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  • Subject: The Septemai Saga (Chapter 4; Updated!
Subject: The Septemai Saga (Chapter 4; Updated!

Halo: Heretic or Hero---An Elite's Story
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FanFicFactor
Forged in the Flames of Passion, go forth and represent!

The Septemai Saga

Synopsis

As Seven they walked and as Seven they killed. They were the most advanced of their time; they were also the most known the most hated, and the most feared assassins ever to live. They had been brought into this world to take others out of it.

They were called the Septemai


The year is 2754, 200 years after the events of Halo 3. Humanity lives in peace and understanding of other galactic races. All is well in the world.

Then, one day, when a supposed meteor crashes to Earth, it will lead James Ward and his companions to discover something so deadly, so sinister, that it would lead the galaxy into mass chaos--and plunge into an all out war with an enemy long dormant...

I have worked very hard on writing this, so I hope it is well recieved by the community!

Also, the main peak of action in the story kicks up around chapter three, so don't get discouraged in the first few chapters.

Contents:

Prologue---The Septemai
Chapter 1---Seven Beacons
Chapter 2---Ressurection
Chapter 3---Wolf Pack
Chapter 4---Tyrus

[Edited on 08.31.2009 5:28 PM PDT]

  • 08.10.2009 11:57 AM PDT
Subject: The Septemai Saga (Chapter 1; Updated 8/10)

Halo: Heretic or Hero---An Elite's Story
Choose your own destiny

FanFicFactor
Forged in the Flames of Passion, go forth and represent!

Prologue

The Septemai

The royal transport ship that had been assumed to be carrying the Lord of the Forerunner docked in the Great hangar with hardly a sound. Its windows were black and reflecting: there was something menacing about it, something that every soul standing in the hangar could sense.

Commander Junak breathed heavily. Knowing that he was in the very presence of the Great Lord was tantalizing. He rehearsed one final time what he would welcome him with as the landing ramp slowly descended.

Everything went quiet. Junak could feel the distinct pressure in the air. There were no doors opening, no footsteps pattering along the hallways. There was only the quick beating hearts of the Forerunners aboard the ship.

No one had come down the ramp yet. What was the delay? The crew was growing anxious. Why had their Lord not come?

And then, suddenly, soft footsteps came from the peak of the ramp.

No one could make out the dark figure descending slowly down the ramp. Was it the Lord? Junak couldn't tell. Not yet, at least.

All was silent as a tall, black cloaked and hooded figure made his way across the hangar to the crowd that was awaiting him. Junak squinted: this was not the Lord! This was a filthy thief who had stolen the royal transport!

"You!" he boomed, his smile fading and a great scowl emerging on his face. "What have you done? What have you done with him?"

The thief didn't answer. He simply strode on, paying no attention to the cries around him, keeping his gaze low to the ground. Junak cried angrily and snatched him by his throat. A gasp omitted from the crowd of troops.

"You'll pay for this!" Junak roared. Suddenly, the hooded figure tilted his head upward to look at Junak. He wore an ancient looking silver mask, although his demonic red eyes were clearly visible. He gazed downward, and this time Junak noticed what he was looking at: the hilt of an energy blade. The Commander stared from the hilt to its bearer, horrorstruck. He gave one final whimper before the sound of a blade activating rang throughout the room.

Commander Junak crumpled to the ground, dead.

  • 08.10.2009 11:57 AM PDT

Halo: Heretic or Hero---An Elite's Story
Choose your own destiny

FanFicFactor
Forged in the Flames of Passion, go forth and represent!

An immediate roar of anger burst from the crowd of unarmed troops. They charged at the assassin together, wave after wave of them, blinded by raw grief and anger and vengeance. It was one against one hundred.

Or so it would seem.

Another cloaked assassin dashed down the ramp, nearly identical to the first. Then another. Suddenly, there were seven assassins grouped together in a semicircle with the original at the head. Still, the crowd mindlessly raged toward them.

"Cateran," muttered the leader. One of the assassins nodded obediently and took a step forward. His hands were sheathed by silver and red glowing gauntlets. With hardly an effort, he took a step forward and thrust out both of his fists, unleashing a wave of gravitational energy at the crowd. The troops soared back into one another, screaming as they fell. What were these things?

They walked forward as one unstoppable force, each with drawn Energy Swords at their sides. The few insolent troops that dared block their path were quickly cut down.

It was clear that these seven warriors were no simple assassins. They had been brought into this world to take others out of it. Their very presence conducted shuddering fear all around them.

They were called the Septemai, dark warriors of the Forerunners, evil assailants that knew only how to hunt and kill. For years they'd served in secret, answering when they were called to action. Many had fallen by their hand, and many more would in the future.

As the Septemai walked down the center of the great hangar to the door on the opposite side, the member on the end suddenly lashed out with her free arm and dragged a crewman down by his collar.

This assassin was female, and perhaps the most deceiving of the pack. Her name was Valadra, a stern faced woman with ice in her heart and fire in her stern, petrifying gaze.

"You'll cooperate, or you'll die," Valadra whispered in the crewman's ear. As if entranced by the assassin's firm yet softly lingering voice, the crewman nodded.

"I will cooperate."

Valadra smiled wickedly. "As I knew you would. Lead us to the Admiral, and discard any security measures that might make our way...unnecessarily violent."

The crewman nodded obediently and took them through the ship's long narrow hallways, the hostage in front with the seven light-footed warriors following closely behind. Their presence was not questioned by the other soldiers and officers aboard the ship; the crewman was simply an 'escort' for the Lord's agents.

They finally reached a wide metal door with Precursor glyphs marked across it. The crewman stopped before it, unwilling to travel any farther.

"We have arrived at the bridge, my lady."

Valadra nodded. "You will not be of service to us anymore, then." The crewman sighed in relief, nodded, and turned away, but before he could tear down the hallway, Valadra's sword skewered him through the back. He cried weakly and crumpled to the ground. The assassin yanked her Energy Sword out of his flesh, hardly batting an eyelash at the innocent life she had taken.

Now the Septemai's leader stepped forward, his eyes glinting faintly behind his silver mask. He had been tagged by many names in all of his years in the service of killing, but the most common was Tyrus. Vague and mysterious he seemed, but his strength, power, and will to destroy was unsurpassed by any of his followers. In fact, it was Tyrus himself who had banded together these six deadly killers who now were stronger than the most elite of soldiers.

Tyrus murmured bitterly. "The doors are locked. He knows we are here."

Cateran, the assassin sporting the gravity-pulse generating gauntlets, drew up beside him. "There is always a way through a door," he snickered. Ushering the rest of the Septemai back, he activated the gauntlets and put his knuckles to the door. A moment later, a great shock wave burst from his hands, and the door soared off of its hinges, screeching eerily across the metal floor. They were in.

A figure with white Forerunner battle armor and a great red cape swinging behind him stood several feet away. The Admiral. He knew they were there, but he kept his gaze focused in the opposite direction: into the stars.

Tyrus took a hesitant step forward, but before he could prepare an attack guards burst out from every direction, stunning Energy Staves in hand.

"I thought you'd come for me," the Admiral said bitterly. "I knew I'd eventually be your prey. It seems I have turned the tables on you, though."

The guards closed in around them with their long staves thrust outward. Tyrus didn't even stiffen.

"You are a fool, Admiral," he said in his gentle yet menacing tone. "The Septemai shall break you."

Before the Admiral could respond, Tyrus leapt gracefully into the air, landing softly on the tip of a stave and propelled himself over the guards and before the Admiral.

"You shouldn't have come here," the Admiral laughed. "It will be the end of you and your precious warriors."

With that, he curved a vicious punch toward Tyrus, and the battle began.

The assassin blocked the first punch, then responded with a sharp elbow to the Admiral's ribs. He screamed and reared backwards, but Tyrus was on him like a tiger, arcing two fists at his enemy's face. Both connected with a harsh crack and the Admiral went down in pain.

The guards gasped, forgetting the other six assassins and scrambled to help their Admiral. Valadra was on them with much haste, though, and flipped two over her back, then grabbed hold of a stave and stabbed another.

Although it was six on twelve, the Septemai took control of the battle, executing strength and agility that the guards simply could not counter. Before long, the group was easily dispatched, and the Admiral was fending for himself.

Tyrus was a dominate singular force. Each time the Admiral painfully rose to his feet, Tyrus would swarm on him, banging him into the ground, throwing him at the wall, or just simply deliver brutal punches to his face. The Admiral was more or less broken.

"This fight is over," Tyrus said at last. "It is time to fulfill the Lord's request."

"The...the Lord sent you...to kill me?" the Admiral stammered.

"That is correct," replied Tyrus. "And the Septemai always complete their mission."

Valadra tossed him a bloody stave. He caught it and hung the tip over the Admiral's chest. To Tyrus' surprise, the Forerunner chuckled brokenly.

"But he won't always come of it alive." Without warning, the Admiral ripped a small detonator from his belt, armed it, and flicked it behind him.

Tyrus burst forward, skewered the Admiral through the chest, then jumped for the detonator. If that hits the controls, this whole ship will go down! he thought.

He felt as if he was floating in midair-- all around him there was darkness. He was alone with the detonator, just a snatch away. He saw his fingers uncurl and stretch out for the explosive. It skimmed the tips of his fingers, cold metal against pure white skin.

He dropped it.

And it detonated with the left side of his face just above it.

Tyrus' scream was so bloodcurdling, so deathly, that even the Septemai shuttered in fear. Tyrus was swallowed by a cloud of smoke, and yet he still screamed in agony.

"We've got to get out of here!" Cateran insisted. "The controls are jammed; the ship is going down!"

"We cannot leave Tyrus to die!" Valadra retorted, shuffling through the smoke. There was Tyrus, sprawled on the ground, facedown. A pool of blood lay around him.

Valadra scooped him up in her arms and handed him to Cateran. "Now move!"

The six of them sprinted down the corridors, flitting past any security that tried to stop them. Cateran peered down at Tyrus every now and then, but their leader buried his face in his arms and let his gruesome screams echo. Cateran felt sick. This was never supposed to happen; the Septemai didn't make mistakes. They were supposed to come out of this mission unscathed, but instead they were all wounded and their leader was dying.

Vassa, their technology expert, turned to the group. "This way; I saw some escape pods on our way here!"

They followed Vassa down the hall and through a narrow doorway. The walls in this red room were lined with escape pods, but it seemed that none would fit seven beings inside.

"We'll have to go in separate escape pods," Vassa explained. "There are only one-man pods remaining."

The group of assassins shifted uneasily. They'd come to be a family over the experiences they'd had, and now the only way that they would live on was to separate.

Cateran gazed solemnly down at Tyrus, who was still crying out in pain. "What will happen to him?"

Vassa's gaze was aimed downward. They had loved Tyrus as their father and mentor. How could they leave him like this?

"We will have to hope he survives," Vassa said slowly. He heard Valadra whimper from behind him. "I am so sorry."

Cateran nodded quietly and opened the first escape pod. He laid a bloody Tyrus down inside the disc-shaped pod and closed the door, muffling the screams. The Septemai felt their hearts sink as Vassa hesitantly punched something in on the panel and sent the leader of the Septemai into space, without another word.

The six assassins remaining looked upon each other, sadness filling their eyes. Their legacy had expired. Never again would the elite assassin force be called to action. Once they parted, they would have to lead new lives-- if they even survived.

They climbed into their respective escape pods and were launched into the darkest parts of space. Seven warriors. Seven escape pods. Seven directions. It was unlikely that they would ever meet again.

So passed the Septemai.

  • 08.10.2009 11:58 AM PDT

Halo: Heretic or Hero---An Elite's Story
Choose your own destiny

FanFicFactor
Forged in the Flames of Passion, go forth and represent!

Chapter One

Seven Beacons

Millennia later, year 2754

James Ward was an explorer at heart. He'd dedicated his entire life to finding the mysteries of Earth; to make a discovery that would bring humanity one step higher. He loved the dark caves, the ancient tunnels, the great sea floor. Everywhere he looked there was something new to find. It was overwhelming, almost.

His two companions lagged many yards behind him now. Ward had a heavy supply of endurance in him; no one was beating him to the crash site.

That was why he was here, trudging up the hilly terrain in Kenya. The meteor that had plummeted to earth last night was just beyond the hill. It was apparent that James was the most willing explorer to execute the job of locating the crash site and bringing back a sample of the rock.

Without stopping for breath once during the trek, Ward conquered the hill and peered down to the open plain below, and the crater in the ground not too far ahead, still casting black smoke.

"We've found it!" Ward exclaimed cheerfully. Before his companions had reached him, he slid down the hill and tore across the ground.

"He's got the excitement of a six year old," muttered Cody Hess, a close friend of Ward. They'd been together from a young age; Ward had dragged Cody into the world of exploration and danger. Cody was more vigilant than Ward, though. Never was there a time in their expeditions that a pistol was not in his holster and his eyes weren't scouting the area for hostiles.

"Or of a grown man who gets out too often," snickered Jazz, an explorer native to Kenya. Cody chuckled as they reached the high point of the hill to see Ward in the near distance, standing on the edge of the crater, looking confused.

"Is the meteor still intact?" Cody called to him.

Ward shook his head slowly. Even from a distance, Cody noticed his eyes widening, and his signature look of dangerous curiosity sprawling on his face. "This is no meteor. Come look, quick!"

Jazz and Cody soon drew up beside him, and when they realized what he'd found they went pale. Ward was right. This was not a meteor. It was disc shaped, shining silver, with a small open hatch at its peak.

This was an escape pod.

And it was not made by humans.

"Whoa," Cody said in barely a whisper. "What...what is it?"

"It doesn't look like anything we have ever created," Ward said grimly. "Or the Sangheili, for that matter. It's completely...alien."

They stared at it for a moment, their eyes scanning the unknown pod. Taking note that neither of his comrades would do it, Ward slid down into the crater beside the pod.

"Be careful there," Cody warned. "We don't know anything about this thing, or whoever built it. Who knows? It could be an explosive just waiting to be sent off."

"Or there could be a passenger with little tentativeness," Jazz whispered. "Escape pods are for carrying something or someone. Don't do anything reckless."

Ward proceeded cautiously, chewing nervously on his lower lip as he stepped forward and laid his hand on the pod, then slowly wiped it across the surface. He brushed the dirt aside to see strangely carved glyphs all across the smooth metal. He'd seen them somewhere before, he was sure of thathe just couldn't recall where or when.

"I'm going to take a look inside," he muttered, almost to himself. No one could stop him when he made a decision.

"I have a feeling that this is going to turn out more towards the ugly side," Cody said under his breath.

Ward climbed into the thin, disc shaped pod. From the looks of it, this pod would bear only one being. It was not luxurious in the slightest, nor did it look like a comfortable place to rest while you floated aimlessly in space.

There was, however, a strange looking artifact at the bottom of the pod. Ward hesitated, then reached down into the pod and grabbed it. The object was warm. Someone had worn it very recently. A part of Ward wanted to know who its owner had been; another part told him to concentrate on the task at hand.

Ward stumbled out of the pod, the artifact in hand. He coughed and held it out to his comrades. "What do you figure this is?"

Cody grabbed it and examined it for a moment. It was nothing more than a silver wristband that fit like a cast on the wearer's forearm.

"It looks like jewelry of some sort, maybe a bracelet," he said at last. He stuck his hand through the circle. "Nice little thing; we could probably make a fortune off of it."

"That is not what we are here for," Jazz reminded him, annoyed at Cody's typical arrogance. He snatched the band from Cody, who made a mocking gesture at Jazz as he turned away. Jazz slipped it on, and once more, it fitted snugly, but showed no signs of being anything other than a simple trinket.

Ward eyed it curiously. It certainly wasn't 'a piece of jewelry'. He could see the mechanics of it-- there were openable slots that had to be activated before they were engaged. It needed some kind of DNA match; Ward guessed it would be the DNA of the past owner, and since Ward was likely to be of a different species, the chances were slim.

Still, though, his natural curiosity was his fuel. The chances were slim, maybe, but not absent. That was enough for James Ward.

"Let me try it on."

Jazz nodded obediently and laid the alien wristband in Ward's hand. Something felt odd about it. When he touched it, it was as if he was listening to a story, or to soft words being spoken in the distance. He looked cautiously at his companions, who nodded reassuringly, before he put it around his wrist.

There was complete silence for a moment. Ward shut his eyes, waiting, hoping with everything inside of him that he could activate this artifact. Seconds passed swiftly, and Ward felt himself holding his breath. Come on, come on

Nothing happened.

Ward swore exasperatingly under his breath. It was no use. He could do nothing with this wristband. The avid explorer's heart sank as he laid his other hand on top of the wristband.

Then, to his marvel and horror, it activated.

Ward cried out as the machine suddenly sprang to life. The band locked in around his arm, and a strange voice that he couldn't identify as male or female remarked, "Identity match clarified. Activating emergency beacon."

Horrorstruck, Ward tried to pry the device off his hand, but it wouldn't budge. He was bound to it now. Whatever its purpose was, it had been waiting for him to put it on. Cody and Jazz raced forward to help their friend, but suddenly a great gravitational wave omitted from the wristband, knocking them both into the air and across the ground. The center of the watch opened in a circle, and a beam of vibrant red blasted out of it.

Ward watched it, rooted to the spot that he had first slipped the wristband around his hand. His heart was racing, and with every breath he found new fear in him. Emergency beacon. What did that mean? Who was this beacon going to?

The beam had ascended so high that Ward could no longer see the end of it. He tried to pull away, but he felt the weight of the watch keep him tied down.

Suddenly, looking up, he saw that there was not one, but two beams meeting each other at the highest peak of the planet. Another beacon clashed with it soon after. Then another.

Before long, Ward could make out seven beacons locked together, casting a great red shadow in the sky. Cody and Jazz, who were still sprawled out on the grass, looked at one another, their jaws dropped and their eyes lit with wonder, if not horror. They'd come to scout out a meteor...

They'd got much more then they'd bargained for.

Hell had come to Earth.

  • 08.10.2009 5:53 PM PDT

This could be a book.

  • 08.10.2009 9:19 PM PDT

Halo: Heretic or Hero---An Elite's Story
Choose your own destiny

FanFicFactor
Forged in the Flames of Passion, go forth and represent!

Posted by: TW InKoGnIto
This could be a book.


Thank you! Although no fanfiction posted on Bungie.net could ever be turned into a book, I'd wager.

Chapter 2 will be out soon...I just wish more people would read it and not let it sink to the second page so quickly...

  • 08.11.2009 5:40 PM PDT

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

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

Egad! How am I ever going to read the 7 fanfics I currently follow AND this one!

  • 08.12.2009 12:31 AM PDT

Halo: Heretic or Hero---An Elite's Story
Choose your own destiny

FanFicFactor
Forged in the Flames of Passion, go forth and represent!

Chapter Two

Resurrection

The beacons disappeared abruptly, and in that instant Ward found himself thrown to the ground, searching for the breath that he had not been able to release. So many thoughts rushed through his mind; his curiosity was paramount. There had been seven beacons in the sky-- did that mean there were six more of these alien devices? If there werewere they on the hand of their creators?

As if it had read his mind, the watch came to life again, and this time Ward braced himself for another beacon. This time, a large, spherical hologram of the Milky Way appeared from the wristband. Cody and Jazz hustled over, still sputtering from the gravitational wave that had knocked them almost ten yards away.

Cody looked at Ward for a moment, frowned deeply, then in a shrill tone asked, "What the hell was that?"

Ward kept his eyes fixed on the strange map as he spoke. "It wasa beacon of some sort, I think. Did you see the others in the sky, connecting with it? There were seven of them including this one. That must mean there are six other wristbands, and six other bearers. The question is: who?"

"Somebody that's going to get an ass kicking when I find them!" moaned Cody, rubbing his bruised head.

"What is that?" Jazz asked Ward, ignoring Cody's mutterings.

"It's a map of the galaxy. See, here is Earth." He pointed to a small blue dot on the holographic scale. Suddenly, his eye caught a hint of dancing yellow light. He looked closely and saw that one of the planets had been marked blinking yellow.

Cody noticed it too. "What planet is that?"

"I'm not sure, it's on the outermost rim of the galaxy. I've never seen it in any of Earth's galactic archives."

"This is an unknown alien race we are dealing with, right? Perhaps they settled on it, and humans have never reached it before," Jazz suggested.

"Or maybe they reached it and got themselves blown up," commented Cody.

"Lovely," remarked Jazz. "You never cease to see the positive side of things."

Out of nowhere, Ward noticed a blinking red line cutting swiftly through the blue hologram. His eyes followed it around Saturn and straight out the east side of the Milky Way. The red line connected with the planet that they did not recognize. Ward's face lit up in glee.

"This thing is extremely useful," he exclaimed. "It's drawing us a route to that world! We can--"

"No," said Cody. "Not doing it. Not going to a planet nobody in history has ever been to based on a map given to us by a piece of jewelry that crashed from space."

"Don't be such a baby!" Jazz told him. "We may have just made a revolutionary discovery; this device has lead us on a path to be followed!"

"I'll bet there are a lot of these watches there," Ward said softly. Cody's ears perked up like a dog. "These would be worth a lot of money if we brought them back to Earth. You'd be rich!"

Cody stared at him, his nose twitching nervously. After resisting for less than three seconds, he gave in. "Fine. I'm coming. Man, I hate you guys."

They chuckled and set off toward their ship, still unaware that they were walking into evil itself.

***

"Where is he? Must he keep us waiting like this?"

The cloaked figure paced angrily back and forth the great sanctuary. His patience was quickly withering away. A growing feeling of zeal dwindled inside of him, and his nerves had tautened to their limits.

"He will come," said the woman leaning against the great stone pillar, under a blanket of shadow. "You must have patience. We have waited this long; we may wait a short while longer."

"It has been so long," the man growled. "So long since I've felt the warm feeling of blood on my hands. So long since I have felt the rush of wind, the heat of battle. I am dying without that. I feel drained of the power I once had." He paused for a moment, then added, "We should have left without him."

"Our allegiance is to our Master, Cateran. The Septemai only ever act as one, compromised of no more and no less than seven of us."

Cateran sighed and nodded with a hint of reluctance and impatience . "I hope you are right, Valadra. I hope you are right."

  • 08.17.2009 9:41 AM PDT

Posted by: evilcam
That...probably means that Laserking has either an insanely accurate logical method of deriving people's reactions to things, or he possesses pre-cognition. Either way:LASERKING for Mods!

Join KOTOR_|_Join FanFicFactor_|_TOTAL WIN

Awesome story. Can't wait to read more!

  • 08.17.2009 5:39 PM PDT

Halo: Heretic or Hero---An Elite's Story
Choose your own destiny

FanFicFactor
Forged in the Flames of Passion, go forth and represent!

Chapter Three

Wolf Pack

"That's it up ahead."

Cody leapt up in mid-snore, and Jazz looked up from his control panel. They all noticed the immense red planet in the same instant. Ward's wristband-- which was still bound to his arm-- blinked excitedly.

It had been a grueling six day trip from Earth to this world. They'd had little food and nothing to entertain themselves but the thick, ever-expanding blackness of space. Ward brought their small cruiser down slowly, breaking through the planet's atmosphere and down into the dark skies.

This planet was naturally dark, it seemed. The sky was blood-red, but the ground beneath was under a curtain of darkness. Ward brought the cruiser down on a small plateau and activated the landing ramp. Before they climbed down it, Ward handed Cody and Jazz flashlights, told them to stay together, and they set off.

As they set foot on the plateau, the watch blinked orange. As if manipulating his arm, the watch made Ward unwillingly point in the opposite direction. He grinned.

"It looks like we have a guide after all!"

"I really don't trust this thing," Cody muttered under his breath.

Ignoring him, they used their makeshift compass to lead them down the plateau and into the main lands. There was no grass. No trees. No water. It was a wasteland with solemn-looking ruins barely standing or broken at their feet. Jazz looked upon this in dismay.

"It looks like there was a civilization here, long ago," he said softly.

"And?" asked Cody.

Ward answered for him, his face looking grave. "Something wiped them all out."

For the first time in hours, Cody went deathly silent, and his gaze averted to the ground beneath him. Jazz tried to change the subject. "Are we getting close?"

They'd walked the barren terrain for some time now. Up ahead there was a great mountainous area. The watch blazed to life as Ward headed that way. Ward wondered if it was an artificial intelligence. It'd be a handy one if humanity could ever get its hands on it.

"We've found it," he said quietly, as if he was suspicious of something.

"What exactly have we found?" queried Cody. Ward noticed the slight croak in his voice. His usually unbreakable serenity had been lost somewhere along the line. Cody Hess was afraid.

"Don't you understand? The beacons were made so that they could tie together and download the coordinates of the other wristbands on to this one. This device-- it lead us here. Don't ask me how, because this technology is far beyond anything I've ever imagined."

"Spooky," said Cody as they made their way toward a large cave carved into the mountainside. They poised their flashlights and proceeded cautiously through the dark tunnel. Ward shone the light on the wall: the markings engraved upon the stone matched the ones on the escape pod.

They continued down the tunnel until it let them off in an immense sanctuary; great pillars of stone made a ring around it. Ward could not see where the room ended, nor the entrance that he had just walked through. He swallowed a lump in his throat and stepped forward.

Suddenly, the watch went dark. It had done its job, leading them here, to this desolate world where all life had been eradicated. Ward's heart was beating quickly. He felt it difficult to come to the reality that he was here, now, chasing after something that could very well be the death of him.

  • 08.22.2009 6:29 PM PDT

Halo: Heretic or Hero---An Elite's Story
Choose your own destiny

FanFicFactor
Forged in the Flames of Passion, go forth and represent!



"Stay together," he told his partners. "We don't know what we're in for here."

They shone their lights all around the massive hall. There was no sign of anything; not a trace of movement, not a patter of footsteps against the rock floor. They were completely and utterly alone.

Weren't they?

Although he couldn't see or hear or smell the danger that he'd just walked himself into, his gut told him otherwise. He could feel eyes on his back that didn't belong to Cody and Jazz, nor any other human being.

Ward nervously shone the light outward one more time, and caught the slim shadow of a cloaked figure off guard. It raised its head, and Ward could make out its menacing red eyes, piercing him like daggers. Ward felt horror strike right through to his heart, and he stumbled and fell over, inadvertently lobbing his flashlight into the darkness.

He cried out and tried to crawl away, but as he turned he saw that there was another black-cloaked figure awaiting him. Then another drew out of the shadows beside it. Then two more pairs dropped from the ceiling, landing with hardly a sound.

"Sweet Jesus," whimpered Jazz, backing away. Ward scrambled to his feet and backed toward him, his stomach churning with fear. The three of them stood back-to-back-to-back as the six figures moved silently through the darkness like a pack of wolves, stalking their prey in the darkest moments of night.

Cody whipped out the handgun he had kept from his few years of military training. He poised it most unprofessionally at the cloaked figure to his left and discharged three bullets whose crack echoed around the great sanctuary.

Although the bullets had been aimed directly at their attacker's chest, there was neither spurt of blood nor cry of agony. The bullet had not connected. Instead, it held out its pale white hand equipped with long red fingernails. There was a shimmer of light in it.

It had caught the bullet between its fingers.

Ward, Cody, and Jazz were staring at the bullet with a mix of astonishment and horror. What were these things?

Cody cautiously raised the gun again, but to their great awe, a voice, a woman's voice, boomed around the room.

"Tyrus! Tyrus, it is us! It is your Valadra!" she cried. The three explorers backed away, frightened and confused by this. Who was Tyrus? Had they mistaken the three innocent humans for someone else?

Ward swallowed a lump in his throat. His survival instincts told him to run, to leave this godforsaken planet and all of its solemnity behind. His heart, though, pumped valiance only found in the bravest of people. He held his own.

Reluctantly, he called out into the darkness, "Weuh, we aren't Tyrus. There must be some mistake. My name is James Wa--"

The women struck with such speed, such grace that she could have knocked Ward clean through the rock wall behind him. Instead, though, her hand shot out and she snatched his throat, her gnarled hand squeezing tight as the air quickly sank away from Ward's lungs.

"What have you done with him?" she demanded. Ward tried to yelp, but he was muffled by her screams of anger. "What have you done with my master?"

"He hasn't done anything!" yelled Jazz, flying in from the woman called Valadra's left side. He caught her off guard and only just managed to knock her off balance so that she loosened her fierce grip. She growled angrily, a petrifying sound that vaguely reminded Ward of a lion.

"You have taken his wristband from him," she accused, her eyes hot with fury. "You could only have taken it by force, you--"

"We found it in a crashed escape pod," Cody supplied, drawing up beside Jazz. "We haven't done anything wrong! We followed the coordinates to this planet. Take my word for it, we don't know who you are talking about!"

Ward felt the five other hooded figures right behind him now. They had closed out all paths of escape. He sighed, resenting his curiosity. That was what had lead them here. That was what had damned the three of them. He wanted to apologize, but he found that the words he wanted to say had disappeared.

Valadra's face was stoic now. The three humans couldn't tell if it was anger or disbelief or a mix of the two that she felt right now. For a brief moment, she did not seem all that menacing anymore. She was just a person-- or whatever she was-- that had lost something dear to her. As if she had read their minds, she quickly scowled again and shook her head. She reached for something under her cloak.

"You filthy liars," she said, her voice quivering. "We have remained frozen for hundreds upon thousands of years, waiting for the moment that he would return to us." Her voice went stirringly cold. "And you have deceived us."

She brought out a strange looking device, like the hilt of a vacant sword, and laid her palms on it. Immediately, a great burst of superheated blue plasma erupted from it. The light was dazzling against the pitch black room, and Ward had to shield his eyes as Valadra slowly brought it toward his neck.

She smiled wickedly. "His death shall not be in vain."

  • 08.22.2009 6:29 PM PDT
  • gamertag: [none]
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Do not waste your tears, I was not born to watch the world grow dim. Life is not measured in years, but by the deeds of men.

Posted by: goldhawk
We should know better, because we are better.

Amazing! Truly amazing!
Also is this only your second fan fic because this is the only other fan fic besides Heritic or Hero I've seen you write?

  • 08.22.2009 7:36 PM PDT

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

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

oops, forgot to save this.

  • 08.23.2009 2:21 AM PDT

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

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

Wow, this is nice. But you need to stop making new series'! I can't keep up!

  • 08.23.2009 2:43 AM PDT

Halo: Heretic or Hero---An Elite's Story
Choose your own destiny

FanFicFactor
Forged in the Flames of Passion, go forth and represent!

Posted by: Xd00999
Amazing! Truly amazing!
Also is this only your second fan fic because this is the only other fan fic besides Heritic or Hero I've seen you write?


Yes, it is my second Halo fanfic...I'm trying to expand a bit, maybe with some Star Wars or Harry Potter, but otherwise Heretic or Hero and The Septemai are the only Halo fics I have in store for now.

Thanks for the comment, too, I appreciate it.

  • 08.23.2009 4:31 AM PDT

Halo: Heretic or Hero---An Elite's Story
Choose your own destiny

FanFicFactor
Forged in the Flames of Passion, go forth and represent!

Chapter Four

Tyrus

How did it ever come to this?

Ward could feel the hot sting of the Energy blade on his neck already. He could imagine the sharp sizzle of agony that he would succumb to when Valadra pushed her sword an inch closer to him. Cody and Jazz rushed forward to protest, but they were instantly snatched like rats by the hooded figures behind them.

Ward closed his eyes. He didn't want to see the superheated blade as it cut him down. It was over. He was going to die.

Suddenly, there was a voice, soft and hoarse but booming around. Ward's eyes snapped open when he heard it.

"There will be no need for that, Valadra. I have returned to you at last."

Valadra recognized the voice and cast the sword aside and pushed Ward to the ground as she ran forward at impossible speed, a great smile spread across her face. The humans turned to look at the seventh figure standing absently by the entrance. He was taller than the rest of them, and he seemed to be much bulkier too.

Valadra threw herself in his arms and they embraced. The others followed them, leaving the bewildered humans laying on their backs. As the black-cloaked figures muttered to each other about something, Ward called Cody and Jazz over.

"We need to get out of here," Ward said anxiously. "I have no idea what they are or why they're after us, but I don't want to stick around and find out."

"They look strangely...human," Jazz whispered. "Look at them...mind the ghost-white skin and the tattoos. They look like any ordinary human!"

"I don't think ordinary humans run at the speed of sound," Cody retorted.

"There only seems to be one exit," said Ward, looking around. "But all seven of them are standing in front of it."

Jazz leaned forward. "So?"

"So we're absolutely one hundred percent screwed."

They groaned in unison, perhaps a bit too loudly, as one of their hooded attackers turned and pointed a finger at them, muttering something to his peers. The one who had just entered, presumably their leader, as they gathered around him as if he were a source of water in the desert, slowly made his way through the pack and towards the nervous looking humans.

As he came closer, Jazz's fingers quivered and his flashlight shone briefly on his face: it was completely masked by a layer of stunning silver. All they could make out was his beady red eyes, lurking within his concealed face.

He crouched down beside them. "You are afraid," he said simply, more of a statement than a question.

Ward looked at him for a moment, then nodded slowly. "Yes."

"Why is this? You should know that I am no killer. I will not hurt you. You have reassembled my family and for that I thank you."

Jazz looked at Ward, as if asking for the right to speak. Ward nodded reassuringly, and he asked, "I am sorry, but what planet do you come from?"

The masked leader seemed to smile behind his mask-- Ward could tell from the way his eyes lit up. "We come from many worlds. There was a time when we were the stewards of this galaxy. We were its protectors, its saviors." His voice seemed to be drawing tension with every word. "Our empire was unstoppable. At least, until, they arrived."

He had spoken the world 'they' with so much emphasis, so much hatred that Ward almost felt a searing pain in his own heart. When no one spoke up, the strange man continued.

  • 08.31.2009 5:27 PM PDT

Halo: Heretic or Hero---An Elite's Story
Choose your own destiny

FanFicFactor
Forged in the Flames of Passion, go forth and represent!

"We are Forerunner, the last remnant of peace in the galaxy. Long ago, my people were destroyed. The seven of us-- we are the only ones left. I daresay we should not be alive. We should have passed on to live with our ancestors long ago."

Suddenly, everything made sense. The glyphs on the escape pod-- they had been Forerunner! He knew he had seen it in a history book once or twice. Now he remembered all of it, almost two hundred years ago, when the Covenant had worshipped these beings as gods that they would join when they had activated the Halo rings and wiped out every sentient being in the galaxy. They'd remained a mystery, for so long, for far too long

And now, standing in front of him, was the living mystery itself.

The dark cloaked Forerunner stood up. "I am Tyrus, and these are my ever-faithful apprentices." The six other mysterious Forerunners drew up beside him, three on his left and three on his right. He introduced them all.

"This is Valadra, my eventual successor," Tyrus told them, laying a hand on the woman's shoulder who had nearly cut them in half. He proceeded on, introducing them all one by one.

Valadra was slim and dark looking, and she seemed to be ever vigilant. She had long white hair to match her incredibly pale white face. Ward couldn't tell whether or not she would be classified as beautiful or hideous to the Forerunners.

Cateran was not tall, but instead he was incredibly bulky. He was bald with a fully tattooed head that reminded Ward of the clowns he had seen at rock concerts back home.

Vassa, unlike the others, did not look very strong. Instead, he had three belts of technology Ward did not recognize, a more intricate looking wristband, and an eyepiece that Ward guessed would let him analyze and hack into machinery.

Alak and Azam were twins, shady looking, and impossible to tell apart. They didn't speak throughout the introduction, just scrutinized the humans as if they were suspicious of something. As if they should be the suspicious of US thought Ward.

Finally, when Tyrus introduced the last of his group, he was not standing beside him like the others were. Instead, Zarandir leaned against one of the tall pillars. Ward could not see his face; he had a deployable HUD that masked him. Ward guessed he was the quiet type who didn't like to be bothered.

When Tyrus was finished, Ward looked at his partners, who didn't look content at doing the honors. So, clearing his throat, he said, "My name is James Ward, and these are my accomplices, Jerald Derazz and Cody Hess."

Tyrus gave them both a short nod, then turned back to Ward. That was deeply odd. Why was he so interested particularly in Ward?

"Come," he told them. "We shall light a fire. I feel there is much we must talk about."

They didn't like the sound of that. There was an edge to his voice near the end of the sentence. He'd acted kind and forgiving, after all...but something told James Ward that these people had more than a simple conversation on their minds...

  • 08.31.2009 5:27 PM PDT

Honor Light Your Way, Our Blood Shall Forge A Thousand Generations!.

Wow, VERY NICE! I love it, it's unbelieveable! I admire your work Murph.

Is it too much to ask for you to read my series The Spartans? I'd appreciate it. :)

  • 08.31.2009 5:59 PM PDT

Halo: Heretic or Hero---An Elite's Story
Choose your own destiny

FanFicFactor
Forged in the Flames of Passion, go forth and represent!

Posted by: LIL Smurf DOGG
Wow, VERY NICE! I love it, it's unbelieveable! I admire your work Murph.

Is it too much to ask for you to read my series The Spartans? I'd appreciate it. :)


Absolutely not, I'll get right on it! :)

  • 08.31.2009 6:05 PM PDT

The Hybrid a FanFic by Tehface

"Look for the signs, the keepers of the flame. They will lead you to war, and perhaps, to victory."

Great Job! and Great Story!
Keep up the good work!

  • 08.31.2009 6:44 PM PDT

Posted by: evilcam
That...probably means that Laserking has either an insanely accurate logical method of deriving people's reactions to things, or he possesses pre-cognition. Either way:LASERKING for Mods!

Join KOTOR_|_Join FanFicFactor_|_TOTAL WIN

Awesome story. You need to IM me your future plans. I don't like surprises. Keep it up.

  • 09.16.2009 3:58 PM PDT

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

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

This is great!

  • 09.17.2009 4:38 AM PDT
  • gamertag: [none]
  • user homepage:

Do not waste your tears, I was not born to watch the world grow dim. Life is not measured in years, but by the deeds of men.

Posted by: goldhawk
We should know better, because we are better.

Posted by: Sergeant Murph
Posted by: Xd00999
Amazing! Truly amazing!
Also is this only your second fan fic because this is the only other fan fic besides Heritic or Hero I've seen you write?


Yes, it is my second Halo fanfic...I'm trying to expand a bit, maybe with some Star Wars or Harry Potter, but otherwise Heretic or Hero and The Septemai are the only Halo fics I have in store for now.

Thanks for the comment, too, I appreciate it.
Your welcome. I wanted to post in the original heretic or hero thread but it got locked. :( Want more soon!

  • 09.17.2009 6:35 AM PDT