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  • Subject: "Path of Reclamation" Level 20
Subject: "Path of Reclamation" Level 20

TWP - Assistant Director
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I'm halfway threw with it. Look for the un-editted chapter late tonight/early tomorrow morning.

~soulguard

  • 10.01.2007 5:24 PM PDT
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I am a Sangheili Bard.
Tomes of the History of the Mirratord
For the honor of the Mirratord!

Great news. I'll be waiting.

~Aardvark

  • 10.01.2007 8:18 PM PDT
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sweet as mate look forward to it

  • 10.01.2007 8:59 PM PDT

TWP - Assistant Director
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Level 21: Zero Hour

Hammer of God
Human/Sangheili controlled ship
Camp Eden

The blood splattered gravity hammer fell to the deck with a loud metallic thud. Simyaldee had expended its power completely on the few dozen brutes that lined the hall toward the last reported location of Grimleon. The Gravity Hammer buzzed and sparked as smoke escaped from it and Simyaldee left it lifeless in the hallway; along with the bloody corpses of the thirty plus brutes that had foolishly decided to fight him.

Simyaldee raced ahead, his nostrils flaring as Grimleon’s familiar smell burned into him. He was close, but still far away. Grimleon was by far the most skilled opponent to ever cross his path, and Simyaldee was not going to let the Brute take control of this ship.

Simyaldee ran along the corridor and saw that another group of brutes were completely blocking his path, and he was forced to fight them. Grimleon’s stench was growing weaker, and that meant that he was getting further away; deeper into the ship. After a few moments of fighting there were more dead brutes and more wasted time.

- - - - - - - -

Grimleon’s massive hulk trotted deeper into the corridor. His golden armor, marked with the bloody print of his clan, was dusty from combat in the hot sands below the ship, but now he was in striking range of dealing a critical blow to the human defenses. But even with this new found attack, his focus was still on Simyaldee. He wanted to finally be rid of the last Elite in the House of Yal. His clan had sworn over the course of many generations to kill them all, but the false peace between the brutes and elites hindered his quest and he was not aware that one last child of Yal still existed.

And a Mirratord warrior, no less.

“Grimleon.” The speaker in the corridor echoed. Grimleon paused, and so did his few brute escorts. His eyes bounced from side to side, looking about the purple and steel of the hall.

The voice added. “That is your name, is it not?”

“Who speaks it?” Grimleon snarled. He stepped forward, beyond the pack at his side. A hologram emerged before him glowing from the lights of the hall. It was a human female, floating majestically along an unseen wind. The pack of brutes at his aid stepped forward, snarling as they fired at the humanoid image. Their weapons passed through the image as Siren returned a simple smile.

Grimleon roared his disapproval, “Hold you fire!” He pushed one of the brutes to the side, knocking him down and then stepped toward Siren’s glow. “A construct.”

“My name is Siren.” She said with down cast eyes. “I have a proposition for you. One that may gain you great favor with your leader; Truth.” Siren extended her hand and in it she formed the image of a pink crystal. “Truth is searching for a way to power the Ark… this is it.”

Grimleon looked around, cautiously aware that human AI’s were not trust worthy. “Why would you give me this? Why should I believe you?”

“This Luminous Key is the Path of Reclamation. It will allow Truth to fire Halo. Truth will get what he wants, and so will I.”

“I am not here for the Prophet’s wishes, construct!” Grimleon snarled. “I am here to destroy the last of the House of Yal!”

Siren raised her eyes. “I have let you live so that you can do my will.” The room began to hum as the air began to compress. Oxygen vents opened to full as the brutes all began to crumble in pain. Grimleon sealed his helmet and watched as his pack crumbled. “They will die approximately twenty seconds before you. Your armor’s environmental lock down cannot protect you from the amount of pressure I can produce within this corridor.” Siren watched as one Brute’s armor collapsed around his chest and blood began to spit from his eyes. “Tick Tock…”

Grimleon roared. “Very well construct! End this!” The hum faded and the immense atmosphere pressure faded.

Siren smiled. “Excellent. I did not believe you would allow yourself to die in such a dishonorable manor. Now, go to the nearest data port and extract the crystal’s core data and take it to Truth.”

The bulkhead door behind the group of dazed brutes began to thump. Siren raised her head and smirked. “Simyaldee is quite efficient. That is him and he is telling me to open the door. However, you must give this to Truth before your blood feud is can continue.”

Grimleon roared his protest snarling as he gripped the nearest data port and pulled out the new data crystal. “He is here. So close I can taste his blood within my jowls, but you have hindered my plans construct, so defeating him now is obsolete.”

Siren chuckled. “So you are admitting that you cannot best him?”

“I admit his worthiness in combat, and I will have his head. But for now, I will uphold your wishes. However, what will you offer me… other than life?”

- - - - - - - -

Simyaldee kicked the door once again. “Siren! Let me kill him!”

“No Lieutenant. As I said, I can deal with this. I have him trapped and… damn!” Siren shouted. “He broke through another bulkhead. He’s doubling back to a nearby gangplank.”

“What?” Simyaldee roared. “Let me after him! Open the door!” The door slowly hissed open as Simyaldee ducked under it and gave chase. He turned down the blown wall that Grimleon had made and followed the new course after the brute. Simyaldee pulled his blades from his hip and jumped into the hallway which lead to an open portal, and beyond that was sunlight. With his incredible land speed Simyaldee sprinted down the access gangplank and watched as two brutes turned toward him. He cut the first one down and kicked the other from his path. He then spun and beheaded the beast. But the time it took for Simyaldee to kill the two beasts cost him.

Simyaldee stood at the end of the gangplank and watched as a phantom soared free from the ship. “Siren, destroy it!”

“I cannot, Lieutenant. None of the plasma turrets are currently angled to his position. He will be out of range before I can fire.”

Simyaldee slammed his fist against the wall and snarled a deep feverish growl.

- - - - - - - -

Captain Monroe sighed deeply as she watched the last Seraph be shot from the sky. She leaned forward and rubbed the sweat from her brow. “It’s not over yet. Siren, report on the boarding party.”

“Ma’am. Only a few brutes remain, and fire teams are currently hunting them down. We should be done shortly.”

“What about that Warhammer?” Captain Monroe questioned.

“He escaped.” Siren stated.

Monroe exhaled. “At least he’s off the ship. Lieutenant Simyaldee, report.”

The COM buzzed on the deck. “I will assist in the additional clean up of the Brutes that are still on board. Sergeant Palab can handle the ground troops with the rest of the Mirratord.”

“Actually, Simyaldee, I need to speak with you. Lord Hood is rallying the last remnant of the fleet to New Mombasa and … I request your console.”

“Very well, Captain. I shall arrive momentarily.”

- - - - - - - -

Siren slipped within her digital domain. Here she could think without much interference. She looked around her empty space and blinked away the cold darkness of cyberspace. In its place stood a familiar world she created. Siren sat upon a patch of grass and watched as the sky opened before her. A vast emptiness shined from the heavens as a bubble of folded space appeared in the atmosphere.

“Thank you for showing me this, Cortana.” She said aloud. “Now I understand. We must seek the Path… or the world will end.” The folded space glowed a brilliant blue and continued to grow smaller and smaller. “The path will open just as before, but this time, Eric will do his part and follow the Path. I guess this means the Keeper was right, but Eric will not simply let humanity be destroyed. Not this time. Not if I have anything to say about it.”

Siren continued to watch as human ships followed covenant ships into the space fold bubble. And as soon the virtual world she created began to grow green and misty with a sickening dark green. Tentacles began to spring up from the world reaching out to the sky. It was a flood form, a massive Gravemind consuming the world and all of life. But then, in the depths of space, there was a bright flash. She watched as a wave of all consuming power expanded and eventually washed over the earth erasing everything in its path. The wave brushed through Siren and she stood as the Earth died.

She blinked and everything was back to normal within her digital realm.

“Eric, we cannot let the world end.”

- - - - - - - -

Captain Monroe descended to the base of the ramp as Simyaldee walked onto the command deck. She glared at him in shock as dried blood covered his dented armor. It was the blood of the numerous enemies he had slain in the last few minutes of battle. Simyaldee had been through a great deal and now she understood why he was so aggressive toward her on the radio; Simyaldee was a warrior and his duty was to fight. It was a bad idea to try and talk to a trained killer that was in the midst of combat.

“Lieutenant, Lord Hood was finally able to breach Truth’s jamming waves. He is pushing all of the troops toward New Mombasa. We have enough firepower on this ship to do a sizeable amount of damage, but…”

Simyaldee cut off her statement, “We cannot leave the human civilians unguarded. You wish for me to decide?”

“No. It isn’t that simple. I must obey my orders, but I was hoping that maybe you would remain.”

“And miss my chance to kill Truth?” Simyaldee suddenly questioned. His tone was surprisingly feral. “In all of my battles and conquests I have only done what was ordered of me, but now, with the end so near, I will not… can not, sit by and protect your civilians.”

  • 10.02.2007 8:46 AM PDT

TWP - Assistant Director
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“Lieutenant, there are still Brute patrols roaming the country side and if we leave…”

“That decision is between you and your leaders. Forgive my rudeness, Captain, but no. I can not stay.” Simyaldee turned and began to walk off the command deck. He powered on his COM. “Sergeant Palab, report.”

“Brutes thin. Me and Mirratord keep them contained. Me finish with ground forces and come to ship to help.”

“No. Stay at your position. I will deal with the ship. When we are done we are going after that Jiralhanae Chieftain”

Without warning, Simyaldee’s COM switched frequencies. “……. Lieutenant, do you copy?” A male elite voice sounded.

“Yes… high elder is that you?”

“Simyal… it has been some time.”

“Yes elder, it has. What are you doing back on Earth?”

“We have not yet arrived on Earth, but soon we shall. We have returned with a fleet to assist in defeating Truth. But before that, there is someone whom you must speak. Our Queen lives.”

“Queen?” Simyaldee questioned. But like a bolt of lightning he instantly recalled the memories of a nearly forgotten era. He recalled the time that ushered in his Mirratord loyalties.

A female voice spoke on his COM. “Simyal. We have returned from the very edge of space. It brings me great joy to know that you have survived all of these years.”

“Vasmeola…” Simyaldee paused at the door of the command deck and glared into nothingness as he let the sound of his lost mate whisper into his ears.

“The High Elder tells me that you are quite the warrior now, far from what you were during your initial training.”

“My Queen, it is wonderful to hear your voice… to know that you are still alive… after all this time, I had thought…”

“Simyal, I am too stubborn for the prophets to kill me.” She softly chuckled. “I will ask that you notify any elders and all of your soldiers of my soon arrival.”

“My Queen, Earth is a war field. It is much too dangerous for you to come.”

“I give the orders, Simyal. And I am not coming alone.”

Simyaldee smirked as his heart released more than one hundred years of pain. He took a deep breath, and it felt as though he had not breathed life since the day she left his side. “As you wish, my Queen.”

Simyaldee turned back to Captain Monroe. “Captain, there has been a change in plans.”

- - - - - - - -

Grimleon zipped across the savannah as his phantom roared over battlefields and thunderous explosions. The ship’s engines hummed loudly as he entered the anti-aircraft area of the Covenant defense zone around the Ark structure. Several Covenant banshee’s hummed to the phantom’s side, ready to shoot him down at a moments notice.

“This is Grimleon of the Red Clan, let me pass.”

The radio vibrated. “Mighty Warhammer, you have returned!” A brute cheered over the line. “We read you loud and clear. The AA turrets will cease fire until you pass.”

“Good,” Grimleon replied, “tell the Hierarch that I am on my way.”

The phantom sped over the continent as several human ships were shot down from his path by the Covenant AA turrets and banshee interceptors, but Grimleon was able to fly safely through. He lowered the ship and sped toward the massive Forerunner ship at the center of what appeared to be a gigantic metal dome deep beneath the surface of the human world.

“The Ark?” Grimleon questioned. He continued on his course until he docked with the forerunner ship, quickly exited the phantom, and made his way deeper into the forerunner structure known as the Ark.

After nearly a half an hour of running he raced to Truth’s side. A group of Truth’s honor guards approached and stood between Grimleon and Truth. They snarled at his approach and made ready to attack. But as Grimleon stalked closer, the brutes nervously stepped back, fearful of the mighty Warhammer’s priors deeds.

Truth said, “Tell me why I should spare you for your treachery?”

Grimleon smiled. “Spare me your idle threats. These mindless fools are already aware that I could kill them without much folly. For the sake of our race however, I’ll give them no quarrel. But the Red Clan has no equal.” Grimleon held up the crystal and to everyone’s surprise Truth floated forward, past his honor guards, and reached out with his frail hands. “And now you see why you should ‘spare’ me.”

“Is that the Key?”

“It is.” Grimleon smirked.

“How were you able to find this?”

“Does it matter?”

“I suppose it does not.” Truth held the Key tightly and the pink crystal shard of data shifted shape into a long sliver that resembled a key with four blades. He floated toward the central control and quickly inserted it. “By the Gods, Work!”

There was a brilliant light as the key turned on its own and sent a pulse of blue lights around the room. The central terminal glowed as it lowered into the floor and Truth lifted his hands in gratitude. “Now, the Path will open.” He turned to Grimleon. “You have done well, my Warhammer. I beg of you to lead my forces to the other side.”

“I have never cared for you Gods. I will follow my own Path and kill the last of the House of Yal.”

Truth nodded in gratitude. “Soon the Ark ship, which was designed to power this structure, will reach full power and the Path will be open. If you stay, you will be left behind.”

Grimleon smirked. “You forget Hierarch, I know your deeds and your true intent. Destroy the universe. Do as you will. I am too old and I have seen too much to care. Yet if you do win in your crusade, I ask but one thing. Grant my race a place in your domain.”

Truth rubbed the stubble under his chin and averted his eyes. “That is how I have always seen it. I assure you, that this is how it shall be. I am the voice of the Covenant, and therefore I say it shall be so. You have my word on this, my mighty Warhammer.”

- - - - - - - -

Ark Excavation site // Mombasa observatory
ONI Facility Bravo A-11092G: The Gatekeeper

The whirl of hydraulics filled the air as Lieutenant Eric Raynord and his second in Command, Field Commission Senior Chief Petty Officer Mathew Collins, sat upon the elevator leading to the upper ground level of the Gatekeeper Facility. Together, Black Ops 19 and 08 had just spent one hour drilling each other on the ins and outs of the new SPI combat suits. Mathew and Eric had much to be thankful for, and the slight modifications that Rose had done were flawlessly integrated. Rose truly was a master of her trade.

Beside Eric and Mathew were several ONI brass members who would see to the air support being organized by Lord Hood, but for now this was Eric’s operation. Sitting behind the ONI Brass was a row of warthogs and Mongoose ATVs. The large freight elevator had a camouflage topside but Eric knew that when they camouflage parted, the Covenant would be aware of their location.

A hiss of compressed hydraulics echoed above the elevator as leaves began to fall from the surface. Rain pools spilled inside the splitting roof overhead as sunlight streamed inside. The storm lingered in the distance, but the rain had subsided for now. A good sign. The fake roof continued to part and with it, Eric and Mathew could see the numerous explosions in the sky as Covenant AA guns made short work of Longswords, hornets and the unlucky pelican’s that flew in too close.

Vice Admiral Parangosky stepped forward to Eric’s side. “You should be able to reach Lord Hood, patch me through.”

Eric nodded. “Lord Hood, please respond.”

Eric’s COM vibrated. “Black Ops 19, it is about damn time you came out of the ground.”

“Forgive my delay, sir.” Eric replied. “I have Vice Admiral Parangosky on the two way.”

“Speak.” Hood sighed.

Parangosky stepped forward, leaning closer to Eric’s helmet. “Lord Hood,” She began. “ONI Facility Bravo A is ready to lend its support. We have made full arrangements.”

“You are about twenty minutes too late Vice Admiral. I have already given the go for an attack order, but none the less we can use your assistance.”

Eric chimed in. “Can you fill us in Sir?”

“Sierra 117 is currently knocking out AA guns along the Ark’s edge. He’s making a hole so that my ships can punch through. The Arbiter is on his way to assist him.”

Eric questioned the call sign Sierra 117, S-117, S must mean Spartan. Lord Hood was talking about the Master Chief. “What of Eden, Sir?” Eric questioned.

“Unknown. Communications with Eden are sporadic at best. There’s still a tight Covenant defensive there, and I assume it has something to do with the Tree of Life. Truth is still trying to get to it, or destroy it. Those ONI spooks at your side could probably tell you more then I can.”

Admiral Parangosky lowered her head at the comment.

Hood continued. “For now, Sierra 117 is pushing threw, however, ONI Facility Bravo A puts you close.”

“Sir, with all the commotion happening with Sierra 117, Charley will be watching him closely. My platoon is ready to backdoor him.”

“We don’t know what’s down there son.” Hood replied.

“Sir, if Sierra 117 can not complete his mission, someone has to get in there and shut Truth down from the inside.” Eric commented as the elevator reached the top. In front of him stood forty strong soldiers, Gridolee, a handful of grunts, and three Spartan IIIs wearing modified SPI armor.


  • 10.02.2007 8:48 AM PDT
Subject: "Path of Reclamation" Level 21

TWP - Assistant Director
Blade Runner: #00124A
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Hood sighed heavily, “You’re right, 19. But if we break through…”

“Sir, we know the risks.”

“You have a green light. Good luck Black Ops.” Hood ended the transmission.

Eric turned to the Platoon as Vice Admiral Parangosky motioned toward a Pelican. Every eye in the Platoon turned to the Black armor clad Lieutenant. “Listen up! Objective one is to clear a path for Doctor Halsey’s ship. Objective two is to breach the Ark and get as close to Truth as possible. Pelican’s one through four, will take point until the ship reaches escape velocity.” Eric turned and nodded briefly to Mathew.

Mathew stepped forward. “Move like you have a purpose!”

The platoon dispersed as Eric shouldered an RPG and affixed an assault rifle to his back. His HUD flashed with four green markers which signaled the four fire team leaders of the platoon. “Gridolee, check.” A green light flashed. “G009, check.” Another green light flashed corresponding to Greg the Spartan III. “G017, check.” Kate’s light flashed on his HUD. “G021, check.” Dave’s light flashed red. There was a problem.

“19, I have a situation. Someone is trying stop Doctor Halsey from loading into the escape vehicle.” Dave radioed.

Eric turned to Mathew. “Understood, I’m on my way.” He closed the channel. “Finish prepping the Platoon.”

“Roger that.” Mathew barked.

With the added speed of his SPI armor, Eric sprinted across the elevator and toward the launch site for the small Corvette cruiser docked just under the northeast sector of the Gatekeeper facility. He sprinted through the tree lines, passing marines and ODSTs as they loaded their gear and then pushed through the door to the ship. As he turned a corner he froze as he watched Spartan 087 level her battle rifle at a nearby civilian science officer. Eric recognized her immediately.

Doctor Halsey walked closer to her subordinate. “Anne, step aside. Time is critical.”

Anne backed away from Kelly’s massive frame, but kept her small pistol aimed at Catherine. “No… no… I can't stay here! You… you can’t leave me here to die!”

“Anne, I told you.” Halsey said. “The others were mistaken. The Flood infection isn’t why the Ark is counting down. You will not become a monster. It is a power build up. Truth does not have the Ark Key to power the subsystems, so he is attempting to build power remotely. The Path of Reclamation is a means of stopping the flood. The countdown simply means that the Ark is preparing to fire.”

“In response to the flood spores, the Ark’s defenses will initiate!” Anne screamed. “You said so yourself! It is a weapon!”

“Anne… we have time. You are not infected.”

“Take me with you!” Anne screamed as she pointed the gun to her own head. Tears swelled in her eyes. “I don’t want to die.”

Eric opened a closed line to Kelly. “Take the shot. Aim for her pistol.”

“Risky.” Kelly replied.

“She’ll do it. You know it, and I know it.” Eric bitterly replied. “Disarm her or she’s going to kill herself.”

Kelly leveled her rifle, held her breath and tapped the trigger. A successive burst of three bullets split the air as Anne’s pistol spun in the air. Anne cried out as the gun flipped out of her hand from the first two bullets but the last round cleanly cut through her palm. Blood splattered the wall at her side as Eric sprinted past Kelly and grabbed Anne as she tumbled.

“Medic!” Eric gave a shout. “Anne, you’re okay. A little morphine and you’ll never know what hit you.” A marine field medic raced to the scene and they carried Anne out of the way. Eric turned to Kelly and Doctor Halsey. “Go and save the Universe.”

Doctor Halsey walked into the ship and Kelly followed closely behind. She turned and gave Eric a firm Salute. Eric formally replied.

Kelly then said on a closed channel. “It’s been an honor, 19.”

“The honor was all mine, 087. Next time we meet, I’ll buy.”

“I’ll hold you to it. Good luck Spartan.” Kelly closed the door to the ship and as it began to slide past Kelly’s face, she took two fingers and made a smile across her helmet where her mouth was located. “Tell Rose, thanks for everything.”

Eric nodded in response as the door closed. He then turned to Dave G021, “Break off your fire team and prep for departure.”

“Yes sir.” Dave replied.

Eric quickly raced back to his post and watched as four brute phantoms floated into the area. As expected the Gatekeeper facility location was no longer a secret with all of the movement, weapons, and radio chatter between marines. Anyone with a decent pair of eyes could spot the massive metallic elevator in the center of the thick pack of trees.

A mole on the distant horizon followed in on the radio exactly what Eric was seeing. “Incoming Tangos! Four Phantom’s on quick decent!”

Eric opened a wide COM. “Pelican’s and hornets, get up there and clear the path. Ground forces break off to your assigned position. Team leaders, you have your orders.”

Four green lights winked on Eric’s HUD as the first Objective began.

To be continued…
***************************************
Notes: A bit short, a lot unedited, and a whole spanking full of action to come. As always, CandC are welcome. Stay tuned as the next 3 levels will be a tidal wave happy happy, joy joy.

~soulguard



[Edited on 10.02.2007 10:31 AM PDT]

  • 10.02.2007 8:50 AM PDT
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Haven't played Halo 3 yet *gives pause for multiple gasps*, and I know there are spoilers coming, but I just can't help it! Another nice chapter. Poor Anne, all she needs is some quality meds... LOL Can't wait to see what you have in store for the SIII's in the new armor.

  • 10.02.2007 10:56 AM PDT

Phoenix is dead, long live Phoenix!
Is it?

Bow down to the king!

  • 10.02.2007 1:46 PM PDT
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I am a Sangheili Bard.
Tomes of the History of the Mirratord
For the honor of the Mirratord!

Lai, you make me laugh!

I loved every word, Soulguard, that was awesome. Spoilers all over the place but it was awesome ! Like a whole other wild ride through the Halo universe, and we get right there into the action where we like to be! Two thumbs up on this one, mate, and if you keep this up I might raise my other two.
(grins)

~Aardvark

  • 10.02.2007 8:18 PM PDT

Phoenix is dead, long live Phoenix!
Is it?

When is the next chapter?

  • 10.06.2007 6:06 PM PDT

TWP - Assistant Director
Blade Runner: #00124A
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I have to push the date back to monday.
The details for the chapter where a bit more filling then I planned, and the spoilers are thick. Plus I want ot double check and make sure my plot points are all together. And I also want to make sure that I don't leave anything out from the answers I plan to give from the trilogy.

Also, where is everyone?

Stay tuned.

~soulguard

  • 10.06.2007 6:29 PM PDT

Phoenix is dead, long live Phoenix!
Is it?

Here, There were I few things I wanted to ask you but I have forgotten, they were lose ends stuff though. Will you be tieing in the previous stories?

  • 10.07.2007 12:04 AM PDT

TWP - Assistant Director
Blade Runner: #00124A
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I will be trying to answer mainly my story questions, but not Haloverse questions.

PM me anything you have concerns about.
~soulguard

  • 10.08.2007 8:06 AM PDT
Subject: "Path of Reclamation" Level 22

TWP - Assistant Director
Blade Runner: #00124A
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*****HALO 3 SPOILER WARNING.********
The next two Levels will be spoiler heavy if you have not finished Halo 3. You have been warned.
Notes: As per normal, no edits this post and about average page length. Enjoy.

******************************************

Level 22: The way the world ends…

Cortana whispered. “I chose him. But you knew that. You can see it in my data string. Everything in my existence, you have already seen. Do you think… no, wrong way of phrasing it. Will he come for me?”

Siren sat opposite of Cortana and smiled. “He will come this time. The present is different. We have made the right choices. He will not abandon you.”

Cortana lowered her eyes. “I don’t know how much longer I can hold on.”

“You’ve come this far. You can go further.”

“I was never human.” Cortana moaned. “Everything that I am is nothing but stolen memories and strings of code. You, Siren, had a life once. You know what its like to live.”

“To love.” Siren added.

“The Chief… John.” Cortana smiled. “It’s not that I love him. He is my best friend. I’ve seen his heart, his mind, felt his pain and his loss. He is my best friend, my only friend, and I….”

“Cortana!” Siren shouted as she reached out to the image. Siren tracked the data transmission from High Charity and watched as it vanished into the fold of space and time. “Cortana. Good luck. I can’t come with you this time. That was the mistake we’ve always made. This time, we must work separately.”

- - - - - - - -

Ark Excavation site // Mombasa observatory
ONI Facility Bravo A-11092G: The Gatekeeper

“Report!” Eric shouted over the COM. He took a knee near a large rock and watched as several Banshees and hornets danced around each other overhead. Plasma and artillery swapping back and forth and the eventual explosion of the lesser skilled pilot.

Kate G017 replied back. “Infantry is inbound. Jackal’s up front followed by grunts and brutes. My team is being cut down. I’m trying to pull them back…” An explosion sounded on the line. “… too many of them! I can’t keep the team together!”

Eric checked his HUD and displaced a map of the terrain. Kate’s squad was protecting the entrance to the facility. Dave G021 and Greg G009 were defending the launch bay and too far to get into position to assist Kate. Eric had to think. He was the closest to aid Kate, but once Doctor Halsey’s ship took off he needed to lead the assault into the Ark.

Eric tapped Mathew on the shoulder. “I’m going to help G017. You lead the charge inside the Ark.”

“19, you sure?” Mathew replied. “What about Gridolee?”

Eric thought for a moment and the map reappeared on his HUD. No, Gridolee and the grunts were still providing AA cover for the ONI Brass and their escaping Pelicans. “No, I’m the only one. You know the call.” Eric turned and sprinted up the makeshift stair well of rocks and crates to the facility entrance. He cut through the hallways as fast as he could, passing the second platoon that would aid in defending the base if the brutes got in. He neared the main access stairwell and climbed. The SPI armor was responding magnificently to his movements, carrying him faster than twice his normal pace.

As he neared the top of the stairs he could hear the exchange of fire from Kate’s Fire Team and Eric flipped his rifle’s safety off. He pulled the stock to his right shoulder and checked his motion tracker before he opened the door. Only two friendly’s were moving on the other side. He opened the door, and instantly powered on his forward shield generator. A silver glow hovered over his chest, stomach, groin, neck, thigh and head. He gripped his rifle with his left hand and his left forearm also glowed silver. It was near perfect forward shields for being in a firefight as the openings in the shield were minimal to enemy fire, but a well placed grenade would end it instantly. Eric knelt low, spun toward the enemy fire and opened up with his assault rifle. Three jackals were caught off guard from the spray as grunts panicked in the wake. Blue grenades flared in their hands as Kate ran up to Eric’s side. With a Battle Rifle in hand she put down the grunts before they could toss the plasma grenades. The loose and charging plasmas flared and exploded in the pack of nine brutes. Some died in the explosion while others merely growled in protest.

“Sir!” Kate shouted. “What are you doing here? Why didn’t you send support?”

“I am your support, rookie.” Eric calmly shot back as he duck walked while firing. He slipped into cover and reloaded his rifle.

Kate was close. “But Sir, you’re an officer… you shouldn’t be exposing yourself to enemy fire unless absolutely necessary.” Kate sounded off the practical military structure.

“Details, details.” Eric lowered his rifle in exchange for his RPG. He stood and climbed the metal crate he was positioned behind, and fired into the pack of enraged brutes. Their mutilated carcasses littered the floor around them. Eric knelt back behind cover and reloaded the RPG and switched to his rifle. “That should hold them for a minute. Regroup your fire team and set up a bottleneck for the brutes. Don’t let them pass until the ship is away.”

“Yes sir.” Kate began to push supply crates and radioed for more troops to be sent to her six. The door to the launch deck of the Gatekeeper facility parted and a dozen marines filed in.

Eric opened a closed channel to Kate and reminded her, “Think ahead, 17. Anticipate the enemy and then think of what they might do to beat your best scenario.”

“Sir?” Kate stuttered. “I think I understand.”

“17, you are in the Black Ops now. I don’t want you thinking like a mere piece of cannon fodder. Use that brain of yours! I have to get back.”

“Understood 19.” Kate shot back. She turned to her new marine compliment and looked around the facility entrance. Trees and crates were everywhere. Foxholes made it almost impossible to establish a good offensive against the entrance. Eric was right, and Kate quickly recognized her error. She wasn’t using the environment the way Mathew had showed her during the game of King of the Hill. “Setup turrets and displace trip mines near those tree lines!” She shouted to the marines. I want turrets in the foxholes and make sure you all have a supply of bubble shields.”

Eric was racing back to the breach point and was listening in on the numerous chatter amongst all of the squads, he had singled out Kate and was listening closely to her orders. A platoon El Tee, he could listen in on any open communication amongst the squads under his command. Thank goodness for that, because it allowed him to pick up the sound of panic in Greg 009 voice. The Spartan IIIs weren’t fairing too well in the Guerilla War department.

“09, report.” Eric ordered.

“Brutes… flying brutes inbound at the elevator!” Greg radioed back.

Eric switched channels. “Moles, do you see inbound heavy weapons?”

“Uhh… Roger that El Tee! Six Tango heavies inbound on phantom carriers!”

Eric switched back to Greg. “Listen to me, 09. You have to hold off those Brutes. They are trying to clear a landing area for their inbound heavy weapons. Keep your head level, displace your fire team and take them out.”

“I’ll try sir…” Greg started to say, but Eric quickly cut him off.

“You will not TRY, soldier. You WILL hold off that Brute wave.” Eric switched. “Gridolee, inbound Heavy weapons. Topside Moles will give you a target vector.”

“Understood honorable one.”

Eric switched again. “Doctor tell me you are ready for lift off.”

Catherine Halsey replied back on the line. “Engines are now at 95%, Eric. They need to be at full power in order for me to go to slip space before I hit orbit. Any later than that…”

Eric interrupted. “and you’ll be shot down. I understand. How long before you can depart?”

“Six minutes to spin up the Shaw-Fuji light drive.” She replied. “When they are ready, we can launch.”

“Understood ma’am.” Eric stopped as he reached Mathew’s side. “Six minutes.”

“Do we always have to cut it close?” Mathew sighed.

“That’s what we do.” Eric huffed. He then opened his wide COM. “Report.”

“Heavy infiltration team topside.” Kate radioed back. “We are holding.”

“Launch deck is clear.” Dave sounded off.

“Elevator still under heavy fire from multiple Tangos.” Greg added. “They are wearing jump jets of some kind. We CAN hold them off, 19.”

“Enemy heavy weapons are holding just beyond weapons range.” Gridolee commented on the line. “I suspect they are waiting for the ground troops to infiltrate and take out our Anti Air guns.”

Eric shot back to everyone. “We need to hold for four minutes, and then we can let the Airforce scare the hell out of the brutes.”

Four green lights diplayed on Eric’s HUD, and then he began the hard part; waiting. He pulled up his HUD terrain map and rolled through the various data layouts, field locations of troops, and enemy Tango’s. Rose had set up both Eric and Mathew’s SPI armor with security feeds of the Gatekeeper facility. This allowed Eric to see anyone that was in the facility on a cross section floor map. He could see yellow allies facing off against red covenant troops, and green dotes signaled a COM burst in which he could instantly access. He flipped the map from section to section, monitoring every encounter, gave instructions and repositioned groups.

  • 10.08.2007 9:49 AM PDT

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“Shaw-Fuji light drive is hot. We are ready to exit.” Catherine radioed.

Eric lit his wide COM. “All forces, push back the brutes as best you can. Hornet and Pelican escorts, prepare to defend the ship!”

The base began to rumble beneath as the relatively small UNSC ship pushed its engines and began to motion out of the Gatekeeper facility. The ramp doors parted, revealing the open sky as Catherine throttled to full power. “Kelly, weapons ready.”

“Yes ma’am.” Kelly replied as she powered up the forward guns. The sky opened in front of the ship as AA guns began to spray about at anything that would attempt to come close to the ships. Explosions marked the sky banshees ignited in flames, seraphs split in two, and phantoms imploded. The ship successfully cleared the ramp and Catherine accelerated the main engine and powered off the Artificial Gravity field. A contrail of smoke followed the ship as it climbed upward. The hornet escorts gave up their guard as they could no longer keep up, but the pelicans continued to pursue until the ship was clear of brute seraph patrols.

“Doctor Halsey.” Lord Hood radioed. “I have you on the screen. You are clear for Light Drive.”

“Understood.” Catherine replied.

“Good luck.” He commented. The small ship created a violent tear in subspace as it rocketed out of the atmosphere. An explosion of subspace parted the sky and the ship slipped through as it closed.

Eric lowered his head. “All troops rally to fall back positions. Facility defense force you are go for active defense.”

- - - - - - -

Eric’s message echoed in the small officer’s lounge in the heart of the Gatekeeper Facility. Wesley Williams, the ONI spook that had been following Eric since they were both stationed at the New Mombasa facility, stood from his desk and pressed a red alert button. Across from him was the unnamed spook that had executed Major Rawlings. “Your orders?” Wesley stated.

“See a brute,” the man said as he strapped on his ODST armor, “then kill it. Nothing gets passed level 2.”

- - - - - - - -

Eric opened his COM and contacted Lord Hood. “Sir, we are clear to infiltrate.”

“Stand bye.” Lord Hood replied. There was a momentary pause and then finally Hood came back on the line, except his communication was set to a wide frequency. “All ships fire at will!”

Eric turned and looked at Mathew. “You copy that?”

“Yes sir, we all did.” Mathew nodded. “Clearly wide band… what the hell happened?”

“Gridolee check?” Eric questioned.

“The human fleet is attacking Truths ships.” Gridolee stated as he stood topside and peered over the edge of the massive gorge overlooking the Ark.

“The Master Chief did it!” A marine shouted. Roars of applause and cheers echoed about the numerous marines and ONI personal waiting behind Eric and Mathew.

“Wait... something is happening…”Gridolee added over the COM. “The Ark… is…” The line went flat and static washed through the COM.

“Lieutenant!” Eric shouted. “Gridolee!” The ONI Facility rumbled as loud metallic grinds filled the air. It was coming from everywhere, yet Eric had the feeling that it was coming from the Ark.

“All COMs are down sir.” A marine shouted. The vibrations intensified and then suddenly stopped.

“Anyone topside?”

“I am here, honorable one.” Gridolee returned on the line.

Eric exhaled in relief. “Report.”

“I… I do not know what has happened. Truth’s ship is leaving, it is entering a … I do not know what it is. His fleet is fallowing. I believe it is some form of subspace rift.”

“Did the Ark fire?” Eric questioned.

“Yes.” Gridolee replied.

Eric’s wideband COM cut in. “What did Truth just do? Did he activate the rings?” Lord Hood coughed.

“No sir.” Came an unfamiliar female voice. “But he certainly did something.”

“Evacuate wounded and regroup. Wherever truth went…” Hood continued but a mole cut across his transmission.

“Sir, new contact slipping in.”

The female voice replied over the wide band COM. “The Flood… its spreading all over the city.” Eric clinched his fist, wanting to comment on the line, but he didn’t want to interrupt.

“How do we contain it?” Hood replied.

The woman on the opposite end of the wide channel burst answered, “Find the crashed ship, overload its engine core. We either destroy this city, or we risk loosing the entire planet.” Eric noticed that whoever she was she knew what the flood were capable of.

Hood answered. “Do it.” The wide band frequency terminated and Hood switched back to Eric’s channel. “Black Ops, were you monitoring?” Hood coughed once again to clear his throat.

“Yes sir.” Eric replied on the channel. “What happened?”

“Truth found a way to fire the Ark, but it doesn’t look like he activated the rings. For now, we have time. Sierra 117 is moving into Voi to take out that flood ship. For now, your sector is secure but I don’t want anymore damn surprises. Get inside the Ark and find out what the hell Truth has done and where he’s going.”

“And the Flood?” Eric questioned.

“The Master Chief and the Arbiter are on top of it.”

“Understood, sir.” Eric stated as the line terminated. He turned to his team as Gridolee, Migpap and the Spartan’s ran into the Ark access cave with him and the Platoon. “Mount up.” Eric stated as he climbed into a warthog passenger’s seat.

- - - - - - - -

Rose folded her arms and sat on the bench in the heart of the mechanics bay. Equipment parts sat all around her as dust fell from the ceiling. Something had just happened and the Gatekeeper Facility was starting to show its age. She looked around as more and more officers began to file into the room. Nurses and doctors were bringing gurneys of patients and wounded soldiers from the surface levels to the safety of the lower realms of the Facility. The funny thing was that Rose didn’t feel safe.

She didn’t feel safe in the Elite’s Inner Sanctum. She didn’t feel safe on the Seed Ship and she didn’t feel safe in Eden. She lifted her eyes and studied the metal support structure of the Mechanics bay. Rose was told that the bay was considered a fallout shelter, and designed to support the weight of the entire facility if the super structure folded into itself. Rose studied every bolt, insta-crete slab, metal railing, and support beam. The engineers that had built the Gatekeeper facility were right; the bay was rigid and very sturdy. The metal would bend just enough so that it wouldn’t snap. The insta-crete support would reinforce the steel, but only enough to keep it from bending too far and giving-way. Ship grade titanium was used in certain areas to provide radiation fallout support and sturdiness. The Mechanics bay, in theory, really could support the weight of the entire facility if it collapsed.

She still didn’t feel safe.

As the bay became more and more crowded, Rose stood and motioned toward the test cave. It was dangerous to go outside of the mechanical bay’s support structure, but Rose needed the isolation. She wandered into the dusty hills and mixed lighting. She climbed into an empty warthog, completely full of bullet holes, and took a seat on the passenger side. Others began to walk into the bay as well, mostly to smoke and not bother the wounded and sick. There was plenty of room for roughly two hundred people in the cave, so Rose didn’t care if a few dozen smokers lingered about.

Rose put her foot up on the warthogs console and leaned her head back. She wanted to feel safe, and did everything in order to feel safe. But nothing helped. She closed her eyes and turned her head away from the people who were smoking roughly fifty yards away.

“Eric.” She whispered as she wiped a tear from her eyes. She thought back to her last moment with Eric. She had shown him the Armor she had made for them, she had held him in his one moment of weakness, and they had made love; perhaps for the last time. She had asked Eric not to go, but she immediately realized how selfish it was to ask him to do that. She apologized for saying it. Eric wasn’t a man who could sit back and wait, he never waited. From the moment he was old enough to fight, he fought. Eric had lost a lot in the war, more then Rose could comprehend, but Eric never gave up hope that humanity could win.

She thought back to that moment when she and Eric were finally alone, “Rose,” Eric began. “I came back to Earth to help you find a way to fight the Covenant. I wish I had listened to you back when we were still in school. You were right. We can’t beat the Covenant by throwing ourselves at them. We need weapons and superior technology. I lost all of my friends in this war, save only Mathew.”

“Do you regret it?” Rose asked.

“No. I wouldn’t be who I am if the series of events had not played out the way they did. The elites follow me. They see me on an equal footing as them, not in strength but in warrior’s pride, and if I had not gone to Dorenth then we wouldn’t have the elites’ support.”

“Do you … still hate them?” Rose questioned as she held Eric tightly in her arms.

“Kim died in combat.” Eric said. “She was killed in a war against an enemy. The elites that killed her are probably dead. I can’t forgive them for that. But I will work with them until this is over.”

After that brief conversation, Eric stood and got dressed in the modified SPI armor. That was the only time Rose felt truly safe. When Eric was around, she had the feeling that everything would be alright, no matter how tough it seemed.

She opened her eyes and looked up into the eyes of a young man standing beside the Warthog in a full marine uniform. The young man brushed his dusty brown hair.

“They told me you were in here.” Wesley smiled.

  • 10.08.2007 9:50 AM PDT

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Rose didn’t reply, not because she was angry or didn’t want to talk to him, she simply couldn’t respond. Wesley was not Eric.

“I know I’m not the person you want to see right now.” Wesley explained. “But I had to come down here and see you. Maybe I was a fling, a young boy you could have your way with, but you always made that clear to me. I was the foolish love struck boy that couldn’t let go. I’m sorry I was so bitter toward you these past few months. I don’t want to die with an angry heart.” Rose sat up from her seat in the hog and looked at Wesley earnestly. He then continued. “The brute’s broke through the top level defenses but they stopped attacking once Truth activated the Ark, I guess none of them wanted to be left behind.”

Wesley adjusted his armor and winced as he lowered his head. “But they didn’t leave without giving me a little present.” Wesley looked down as blood dripped from his sleeve. Rose hadn’t noticed it until she followed Wesley’s gaze. A spike was protruding from the side of his chest armor, barely noticeable unless he pointed it out. Roes jumped up and applied pressure to the wound, and frantically turned to call for a medic, but Wesley stopped her.

“Don’t.” He stated with confidence. “I’ve done too much in my short life. I helped kill the Major, because of ONI. I killed people who got to close to the Mark VI program when it was under your watch. I spied for Colonel Ackerson. So many humans have died by my hands…” Wesley winced in pain, finally showing what he was obviously feeling. “I killed so many people, Rose. Not the covenant… people. It was my job… I can’t forgive myself. I was so afraid of death, of being killed, but… but … now… I’m not scared. I fought the brutes… killed a few of them. I’m still a pretty good sniper.”

Wesley leaned forward into Rose’s arms. He was getting weaker, but he was keeping a straight face. Rose helped him to the ground and leaned him against the warthog’s wheel. “I’m going to die.” He mumbled. “I didn’t throw up this time.” A small smile shined on his pain stricken face.

“Medic’s are coming.” Rose whispered as she looked up to see two men running toward them.

“You called them?” Wesley smiled. “I didn’t hear you call them. You still … care.”

“You’re going into shock. Focus on me.” Rose stated firmly. She pushed Wesley’s head back and applied more pressure to the wound. He winced from the pain of the spike shifting in his rib cage.

Wesley looked at her, “Rose. The flood have landed on Earth again… in Voi. On the other side of the Ark. You have to be careful…” One of the medics pushed Rose aside and quickly unfastened Wesley’s armor. Once the medic pulled off the chest armor he could clearly see the extent of the damage. He shook his head toward the other medic and they both looked at Rose.

“We can give him Morphine, to help.” The medic whispered. He then showed rose the problem. Brute spikes were nearly twelve inches long. The tip of the spike sticking out of Wesley’s side was only three inches; nine inches of the spike was sitting in his chest, and most likely passed through both lungs and his heart. Wesley was living on sheer adrenaline.

Blood flowed continuously out of the wound. There was simply nothing they could do at this point. “He’s lost too much blood. If we try to save him now, he’ll be in more pain before he eventually dies. He’s past the worse of it. He’ll lose consciousness and then go peacefully. We’re sorry ma’am.” The Marine slapped a small injector into Wesley’s side and then walked away.

“I told you… Rose… I’m not scared.” Wesley smiled. Rose leaned forward and kissed him on the forehead. She sat beside him and let him rest her head on her shoulder. His breathing became long and slow until he eventually stopped.

“Thanks for protecting me, Wesley. I’m sorry I hurt you.”

- - - - - - - -

The path ahead of Eric’s convoy was brightly lit. A wave of glowing lights shined under the warthogs wheels as pulses of lights bounced about overhead. The Ark structure was alive and well, but as he rode deeper into the subsystems of the Ark he began to grow lightheaded.

A voice echoed in his mind, “Reclaimer… why have you come back?”

Eric shook his head. It wasn’t his radio or his COM. He looked forward deeper into the path.

“Reclaimer… the Path is open… follow it. Do not come here.”

Eric cupped his head. The voice was inside, coming from his mind. The further he went the more powerful it echoed.

The voice echoed once more, “Species 001, Hom0-Sapien, Reclaimer. You must go to the Ark.”

Eric finally answered, no longer believing that this was simply an hallucination. “I am in the Ark.”

“No Reclaimer, this is merely the Path. The Ark awaits beyond the wormhole.” The voice replied. “Species 004, Species 006, Species 007, Species 009, Species 037 and Unknown Species have crossed the Path. They can not activate the Ark.”

“This isn’t the Ark.” Eric answered.

“This structure, powered by Ark 001, is merely a slip space generator to the furthest point beyond quarantine radius. Ark 001 is the generator for reseeding Earth. Species 011, Humans, are the evolutionary subspecies of Species 001. Only Species 001 or Species 011 can power the control structure for the Ark.”

Eric couldn’t fathom what the voice was talking about. “What is beyond the quarantine radius, at the other end of the wormhole?”

“The Ark.” The voice sounded annoyed. “Reclaimer, it is Installation 00. You must go there and activate the Halo Installations. Warning, Flood spores detected on the surface. The flood must not inter the Path. Odd, another Reclaimer has been detected near the Flood threat. This Reclaimer is recorded in Installation 04 and 05 recorded data nodes. His intent is … destructive to the Halos. Installation 04 communication is null. Replacement procedures are underway. This Reclaimer is not useful, however, you and your support will be. Quickly Reclaimer. You must seek the Path and I will close the wormhole behind you.”

Eric looked upward as a golden glow began to wash over his body. He turned and watched as four more glows warped around others in the convoy. “What are you doing?”

“Adequate Reclaimers are following you with similar combat skin. I will take you to a means to enter the Path. There is no time to waste.” Eric, Greg, Mathew, Dave and Kate vanished from the line of marines. The convoy stopped and everyone looked around nervously.

A marine in the same warthog as Eric shouted. “El Tee? What the hell? Now what do we do?”

Another wide COM broadcast echoed in everyone’s ears. “Tell the humans to take heed. This is the Carrier, Shadow of Intent. Clear this sector, while we deal with the flood.” Radioed a deep elite voice.

To be continued…



[Edited on 10.08.2007 12:43 PM PDT]

  • 10.08.2007 9:54 AM PDT

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// Ark Data Node...
// Species Classification Archive...
// File Retrieval Code // A-1-7-7-117-2uama3...
// Access DNA Brand // Elizabeth Rawlings

Species 001 : Hom0-Sapiens (Ancient Human) :: Reclaimer classification :: Founder all classes
Species 002 : //unknown readout error…. Catalog fault// :: Founder Science-explorer Class
Species 003 : //unknown readout error…. Catalog fault// :: Science- Military Class
Species 004 : San’Shyuum (Prophet) :: Law Keepers
Species 005 : Sangheili (Elites) :: Military - Security class
Species 006 : Kig-yar (Jackals) :: working-security class
Species 007 : Unggoy (Grunts) :: working class
Species 008 : --- incomplete catalog data---
Species 009 : Jiralhanae (Brutes) :: Security-mining-explorer Class
Species 010 : --- incomplete catalog data---
Species 011 : Hom0-Sapiens (Human subspecies) :: Reclaimer classification > Human

*Species 0… // data error misfile // thru Species 037*

Species 037 : Yanmee (Drones) :: working class

System Notes:
*
*
*
A135- Species 003 Possible deletion of catalog entry by Access DNA Brand // Standish
*
*
A172- Data error misfile, possible error in Ark Data Node do to Construct Intrusion during time event [1,675,523 hrs rotation 23460]
*
*
*
*
A425- Data error recompilation by Construct Cortana-Siren... unknown time event.
*


[Edited on 10.08.2007 12:57 PM PDT]

  • 10.08.2007 12:16 PM PDT

Phoenix is dead, long live Phoenix!
Is it?

Short in parts...

There are flow problems in some of the battle scenes, and I think you need more detail in the fight scenes.

Hmm. Last chapter soon. Ouch.

Thanks for the additional info.

  • 10.08.2007 4:44 PM PDT

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heh, busted. ;) always got those eyes on me, mate.

Truth is, the next level (part one of a two part conclusion) is turning out to be far longer then I thought. So in order to give you peeps a little breathing room, I wanted to edit out the not-so useful-useful battles, so that things don't get repetitive in the end. Also the build up to the conclusion of this level, didn't really pace as well as I would have liked. I know you guys love the long ones, but this was almost necessary.

The next level will be up early next week. The FF.net version of the next two levels will go up roughly two days between each other.

Stay tuned.
~soulguard

  • 10.08.2007 8:16 PM PDT
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I am a Sangheili Bard.
Tomes of the History of the Mirratord
For the honor of the Mirratord!

Well, I liked it. Short, yes, flow problems, sure. But I still liked it, and that's what counts. I commend you just for being capable of writing under this kind of pressure.

~Aardvark

  • 10.08.2007 10:38 PM PDT

Phoenix is dead, long live Phoenix!
Is it?

I never said I did not like it, I love this story. So complex, intruging.

  • 10.11.2007 12:11 PM PDT

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Notes: Much longer, and a little more coherent. These are the final logs of the "Path of Reclamation" enjoy them as there is only 2 more levels to follow.
*************************
Level 23: … Check

Hammer of God
Camp Eden
Earth

Simyaldee watched the broadcast from the Sangheili Carrier, Shadow of Intent. He folded his arms as Ship Master Vadum, formerly the Spec Ops commander, gave testament to the pursuit of Truth and the Brutes through the Portal, a wormhole of some kind. Tempers flared in the room as Ship Master Vadum attempted to explain the destruction of the human cities that had been infected with Flood spores.

The female human in the room spoke up, agreeing that they should also go through the wormhole and find the solution that the damaged construct spoke of. Lord Hood objected. Yet the Arbiter humbly pointed out that the Flood may win if they do not attempt to find the solution to the flood. With the Master Chief’s agreement, Lord Hood agreed to let them disembark through the wormhole.

As Lord Hood and the others exited the room, Vadum turned to the display and nodded toward Simyaldee. “You’ve done well in my absence, Second.”

“I’m not sure if the title Ship Master suits you, First.” Simyaldee replied toward the video display. “You seem more fit leading the charge into combat.”

Vadum replied. “The ordeal at Delta Halo was far worse then we could hope. I needed to rally what troops we had left. I spoke with Queen Vasmeol not long ago. Her ship will arrive shortly, but the Seed Ship will remain at the edge of the system. High Charity is also gaining momentum toward Earth. I suggest that she return to the Seed ship, but she is quite strong willed. Good to know that she has not changed much.” Vadum smiled.

“Indeed.” Simyaldee replied.

“Second…” Vadum began, but quickly changed his tone. “Simyal, come with me. Staying here to help the humans is pointless. Their world is doomed.” Simyaldee looked to the small human female at his side as she trembled slightly from the words of ship master Vadum. Captain Monroe wasn’t pleased about hearing that the fate of humanity was already sealed.

Simyaldee then looked back to Ship Master Vadum. “I have split the Mirratord assault units. My most skilled warriors will accompany you, but I will stay here with Gridol and the Mirratod Grunts.”

“The Grunt King still lives?” Vadum clicked his remaining right mandibles in thought. “Why does that not surprise me? The Arbiter will need to be informed… he may not be aware that there are Unggoy who still support our separation.” Vadum looked to the display and looked to Simyal. “Very well, my friend, but I can not say that I understand your decision staying. My Mirratord units will be sure to do all they can against the bastard Truth. The Queen is going to spare four ships to our attack wave and the remainder will remain here with you. Supreme Commander Timnaldee will place your planet under his gun, if the flood can not be contained, he will be forced to destroy this world.”

Simyaldee smirked. “You must have more faith in me then that, my old friend.”

“If anyone will survive this next encounter, Second, it will be you.” With a clinched fist, Vadum placed his right hand to the center of his chest as he looked into the image of his long time friend and Second in command of the Mirratord.

Simyaldee returned the gesture and nodded his head in respect. “For the honor to the Mirratord.” They both stated as the line closed.

Simyaldee looked down at the small fragile human female. She looked up to him and forced a smile. “Thank you.”

“Do not thank me yet, Captain. We still have much to prepare for.” Simyaldee powered on the terminal displaying the course and trajectory of the remains of High Charity. “That ship has been on the edge of the system for several days, and now it is approaching.”

“Siren.” Captain Monroe stated.

“Yes, Ma’am?” Siren replied.

“How many ships do we have at our disposal to fight that … thing?”

“Not enough. The remaining section of High Charity, ma’am, has a mass roughly equal to the size of a large asteroid. It will be visible once it is in orbit. And if every MAC cannon remaining took aim and fired, they could not slow it down.” Siren stated. “Even with the Elite Queen’s assistance our only hope is that the Chief can bring back Cortana’s solution.”

“I can’t believe that it is this hopeless.” Monroe sighed. “What about a tactical nuke?”

Siren replied. “If someone could get inside, I am certain that Gravemind could deactivate it.”

“How long do we have until it arrives?” Simyaldee questioned.

“Ten hours, six minutes, twenty three seconds.” Siren stated. “According to its current heading it will make contact with the atmosphere directly over the portal.”

“Could it be attempting to go through it?” Monroe pondered.

“It is a possibility.” Simayldee stated.

Siren interrupted. “Lieutenant, I have a situation. We need to go to the Ark.”

“Why?” Monroe questioned with a crocked brow.

“Simyaldee, Grimleon is there and he is waiting for you.”

Simyaldee glared at the forward display, his mind full of questions but none of them seemed coherent enough to form words. He could only muster, “How do you know this?”

Siren voiced, “I had to get him off the ship, Lieutenant. I did what was necessary. And I told him that you would come to face him.” Her camera’s zoomed in on Simyaldee and Monroe. They both appeared troubled, bothered by her actions, and how she seemed to act without justification.

Siren appeared before them in her holographic form, allowing them something to look at in their disbelief. “Captain, I know you are not 100% trusty worthy of my abilities due to prior incidents; I have made mistakes due to my emotional subroutines. But I assure you, this action was for the best.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Monroe fumed.

“Because you would not have allowed it.” Siren replied assuredly. “The portal, the Wormhole that everyone is talking about, was opened because I… no, because WE allowed it.”

Monroe looked at Simyaldee with a puzzled glare. Simyaldee returned the quick look and then asked Siren, “We allowed?”

Siren lowered her head, almost afraid of what she was about to say. “Time is not constant. There are multiple paths. Cortana and I have attempted thousands of time streams to correct the mistakes… to fix what was broken. This is the only string we have left. But understanding that would mean a great deal more understanding of the influxes of spatial time distortion. Simply put; the Portal had to be opened and the Path needed to be followed. To do that, Truth needed the Luminous Key, so I gave it to him.”

“Luminous Key?” Simyaldee questioned. “A ship core?”

“Yes. But not just any ship core, the Ark ship core.” Siren turned to Monroe as the Captain looked at her in a gaze of pure shock. “Captain, you must understand….”

“No.” Monroe softly stated. “You opened Pandora’s Box, Siren. You gave Truth a power that he should not have. Now look! Look at what he’s done! He went to power on the Halo’s and to destroy everything!”

“No ma’am. He has merely walked the path. He still does not have the power he needs. But if Cortana and I are correct, we will be grateful that we allowed him to go. The Arbiter and the Master Chief will go and do their parts while we…”

“What in gods name could make me be thankful for giving that fanatic access to the most powerful weapon in the Galaxy?” Monroe shouted.

Siren looked away shyly and replied. “I don’t know. It’s up to them to decide the future now.”

“Who?” Simyaldee shouted.

Siren looked into the eyes of the elite Mirratord Second in Command. “Two will come; one whom you know, and one you do not. They were predestined to come. One of War and one of Chaos. Both will lead you to the Path. Though divided they will lead you. Follow them. Follow them and survive.”

“What are you talking about?” Monroe questioned with an irritated scowl.

Siren looked to her. “The Path of Reclamation, ma’am. This was stated in the Ark Data Node. I have been processing this information for days on end, analyzing and calculating every word. What I find even more interesting, is the line; One is an ancient enemy, the other is an old Friend. The Path of Reclamation was written for the Reclaimers, humans.”

“Get to the point!” Monroe scuffed. She was loosing her patience with Siren’s constant actions.

“The Chief and the Arbiter, ma’am.” Siren smirked. “One you know and one you do not. They will do their part while we do ours. Cortana agrees. Not for her sake, but for the sake of everyone.”

“We are going through the portal, both human and elite.” Simyaldee added. “But none of this explains why? We would not be in danger if you had not given that Brute the key!”

“Had I not given them the key, you would all die here as food for the Flood.” Siren retorted.

“And you are sure of this?” Simyaldee questioned.

“Yes.” Siren answered. “Simyaldee, please, we must go to the Ark. I am certain that all of your answers will be there. As well as my own.”

Simyaldee huffed. “I will go, if only to kill Grimleon and end his infernal obsession.”

“Captain.” Siren added. “I’m going with him. I guess that you don’t care.”

Monroe turned her back and began to walk off the command podium. “Do whatever you want, Siren. You always do.”

“Thank you ma’am.” Siren stated with nod.

[Edited on 10.16.2007 6:14 AM PDT]

  • 10.15.2007 10:59 AM PDT

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Simyaldee powered on his COM. “Sergeant, assemble the Mirratord at the landing deck. We are going to the Ark.”

“Me understand.” Palab replied over the line.

- - - - - - - -

Ark 001 : Forge Chamber
Earth


A pulse of golden light appeared in a large dark room, followed by four more golden pulses of light. Eric stood and shook the cobwebs from his head. It was a teleportation grid and there was no way of knowing where they were; or if they were still on Earth for that matter.

“What in the hell just happened?” Kate barked as she held her spinning head.

“Hell if I know.” Dave sat down, he was dizzy as well.

Eric barked, “After affects from teleportation. It’ll pass.” Eric was thankful that he had read Cortana’s Halo report thoroughly. The Master Chief had also had a sense of dizziness his first time. Eric noticed that nearly all of his platoon leaders were with him with the exception of Gridolee. “Lieutenant, do you copy?”

“.. hear you… rable one. What has happened?” Gridolee questioned over the line.

Eric was thankful; this meant that they were still inside the Ark, or whatever it was. “Things have changed. You have command of the platoon. Fall back to the entrance and stand by for orders.”

“But Honorable one, do you not need support?” Gridolee ushered.

Eric looked around. He couldn’t see much of anything. Infrared showed nothing but his team of Spartans and night vision also showed a blank slate. “Unknown. We don’t know where we are at the moment. Fall back until we can get our bearings.”

“As you wish.” Gridolee replied and the line terminated.

“For a place with so much light on the outside, why is it so dark in here?” Mathew yelled.

“Reclaimers, forgive me.” A voice echoed back from the void of darkness. “The Forge system has not been used until this moment. Please, adjust your visual spectrum while I modify the ambience.” The lights slowly began to turn on as Eric and the others looked around. The space was far larger then they thought possible. It was big enough to hold a UNSC battle ship.

They all stood in the center of an enormous oval shaped chamber. The walls slanted upward and then angled back toward the top in a dome. The floor glowed as if the lights were inside the floor itself. The walls slowly began to spin around the room, so slow that it was only noticeable if they watched a point for several seconds.

“The Forge system is currently powering itself. There have been six hundred tests and zero actual uses of the Forge system since creation.”

“What is this, Forge, you speak of?” Mathew replied.

The voice replied in a confused manor. “The Forge is a construction utility imprinted to respond to your needs. How can you not know this?”

“We’ve never been here.” Eric replied.

“The Forge system, for that matter the Ark system, was well documented in the Ark Data Node. I show that there have been six hundred and fifty two accesses to the Ark Data Node since it reached full maturated two hundred and thirty years ago, according to your current star placements.” The voice paused. “You should be well versed in the Ark, as well as the Forge System.”

Eric held up his hands to everyone, silencing them. “You brought us here to follow the Path to the ark, correct?”

“Correct, Reclaimer.”

“How will we follow the Path?”

“All of the Reclaimer ships nearby are currently defending against the flood threat. They can not be recalled to take you through the Wormhole created by Ark 001. However the Forge System was designed to assist Reclaimers in space travel technology. Ark 001 can make a ship for you, Reclaimer. There is no time for all of these questions. I will begin construction immediately.”

Eric opened his radio, “Lord Hood, do you copy?”

“Speak fast 19, I’m on my way to meet with the Arbiter and that damned Ship Master that is glassing the region.” Lord Hood sounded furious.

Eric wanted to know what he meant but made his statement. “Sir, the structure is a Wormhole generator. Truth went through it, but he still can’t fire the Halo’s. There is something on the other side that can activate the Halo’s.”

“That makes sense. The flood cleaned out all of my Voi regiments since they crashed into the city. But for now we at least have the situation stable.”

“It’s not easy dealing with the flood sir.” Eric replied as he watched thousands of constructor drones fly into the room with parts and began to assemble them. The object floated in place as the drones began to weld at a frantic pace. In less then a minute there was the appearance of a solid structure taking the form of a ship. “Once I’m done here, I‘ll go to Voi and be sure that threat is neutralized.”

“Voi is gone, Leiutenant.” Hood added. “The ship master made short work of the entire region west of Ark. He even glassed half the continent under the ships crash course, in case the flood were able to jump from the ship when it slipped in. I’m gathering troops at Mombasa to begin inspecting the neighboring regions for flood outbreaks. Meet there.”


Though the elites caused a great deal of collateral damage at least the flood were somewhat contained. “Understood. Do you plan to send a contingent after Truth?”

“Negative. Earth is all we have left. It we go after truth and his fleet… we won’t stand a chance. We make our stand here. Rally your troops inside the Gatekeeper facility, I’ll be in touch after I finish briefing the ship master. It seems they found Cortana, or another clone.”

Eric listened and watched in amazement at how fast the Forge could build a ship. “Roger that, sir. Also, I’ve found something useful. I’ll inform you after your meeting.”

Eric turned to his team. “Disperse by twos, full inspection of the area.” He began to walk away from the team; alone. “17, you with 08. 09 and 21 watch each other. Look for a door that leads deeper into the facility.”

“Reclaimer, I can lead…”

“No thanks.” Eric silenced the voice. “I need to give them something to do while I think.”

“I see.” The voice said.

“Are you a monitor, or a keeper?” Eric questioned.

“Neither. The Keeper model is the most advanced form of Artificial Intelligence created, however, I am more sophisticated then the Instillation Monitors. I am the voice of the Ark… or that is what I told those who came before, they were quiet primitive. They demanded of me that I be informal toward the Reclaimers that entered the Ark for training. My full title is Ark Artificial Intelligence, Offensive Bias.”

“Training? Who have you trained?” Eric questioned.

“I have not trained a Reclaimer in five thousand, six hundred sixty nine of your solar years.” The AI stated. “The female Reclaimer was quite exceptional at her duties. She was a direct descendant of the Reclaimer’s who returned to Earth with Ark 001.”

“So only humans have been here?” Eric questioned.

“Oh no. The Empire settled on Earth many years before it was repurposed. Though great care was taken to remove any sign of alien life, your Ancestors prided themselves on secrecy, to protect the people from the fear of going into space before they were ready.”

“And we’re still a thousand years too early.” Eric commented. “There are bones on Earth, skeletal remains of other creatures.”

“A museum. One was created for the day you would be advanced enough to locate Ark Data Node. Inside you should have seen the remains of numerous Species that are supportive to the Empire.” Eric recalled the skeletons he had seen.

He walked to the far side of the dome shaped room as the ship above his head continued to take shape. He reached the wall and found no sign of a door. Eric then began to walk along the edge of the wall, counter to its slow rotation. “Earlier, you called me Species 001.”

“Yes, Forerunner classification. Augmented Humanoid.”

“Forerunner? You mean people like me built all of this?” Eric questioned.

“Not entirely. You are a Reclaimer, a member of the Forerunner Empire. You’re seat was that of a ruling class.”

Eric stopped walking. “I thought we weren’t considered Forerunner? That’s what the Monitors have told us.”

“Monitor AIs are not given full data to Forerunner archives for the safety of the Reclaimers descendants and the future of the Empire. A monitor would first need to be connected to the Ark Data Node, or Installation 00, before their data is updated with the difference between a Reclaimer and a Forerunner.”

“Am I a Forerunner?” Eric sternly questioned.

“In theory. However, you are a member of the Forerunner ruling class. A Reclaimer: a Descendant of the Forerunners.”

Eric shook his head at the annoying answer. “Who are the Forerunners?”

The voice paused. “Your Ancestors were the Forerunners. They were also called Reclaimers. The difference, according to records, is this; augmentation. Reclaimers are Forerunners who have been given a gene which greatly increases their metabolic structure and physical size. You are a Reclaimer, who was a Forerunner. However, there are no longer any forerunners remaining. They died during the first activation of Halo, as was planned. Physically, Forerunners are smaller then you, less hair, thin build, with higher intellect. You are of a similar genetic and DNA makeup, however you have evolved into a larger more muscular form; at the cost of brain power. You, Reclaimer, are only considered a Tier 3. The Forerunners, your ancestors, were Tier 1.”

Eric, feeling somewhat confused at the complex answer, started walking once again and attempted to ignore what he had just heard. “Where’s the damn door?”

The AI replied. “It is here.” An image appeared on Eric’s HUD. The AI had accessed his suit and placed a marker to the door. Eric turned and saw a large pathway near the wall. It was a slanted path that led under the wall. It was not a normal doorway because the walls were moving and the doorway needed to be stationary.

  • 10.15.2007 11:00 AM PDT

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Eric tapped his COM. “Found it. Everyone meet up at my marker.” Eric walked to the ramp which lead downward and the AI’s voice echoed.

“Please wait, Reclaimer. There are others within this corridor. I believe you call them Brutes.”

Eric froze at the edge of the ramp. “How many?”

“Three.”

“Can you deal with them?”

“Weapon’s systems are offline do to the Forge activity. The Forge uses, 78% of Ark 001…”

“I get it!” Eric shouted in protest. He clipped his COM. “Double time! Weapons hot! 08, 09 and 17 flank left of the tunnel. 21 form up on me to the right.” Four green lights winked on his HUD.

Mathew was the first to sprint passed Eric to the other side, followed closely by Kate and Greg. Dave slid into position behind Eric and they all held their assault rifles at the ready.

“Three Tango’s in the tunnel, moving toward us.” Eric added over the COM. “Keeper, are their any other brutes in the Ark?”

“No. They all journeyed through the Wormhole. It is awkward that they chose to remain behind.”

Eric looked toward Mathew. “Frag when they are in range.”

“Roger that.” Mathew primed a grenade and held it until the brutes were visible. Kate and Dave did the same.

Eric spoke to Greg. “Once they throw the frags, you and I will go in a clear.”

“Yes sir.” Greg G009 replied.

Everyone spotted the movement of enemy signatures on their HUD radars and three Fragmentation grenades sailed into the tunnel. There was the sound of the frags bouncing off the ground and then three loud explosions. Eric turned the corner and Greg followed.

They leveled their rifles and powered on their shields as they charged into thinning smoke, and Eric spotted the golden glow of a bubble shield. “Damn.” He shouted as he stopped and blocked Greg’s forward progress. The brutes were most likely safe, and protected from ranged fire, but Eric instantly realized that he and Greg had no form of cover in the long tunnel.

“Fall back!” Eric shouted. Greg quickly began to back peddle while keeping his gun aimed down the tunnel. Eric was fast stepping behind him, also keeping his gun locked on the bubble shield. Inside were the three Brutes, but their images were distorted by the shield. Eric fired an insurance round at the shield, to simply keep the brutes inside until they reached cover, but one of the brutes charged anyway.

Eric’s heart nearly stopped as he watched the familiar image of a golden armored brute break free of the bubble shield, and made a direct charge toward him.

“Grimleon?” Eric nervously questioned under his own breath. It couldn’t be the same brute that Simyaldee and Gridolee had dueled in the desert? Eric kept retreating, and started firing into the golden hulk stampeding toward him.

Mathew, Dave, and Kate stepped from the cover of the tunnel exit and took aim over Eric and Greg’s shoulders. “Covering fire!” Mathew shouted.

Eric felt the wake of the AR rounds flying over his shoulders but watched as the Brute bounded from side to side. He was fast and agile. But it couldn’t be Grimleon. There were too many brutes in the Covenant for him to run into the same beast that escaped two Mirratord warriors.

Eric turned toward Greg and shouted, “Run!”

Greg dipped his shoulder and sprinted to the top of the tunnel, doing his best to avoid friendly fire. Eric was quick on his heels, but his radar was flaring brightly as the huge Brute was quickly gaining ground. Eric primed a frag grenade and dropped it at his feet. The grenade exploded just as the brute stepped over it, but it didn’t slow down.

Eric opened his team channel. “Get clear! Wide dispersal! Take him out but don’t let him get close to you!” Eric reached the top of the ramp just in time to watch the Spartans scatter.

Eric spun on his heel to get out of the Brute Chieftain’s path, but as he turned he felt the vice grip of a massive hand on his shoulder. He turned his AR and stuck it into the beast’s chest. As he pulled the trigger a wave of static washed over Grimleon’s armor; a shield generator.

Eric felt himself being flung to the ground as he HUD flashed brightly from the impact. His GEL layer pulsed to absorb the blow, but he still felt something pop. Eric didn’t have time to figure out what had been broken. He stood and rolled clear of Grimleon’s reach.

“Grimleon!” Eric shouted at the Brute.

Grimleon knelt low, his arms wide and glared at the human that had spoken his name. “You know my name. Then I shall ask if you know where Simyal is?”

“You’ll never see him.” Eric pulled down his RPG from his back holster, and affixed his assault rifle. Grimleon tilted his head as the rocket roared from the shoulder mounted tube. Smoke engulfed the beast as Eric lowered the barrel slightly. It was a direct hit.

Grimleon sprinted from the cloud, unfazed, and closed the gap between him and Eric in two strides. Eric tried to back off, but Grimleon wrapped his paw around Eric’s neck and held him at bay.

Eric could hear the sound of AR fire around him. His team of Spartans were fighting back against the brute, but the brute was unfazed. Eric fought the urge to black out as the grip around his neck tightened.

Mathew rallied the team. “09 and 17, get the El Tee clear. 21 follow me and aim for the back of that Brute’s head.” Mathew slapped in a fresh clip and leveled the riffle. He emptied a clip into the brute and then loaded another as he charged closer. Dave was at his side, firing heavily into the brute, but its shields would not fall. Mathew, frustrated and worried about his friend, jumped onto Grimleon’s arm and began to kick into the beast’s ribcage. The Brute staggered backward, but only slightly, and both Mathew and Eric fell to the ground. Dave, dived at Grimleon’s back and slammed the butt stock of his AR into Grimleon’s neck. The Brute staggered forward, but then swung back with his left hand and hit Dave across the face. Dave’s gel layer swelled to absorb the impact of Grimleon’s massive fist, but the blow was monstrous. Dave rolled across the floor, tumbled and came to a stop in an unconscious state.

Mathew picked up Eric’s RPG and fired into Grimleon’s chest. The brute roared as pain finally registered. His shields faded and he roared in protest. Greg and Kate charged with a full auto spread. AR rounds pinged against Grimleon’s armor, but the Brute was far from defeated.

Grimleon side stepped, jumped and rolled clear of the chagrining humans. Mathew stood and grabbed the last RPG round from Eric’s holster, but while he loaded the RPG he was forced to watch Grimleon’s incredible speed. The brute bounded around Greg and Kate as they attempted to keep him at arms length. Whenever they had a clear shot, he would dodge and reposition. He was fast, nimble and almost gymnastically acrobatic. It was a sight to see a creature of his side and muscle structure move so swiftly. Mathew’s gut tensed up as he closed the barrel and leveled the rocket. Could one brute Chieftain really outclass five Spartans?

Greg fired while backing away from the brute but Grimleon leapt into the air and landed between Kate and Greg; sepearting them. Greg kicked out and hit Grimleon in the back of the leg. Grimleon, unfazed, gripped Greg’s leg and held him over his head. Kate fired a full clip into the brute’s side, spraying its blood over the metal floor, but Grimleon seemed unfazed. He was certainly wounded, but the pain didn’t seem to register in his feral state.

Grimleon held Greg’s leg in one hand and then gripped his head in another. The brute Chieftain roared and brought the fragile human down upon its knee. Kate shrieked in horror as she saw Greg’s back bend backwards over the brute’s powerful knee. Grimleon dropped Greg as if he were a toy doll and then gave chase toward Kate.

Mathew watched as Greg’s armor signal turned into an X on his HUD. He didn’t know what to think of the image. He knew Greg was dead, but seeing the image of an X display beside the name of a fellow soldier didn’t quite register with Mathew. It was such a final, yet insignificant sign that Mathew wondered if Kate was also seeing the same signal. He quickly changed the X to MIA. Missing in Action felt less final, but in truth they all knew what had happened to Greg.

Mathew pushed the database off of his HUD, ran toward the Brute and fired the last RPG. It detonated at Grimleon’s feet, sending the brute tumbling to the side. Kate was also hit by the blast, but her shields held and merely knocked her to the ground. She stood and ran to Mathew’s side.

Mathew opened his COM. “Gridolee! Get down here, now! Bring everything we have and make it fast!” Mathew took a half step back and watched as Grimleon shook off the shock from the rocket propelled grenade and stood once again. This was too much. Mathew snarled under his breath and began to beg that the brute die.

“AI!” Mathew shouted.

“Yes Reclaimer?”

“Help the rest of our team find us! We need them here!” Mathew shouted as Grimleon pulled off his dented armor and helmet. He then unclipped his replacement gravity hammer and held it tightly in his hands. Blood dripped from his side and he slammed his fist to his chest in a display of power.

“I am Grimleon, Chieftain of the Red Clan! If you plan to call for help, human, then announce my name and tell all to tremble!”

Mathew whispered to Kate, “Get 19 and 21 to the far side of the room.”

“Grimleon?” Mathew’s COM roared as Gridolee roared in protest on the other end. “Damn you, brute! You dare to show your head?”

Gridolee turned to the platoon and shouted, “Follow as best you can!” Gridolee jumped onto the back of a Mongoose ATV and yelled to the human, “Go! Do not wait for the platoon!”

“Hang on, sir!” The ATV accelerated into the cave as the sound of the AI began to grow louder.

“You are almost in range of my teleportation grid.” Suddenly Gridolee and the ATV vanished in a golden glow.

  • 10.15.2007 11:04 AM PDT
Subject: "Path of Reclamation" Level 23

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Blade Runner: #00124A
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A bright flash appeared in the center of the gigantic Forge room as Gridolee and the ATV driver held their heads for a moment. Gridolee focused and glared across the massive room. “Go!” He pointed toward the brute holding the hammer, and the marine throttled.

The ATV sped across the room, the marine began to cheer with curses at the brute as Grimleon turned to face the charging vehicle. Gridolee planted his foot higher on the back of the mongoose and jumped forward. The Marine turned the ATV and got clear.

Grimleon watched as the suicidal elite lunged toward him. He pulled his hammer from his back and gripped it in a batter’s pose and swung. Gridolee shifted his weight in mid air and the hammer grazed over his head. Gridolee sliced his twin blade across the brute’s chest, but Grimleon back away before he could cut him.

Grimleon chuckled as he sniffed the air. “I know your stench. Have you come back to die, this time?”

“I am a fast learner, brute.”

“Where is the one that holds your leash?” Grimleon questioned. “Where is Simyal? I was promised that he would come!”

“Sorry, beast. He has other matters to attend to. You will face me.”

Grimleon watched as numerous pulses of golden lights appeared in the center of the room. The rest of the platoon was being teleported inside the Forge room and Grimleon was not going to wait for the human’s to set up there artillery.

Grimleon snarled at Gridolee. “Let us play a game, Mirratord scum. I’ll kill more of your human pets… and let us see if you can stop it!” He turned and sprinted toward the gathering humans. Gridolee gave chase.

On the far side of the Forge room, Kate pulled Eric beside Dave and checked both of their readouts. Eric had a dislocated shoulder, but he was also going in and out of consciousness. “A concussion?” Kate questioned to herself. Dave was in a better state. He was knocked out from the punch, but no major injuries.

A transport hog roared up to the area and a medic jumped out. Kate looked at them and looked back as Grimleon ran toward the platoon. She had to go help them. “Set up a defense around this area. Bring the wounded here if you can.”

“Wounded ma’am?” The medic asked. “These are the only two wounded.”

“There will be more.” She shouted as she ran toward the platoon.

She watched as Grimleon seemed to match Gridolee’s pace and hurled himself into the midst of the platoon. Marines cursed and fired blindly as they attempted to understand what was going on. A warthog flipped into the air as the massive hammer slammed into its side. Gridolee dived onto Grimleon’s back and the two creatures rolled for several feet. Gridolee kicked Grimleon clear of the humans and stood his ground between them.

Grimleon laughed as he stood. He was truly enjoying himself.

- - - - - - - -

“Reclaimer… why have you come back?”

Eric looked around his eyes could barely focus. He watched as a marine medic connected a data pad to his SPI armor readout port. What had happened to him?

“Reclaimer… descendant of the Forerunners.”

Eric checked his own readout. A dislocated shoulder… and… head trauma. No it was something else. He couldn’t focus.

“Eric… I made this especially for you.”

Eric lifted his palm and examined his glove. He could see that the Medic was saying something to him, but he couldn’t understand what the man was saying. Eric thought more about his armor, his new modified SPI armor. A diagnostic screen emerged. Gel Layer had spiked, it couldn’t absorb the ground impact and prevent his shoulder from popping free. Eric was thankful, it could have been a lot worse.

“Eric… I adjusted the power setting so that you can use it.”

The Diagnostic readout showed medium. What had Rose done to the Armor? What modifications had she done? Eric opened his mouth but no words formed. What was wrong with him? He hated that he hadn’t paid more attention to the armor; attempted to understand all of its limits. Why was it set to medium and not full? Eric needed the power.

“Eric… it can up the power. I’ve been working on it.”

What was Rose doing to the armor? She said she did it to the Mark VI, but did she also do it to the SPI? The power setting was set so that Eric and Mathew could use them. They weren’t full Spartans. If they tried to wear the Mark VI MJOLNIR the weight of the suit would crush their bones if they exerted themselves. So what made the SPI armor different?

“Eric… I used the Reclaimer armor as a source…”

Rose was talking about the Reclaimer armor. But what did she mean? Eric sat up. He placed his hand on the Medic’s shoulder and gave him a thumb’s up. Eric watched as Kate ran toward the commotion as the brute Chieftain slammed his hammer into anything that moved.

The Medic began, “Sir, you read outs show …”

“I’m fine.” Eric countered. He stood and rolled his shoulder until he heard a sharp pop, followed by the muffled sound of bone and cartilage reuniting. Eric grunted, flexed his shoulder until the soreness was only an afterthought, and then picked up an assault rifle. He watched as the marine medic pressed a series of commands on his data pad and forced Dave’s SPI Armor to induce a mild stimulant. Dave shook his head and sat up as his the injection brought him forcefully out of his unconscious state.

Eric saw that Gridolee and Migpap had arrived and opened his team channel. “Gridolee, pull any mobile marines up to your side and block of that brute with a line of weapons fire. Keep him away from the platoon. 08, get the ‘spits’ hog and flank him. 17, form up the platoon and get them organized.” Eric looked up as the constructors began to power on the covenant shaped ship above his head. Three acknowledgement lights flashed in his HUD. “Offensive Bias.”

“Yes Reclaimer?”

“What’s the status of the flood threat?”

“Flood forms on the surface have been mostly neutralized, but long range sensors are detecting a Flood controlled ship on approach vector.”

Eric huffed. This battle was far from over. “Offensive Bias, get my platoon into that ship.” Eric turned to Dave, “21. Get back to the Gatekeeper facility, and tell everyone to stand by for evacuation.”

“What about that Brute, El Tee?” The medic stated as he nervously peered into the distance. One Brute was never a problem for one Platoon to deal with, but this brute, this Warhammer, was on a scale never encountered.

Eric pulled the hammer back on the AR and began to walk toward the battle. “I’ll deal with it.”

- - - - - - - -

Ark Excavation site // Mombasa observatory
ONI Facility Bravo A-11092G: The Gatekeeper

Lord Hood’s pelican landed on the upper level elevator of the Gatekeeper facility. Vice Admiral Parangosky saluted as he descended from the bird’s ramp. Hood did not return the gesture.

“Forgive my rudeness, Vice Admiral, but let’s skip the formalities.” Hood removed his hat and wiped the sweat from his aging brow.

Parangosky added. “Fine with me. What happened? Where are they going?”

Hood sat down on a barricade as marines created a large circle around him. “The Chief thinks that there is a way to stop the Flood. Cortana suggested that they go to the other side of that portal and find it. I’m not so sure it was a good idea.”

Parangosky sat at Hoods side as one of the Gatekeeper facility’s tech staff brought them cups of coffee. Parangosky took a sip and she smiled at Hood. “We have less then eight hours before High Charity arrives. We are only down one ship. If Ackerson’s reports are correct, one ship won’t make a difference. We won’t last long.”

Hood sipped the coffee in his hand and watched as the last Elite cruiser entered the wormhole. “Any record on what happened to that bastard Ackerson?”

“Ackerson? No sir. MIA.”

Hood raised a brow and then looked at the Vice Admiral. “I also noticed that Major Rawlings was reported as KIA. Shot down by a brute seraph patrol.”

“Yes sir.” Parangosky replied as she sipped more of her coffee. That was ONIs official report on the Major. Her true crimes were burned along with her body.

“ONI always has a way of dealing with those that seemingly act on their own.” Hood whispered as he shook his head mockingly. He then pulled his hat back on and looked around the area.

“We do what must be done, Sir.” She replied. Parangosky knew that Hood was no fool. Ackerson and Rawlings had both went a foul of humanity and ONI, but in the end they both did what they could for humanity to survive.

Hood stood and his guard detailed stood along side him. “Then find a way to stop High Charity. Also, find out why I can’t contact the Black Ops. I tried to contact 19 a few moments ago.”

“Sir, they went into the Ark two hours ago. We lost communications with them one hour later. There was report of a Brute Chieftain attacking the Platoon.”

“One Chieftain can’t stop five Spartan’s, Vice Admiral.”

“We are investigating.” Parangosky stood and brushed the dust from her pants.

[Edited on 10.15.2007 11:17 AM PDT]

  • 10.15.2007 11:09 AM PDT