to its previous colour.

"Understood," Mendez grunted, firing another volley of rounds into the advancing Flood. They were moving slowly, but surely. Their assault reminded Mendez of history lessons discussing how Napoleons French overwhelmed the British forces by marching slowly forward. They took terrible losses, but eventually would fall upon the helpless British soldiers with swords.

The CPO stumbled backwards as several infection forms lunged at him, landing on his chest and pushing him back with their surprisingly dense weight. Panicking as they reared their barbed tentacles before his face, Mendez rolled across the ground, practically squashing them against his armour. The pus released looked and smelt disgusting.

He fell back to Spark, quickly ending the 'life' of one Flood form who was attempting to prevent the Monitor from recharging its power.

And that was when one got the better of him.

Mendez felt a sharp pain in his left shoulder, looked down and saw a spiked tendril poking through it, his blood splattered alongside it. Immediately he began to shake and dropped to the floor, feeling hot and then suddenly cold.

He was aware of the Flood gathering around him, as if they were gloating. Spark was dimly shouting, but Mendez couldn't hear him over the ringing in his ears. The world began to grow dark, tinged with a golden light. He felt himself drifting into unconsciousness, and knew it would be a slumber from which he would never awaken.

Then, gunfire sounded, accompanied by Flood screams and cries of frustration. The unexpected sounds brought Mendez back from the brink, and the murky well of black began to clear. He looked up, and saw a Spartan battling a Flood Tank form.

Was he hallucinating? He had to be, no-one else was on the ship.

"Sir! Are you okay?" a male voice battered at the ringing noise in his ears. Now that seemed real. So did the hands which lifted him up and supported his weight. He looked around, and saw another Spartan, systematically plunging a knife into the corpses of Flood forms in a manner that was all too familiar. His head cleared further, and he realised that they were Spartan IIIs.

"Tom? Lucy?" he wondered, although all he heard was a faint groan followed by a pitiful sounding cough. He almost dropped to his knees, but was supported again by Tom.

"Yes sir, it's us. Don't worry, you're safe. Lucy, get a med kit out. Didact, come over here and apply some pressure to his wound."

Mendez looked at his surroundings; alien steels, greys, and gigantic holograms. This was definitely not the Galapagos.

"I apologise creator, but this was the first place I thought of and I was under a lot of pressure. Had I hesitated a second later, we would have been overwhelmed." Mendez faintly recognised the voice as belonging to Guilty Spark.

"You did the right thing, 343."

"Where--" Mendez began to croak out, before breaking off again. Tom, helmet removed, looked down at him with an intent, concerned look on his face.

"Just relax sir, you're at Halo. Spark teleported you out of that ship; accidentally brought a few of the Flood with him too. They've been dealt with. Now, you're going to pass out momentarily, but you'll be up and walking again in no time. Just don't fight the sedative, it can be dangerous."

All this was too much for Mendez's pain drunken head, but he accepted the words anyway. He felt the black tinge return, but this time, he embraced it.

  • 04.30.2010 4:39 PM PDT

I have to say that you should publish your stories
you are a very good author, keep going

  • 05.01.2010 4:15 AM PDT

Posted by: Wolverfrog
You're welcome to fight alongside me Spark; God ain't."


Heh heh...

Good chapter! I wonder if Daniels will get eaten.

  • 05.01.2010 5:43 AM PDT

Acta Non Verba

DarkFus10nz

Check out www.nextgenwalkthroughs.com for the ultmate walkthrough experiace!

well which was do you want him?? kebab or burgur??

  • 05.02.2010 9:04 AM PDT

please make Eden die horribly and slowly and soon. you just make him such a villainous character, i just want to make a list of how many ways he could die

  • 05.02.2010 10:41 AM PDT
Subject: [Novel] Halo 3: Insurrection (Part 47 is available!) ~ 10 May

Hopefully with this chapter, I've managed to capture the essence of Cole as he is portrayed in the books. Thanks for reading.


Part 47 - The Return

"Warning; motion trackers detect multiple lifeforms closing in on our location," the AI Graham had put on standby suddenly cautioned. The captain leapt out from his troubled sleep, sitting up. His heart was racing a million miles a minute. And surely enough, he could hear footsteps outside.

­Sh­it, he swore silently as he cursed his bad luck yet again. Scrambling out from his bed covers, he grabbed his rifle with trembling hands, threw on some body armour and then climbed out of his tent.

He was met by a horrific sight. There had to be a dozen Flood forms lumbering towards him, slowly ambling and making terrifying noises. There was no doubt that they'd seen him. Still, they were moving slowly, and weren't armoured.

Graham opened fire with his MA5C...

...but nothing happened. Distraught, he checked the ammo reserve, and saw nothing inside except a jammed opening and a sheet of paper, with hastily scrawled writing on. With dread, he drew it out, simultaneously backing away from the Flood.

Dear Captain, I thought long and hard and realised I don't quite forgive you for what you did. If you're reading this, then you must be in trouble, I know you never perform proper weapon maintenance. Now you know what it's like to have hope taken away from you. Terribly sorry old boy; I'd run if I were you.

Regards, Admiral Eden.


Graham stared at the paper in shock for a few seconds, uncomprehending. The Flood were advancing all the while, and he had nothing to fight them with.

I'm going to kill him. Screw the bounty, I'm going to steal a ship, go AWOL and make it my personal mission in life to find him, and kill him, Graham vowed, turning around so that he'd be able to run. Dread filled him when saw the Flood had encompassed him in a ring. Grimacing, he drew out his knife, which he wasn't very proficient with. If he was going to go down, one of them would go with him.

He had no chance to do this though, as a long tendril suddenly shot out from one of the Flood's limbs, knocking the knife out of his hands and constraining his wrist. He tried to rip it off with his other hand, but another tendril wrapped around it too. More grabbed his legs, and then he felt himself being lifted off the floor, helpless and unable to fight back.

"This one is important. It knows things," one of the Flood forms rumbled, its misshapen mouth contorting horrifically to form words.

"Do we assimilate it?" another asked, with an almost exact same tone of voice. Since when did the Flood speak amongst each other? They were evolving more and more by the minute.

"Not here, it has an iron will. Its mind might be damaged if we let one of the Turners assimilate it."

"Then do we take it before the Mind?"

"Yes, we do," the Flood form restraining him seemed to chuckle then, a cunning look in its dead eyes. Graham detected a very faint trace of hope. These Flood forms were intelligent and seemed independently minded. Maybe he could negotiate with them.

"Listen; you don't have to do that. Help us, I'll see to it that you're treated kindly. You don't have to be slaves to the Gravemind; you're alive too," Graham said to the ring of Flood, who genuinely looked taken aback by his offer.

Fool!, a voice suddenly spoke within the confines of his mind. The Flood forms visibly winced. My will is theirs, your pleading is futile. You speak not to individuals but to one mind. Bring this human to me, I shall dissect what he knows.

"It shall be done," one of the Flood forms answered, suddenly looking utterly submissive.

"Why are you helping him?" Graham despaired. These Flood forms seemed conflicted. Evolution was hindering the Gravemind as much as it was helping it.

"He gave us life," one answered simply. "He can take it away in the blink of an eye. We exist only to serve him, there is no other purpose."

And Graham actually found himself feeling sorry for them. Not hugely, seeing as how they were about to take him to the worst creature in the Galaxy, but still sorry all the same.

"Manacle him," one of the Flood forms ordered. They'd become more and more like organised soldiers recently. They even seemed to have ranks and distinguishing uniforms. One of the Flood forms roughly grabbed him with its called, clammy arms, ramming energy manacles onto his wrists aggressively. It was abnormally strong. It then tied a rope to the manacles, and tugged it once to check it was firm.

"Let us move," was all it said, and immediately the dozen or so Flood began running in synchronisation, at a ridiculously fast speed. Graham felt his body lift up from the ground as the Flood form holding his "leash" ran. He vaguely realised he was screaming, but could not hear himself over the roar of the wind.

Why me?


[Edited on 05.11.2010 12:39 PM PDT]

  • 05.10.2010 1:15 PM PDT
Subject: [Novel] Halo 3: Insurrection (Part 46 is available!) ~ 30 April

* * * * * * * * *

"Now what? There isn't anybody remaining with sufficient training and experience to command a fleet. Lieutenant Dominique's in a fragile state right now, and he wasn't an ideal choice to begin with," the ONI officer mused, speaking directly to the other leaders. They were inside a conference room on Placid Enrichment, discussing what was going to happen regarding UNSC leadership.

"And you are sure Captain Daniels is missing?" Equanimity questioned, a wise, intent look on his wizened face.

"As far as we can gather, yes. A Longsword took off from the Galapagos earlier, before jumping into slipspace; not before jettisoning an escape pod with life signs closely matching Captain Daniels however. We have reason to believe he's stranded on Sangheilios. Where, however, we don't know."

It was at that point that R'tas stood up.

"Well, if needs must be, I will be able to command the human fleet."

"An Elite?" the ONI officer sounded sceptical. "That won't do much to boost morale R'tas. Humans want a human leading them to victory, not the leader of a race which had been dedicated to wiping us out not even a year ago."

"I admit the situation is not ideal, but then what other option is there? I shall be able to relay commands to your ships and my own from the Shadow of Intent. With luck, and a bit of divine intervention, we shall make it through this battle."

Suddenly, the door swung inwards with a loud crash, and a figure in admiralty clothing stood, eyes blazing like ruby gems cutting through a dark night.

"No Elite will ever be in command of the UNSC. Not over my dead body," the man standing in the doorway spoke, and everyone in the room collectively gasped. Everyone recognised that voice. Humans had heard it in broadcast reporting victory over the Covenant, who had heard the voice in crushing reports of defeat and destruction.

Everyone in the room knew who this man was.

"Admiral Cole?" the ONI Admiral whispered, her voice tiny and seemingly insignificant as she beheld the legend before her. Her voice echoed the whispers of the people standing behind him. She'd known that the Surgeon had been searching for him, but never had she believed that he might succeed.

A gigantic crowd of thousands had gathered behind the tall, proud and battle ready Admiral. The humans in the crowd were wide eyed with awe and respect, the Covenant with fear.

"Obviously," Cole replied dryly, striding over to the table and slamming his hands down on the futuristic material. Every non-human member of the table flinched.

"But, you're dead!" another ONI officer who was not privy to highly classification gasped, pale faced. Cole smiled wryly.

"I got better. We can discuss the details later. The important thing now is that I'm here, and the way I see it, the UNSC is in trouble, and you Covenant aren't doing so brilliantly yourself. I'm taking command."

Every human nodded absently. If Cole had told them to jump, they would have immediately asked 'how high?' Not everyone was pleased with arrangement however.

"Now hold on just a minute!" R'tas exclaimed angrily, jumping to his feet. Admiral Cole turned to face the Sangheili, who immediately shrunk a little, despite being several feet taller than the human. "You can't just come in here and take control!"

"Actually Elite, I just did. I've been reviewing your strategies; they're terrible. You fight just as sloppily now as you did back in the Great War. I personally sent over three hundred of those pathetic hunks of metal you call ships down to hell in the war, against superior numbers too. Now you can either submit to my command or leave."

"My brother was on one of the ships you destroyed," R'tas muttered darkly, trembling with anger. Cole gave him a scathing look.

"Don't preach to me about losing family members in the war, Elite. Not ever. I'm taking command. You'll still have authority, but I want you to submit to my command. Fleets without one singular leader are doomed. You should have realised that. Now, what's your choice?"

The huge Jiralhanae Chieftain Daedalus stood then, and despite even his gargantuan size he felt a little intimidated by Cole.

"Not so quick human. We have all heard of your suicidal tactics. I won't have you destroy half my fleet with your command," Daedalus argued, folding his tree trunk sized arms resolutely. Cole laughed then, but it wasn't a warm one.

"Brute, you really have no idea do you? The Flood is constantly evolving and adapting. They're getting smarter by the minute. If you carry on the way you are, you won't just lose half your fleets -- you'll lose them all."

"I have no problem with submitting to Admiral Cole's expertise," Equanimity spoke softly. The rest of the alien leaders looked at him as if he were a traitor. The Prophet shrugged. "It makes sense. He's a very capable leader, as your brother found out R'tas. And what we're doing right now isn't working. It's worth a try. The alternative is worse."

Daedalus and R'tas exchanged a look between each other, before both simultaneously sighing. They then sunk to one knee before the bemused Admiral Cole.

"Human, we pledge our temporary fealty to you," R'tas informed the Admiral; Daedalus echoed his words.

Cole nodded, before going to a window and looking out at the fleets, lined up fairly battered. He disliked arrogance such as the sort he had just displayed, but sometimes it was the only way to make someone listen to you. And it had worked, after all. Running some quick calculations in his head, and looking at Sangheilios' size, he turned back around.

"Now, I have a plan. One that will possibly help us win this war. And you're not going to like it."

Half an hour later, Cole had relayed his genius and insane plan to the fleet leaders. It took him a further half hour to convince them to accept it. Eventually, the ones arguing began tripping themselves up, and forced themselves to admit that Cole's plan was indeed necessary.

"I'll need a flagship. Marathon class, if that's possible. And a good AI, one which can think creatively but still take orders without arguing," Cole ordered, already walking out of the room, leaving the other leaders to hurry nervously after him.

"What are doing?" R'tas demanded.

"Telling them the truth," Cole answered, indicating the thousands of people staring at him with awe. He climbed the stairs to the highest platform in Placid Enrichment's atrium, and activated the voice amplifier on the railing.

"I am Admiral Preston J. Cole, and as of now you are all under my command," he started off bluntly. The humans watching let off a wave of cheering. Cole made sure that his speech would be broadcast to every ship in the fleets.

"On whose authority? I follow Imperial Admiral R'tas and he alone!" an Elite garbed in golden zealot armour shouted back, immediately earning cold looks from several humans standing near him.

"Then listen to me when I ask that you follow Admiral Cole's orders," R'tas answered, coming up behind Cole with Daedalus and Equanimity at his side. That shut them up.

"I know this might be difficult to accept, but it's happening, so you might as well get used to it. Now, I'll be honest with you; only around half of you will live today. And so I want you all to do your best to be in that half. If I give an order, you follow it to the bone, or hand over your command to another. The Flood are arrogant, and that is there weakness. Now get to your ships and be prepare for a hard planetary slingshot. Move!"

The crowd immediately rushed down to the docking bay, still wide eyed and shocked. Cole turned around and saw the Brute Chieftain looking down at him.

"That was...blunt," Daedalus told him with a raised eyebrow. The Admiral sighed.

"This is a blunt situation, Brute. Now get your ship and wait for me orders -- all of you."

Here I go again, sending soldiers to their deaths. It sometimes seems like that's all I ever do. The terrifying thing is that I don't make people fight, I make them make themselves fight. These people would follow me down to hell and back, and that scares me more than it comforts me.

Wiping an unshed tear from his eye, Admiral Preston J. Cole pulled his cap down, and straightened his jacket. There would be time for sentimentality later.

Right now, he had a tide to turn.

[Edited on 05.10.2010 1:18 PM PDT]

  • 05.10.2010 1:16 PM PDT

Dear wolver,
Stop ending with awesome cliffhangers or my head will explode
-stig

  • 05.10.2010 1:41 PM PDT

pure utter genius

  • 05.10.2010 6:47 PM PDT

I don't like how all of a sudden the flood have personal opinions and are afraid of the gravemind, but it is your story.

Cole is a nice character. I like.

:D

  • 05.11.2010 10:09 AM PDT

Acta Non Verba

DarkFus10nz

Check out www.nextgenwalkthroughs.com for the ultmate walkthrough experiace!

awsome

  • 05.11.2010 11:11 AM PDT

By the power of truth, I, while living, have conquered the universe.

Mass Effect & Doctor Who references FTW!

Shorter chapter, but sweet. I can tell you just want this finished though. ;)

  • 05.11.2010 12:03 PM PDT

Posted by: steadman
I don't like how all of a sudden the flood have personal opinions and are afraid of the gravemind, but it is your story.


The Gravemind is evolving them at a rapid rate, making them more efficient in combat. The downside of this is that they start to think independently, ever so slightly. The Gravemind's going to keep them on a tight leash, don't worry. You won't see the effects of the Flood starting to think for themselves a bit until the epilogue. And no, I'm not going to have a Flood Juggernaut toss the Gravemind into an abyss of crackling force lightning.

  • 05.11.2010 12:37 PM PDT

Posted by: Wolverfrog
And no, I'm not going to have a Flood Juggernaut toss the Gravemind into an abyss of crackling force lightning.

lol i like this part

  • 05.11.2010 7:03 PM PDT

Posted by: Dropship dude
No, acnboy. Spartain Ken 15 is a lesser being. Much like the bacteria that lives in your shi­t.
Posted by: mike120593
My shi­t bacteria takes offense to that comparison.

Don't make me lel. You won't like me when I lel.

Posted by: Wolverfrog
And no, I'm not going to have a Flood Juggernaut toss the Gravemind into an abyss of crackling force lightning.
Best. Idea. Ever.

Sorry I haven't been around much. -blam!-storms have had me occupied lately.

  • 05.13.2010 11:26 PM PDT
Subject: [Novel] Halo 3: Insurrection (Epilogue available!) ~ 14 May

The following was just a joke, and is not an official part of Insurrection.

"So, how's the battle on Sangheilios going?" Tom asked his instructor with a pent frustration, evidently annoyed that he was unable to participate. Mendez was eating a quick lunch, needing to replace the energy he lost after being stabbed. With a nonchalant expression, he peeled a fairly bruised looking banana.

"The clock could swing either way," Mendez sighed, munching on his fruit. "All we can do is hope."

"Maybe we should get into the battle. We might be able to make a difference," Tom suggested, looking at Lucy and the Didact. The Forerunner shook his head firmly.

"What if Halo needs activating? We need to remain here," the Didact replied, although with a tinge of regret. Tom merely smiled.

"CPO Mendez can activate it if the worst comes to the worst; we're all Reclaimers, after all. Isn't that right?"

The Didact thought for a few moments, before breaking out into a grin.

"That's very true. As long as we leave him with the Melancholy Prejudice and Penitent Tangent, he should be able to carry out the task amiably. Can you take us, Spark?"

The Monitor of the now destroyed Installation 04 turned to his creator with an eager expression.

"Certainly, creator! I have used this installation's systems to sufficiently charge my power levels. I can access the teleportation grid with ease, if you so wish."

Mendez leaned forward, dropping his empty banana peel on the clear glass floor of Installation 07's control room.

"As much as it pains me not to be able to do anything, Tom's right. You're needed in the battle, all of you. I'll wait here, even though the prospect of having two monitors to talk to pains me a little."

"Are you sure, sir?" Tom asked, concerned. Mendez smiled.

"I'm sure, Tom. You're Spartans, and fighting is what you do best. Let the tired old men like me handle the menial jobs."

The Didact laughed, and went over to clap the CPO on the shoulder in a reassuring manner. Then, disaster struck.

The Forerunner's left boot trod on the banana peel, and suddenly the Didact found him catapulting through the air. Everyone watched with a sick horror, as the Forerunner hurtled without measure, sliding along with the banana peel. Suddenly, he was thrown against Halo's control panel, his hands thrust out instinctively.

The lights across the board of Halo's panel registered as green, and a deep, majestic noise began to build up in the huge chasm below. The Didact's head had smashed on the floor, rendering him unconscious.

"Oh hell," Mendez breathed, scrambling to his feet and rushing over to the limp body of the Forerunner. "Spark, what's happening?"

"The creator...activated Halo," Spark gasped with awe. There were gasps all around. Mendez leapt up, immediately rushing to the control panel. He attempted to press the switch, in an attempt to turn it off, but was unable to do so. Desperate, he reached out for the activation index, but found it wouldn't budge. A huge beam of light suddenly shot up from below, engulfing the control room in a blinding glare.

"Turn it off!" Tom was telling Spark, frantic. The Monitor of Installation 04 was zooming around frantically.

"Impossible! A Reclaimer cannot override the activation of a Forerunner! We can't stop it!" Spark shrieked. Lucy was shaking, Tom was speechless, and Mendez was battering at the unconscious Didact in a futile attempt to awaken him.

"So this is how the world ends," Lucy uttered, speaking for the first time in years. "Not with a bang, but with a banana peel."

Halo fired, triggering the five other Installations instantly. And in one blinding, catastrophic instant, the galaxy was rendered quiet.



[Edited on 05.15.2010 3:03 AM PDT]

  • 05.14.2010 1:33 PM PDT

IT'S TIME FOR A DICKING

FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU-

Your ghey.

[Edited on 05.14.2010 1:43 PM PDT]

  • 05.14.2010 1:38 PM PDT

I have wasted 12 hours of my life reading this, and I get this -blam!- ending?

I hate you stinking Brits and hope that your tea goes cold.

  • 05.14.2010 1:41 PM PDT
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I am a Sangheili Bard.
Tomes of the History of the Mirratord
For the honor of the Mirratord!

Oh, that was hilarious! *wipes eyes* I know, I know... it was a rather... oblique ending. But it does work, I suppose. It also cuts off all your loose ends.

But then we get to the corny side of it.

"And they died" is such a looney way to end a story, you know. You executed it pretty well, even gave it some nice flair and a few nice sprigs of parsley to make it look pretty. Good job with that. But... wow.

I am still giggling.
-Aardvark

  • 05.14.2010 2:07 PM PDT

There is a fine line between genius and madness, Wolver, and you've crossed it. But I'm not sure as to which direction.

  • 05.14.2010 2:23 PM PDT

By the power of truth, I, while living, have conquered the universe.

I. Am. Crying!

It took months for me to convince you to do this, it was totally worth it!

<3

  • 05.14.2010 2:25 PM PDT

OMG!!!! that is a big cliffhanger. i bet i know what happenes. (i'm not telling anyone)

  • 05.14.2010 5:15 PM PDT