- Scarecrow118
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- Noble Heroic Member
Miller slid stealthily into the massive landing zone, even as Covenant troops marched around him. The Sergeant stuck to the cover of the various boxes and purple ammo crates as Grunts and Elites ran to and fro. He quickly scanned each box as he slid passed, until he finally found the ones he was looking for. A dozen crates of plasma grenades were haphazardly stacked to the side of the landing zone, presumably where they had been deposited by the Spirits. Several Covenant squads were raiding the crates, stocking up on their ammunition for the assault.
Sergeant Miller crouched behind one of the crates and pulled a wad of plastic explosives from his knapsack and kneaded over the underside of the crate. With any luck, a chain reaction would obliterate everything within twenty to thirty meters.
As he slowly got back to his feet, he heard a quick "tap-tap" over the radio and Sanders IFF blinked. His charges were in place as well. The young snipers target was the vehicle depot, where dozens of Ghosts and Spectres were parked, waiting for a crew to pilot them into combat.
Soon after, the rest of the squad reported in with their own taps and Miller gave them a few more minutes that seemed to drag on forever to get into position. His adrenaline began to surge and his breath quickened as his excitement peaked. Finally, the Covenant were about to be put on the defensive for once.
"Fire in the hole!" Miller whispered as he flicked the detonator into the first position and clicked the trigger.
A thunderous boom rumbled across the landscape as the first set of explosives at the outpost detonated, setting off the plasma grenades and virtually obliterating the entire camp. The Grunts began screaming wildly until their forceful commanders snapped them into line, and began to direct them towards the burning remnants of the camp. Before they got there, another thunderclap sounded as Miller flicked the second switch. The Sergeant's charge had detonated, killing dozens of Grunts and Elites as they tried to surround the camp.
Sergeant Miller swiftly triggered the rest of the explosives sending the Covenant into disarray.
"Tim for payback, you alien bastards!" Miller declared as he raised his silenced DMR and began to pick out targets. Pacing his shots, the Sergeant swiftly dispatched his foes without them even knowing of his existence. The same situation was repeated four more times, as each member of his squad dropped their targets with deadly precision.
As Sergeant Miller rammed in a new clip, a new wave of Spirits began blazing away into the rising plume of thick, acrid smoke in the hope of hitting their unseen enemies. This only served to increase the confusion and disarray in the Covenant's ranks, and the undisciplined Grunts began firing wildly, their plasma weapons doing more damage to their own ranks than Miller's squad.
Satisfied things were progressing well, Miller went prone behind a trio of ammo crates as he activated his radio.
"HQ, HQ this is Sergeant Miller. My squad is currently at the Covenant staging point inside the valley, two clicks from the wall. Please respond"
"Miller, this is HQ. What the hell are you doing down there? Over."
"We have managed to cause heavy losses and damage to the staging point, but we would like to finish it off. Do we have authorisation to use the Football?" Miller asked.
He looked up as the sun finally dipped below the horizon, plummeting the valley into deep shadow, even as several squadrons of Spirits closed on the staging point.
"Uh, say again Sergeant? Please verify that you have control of a Football?"
"That's affirmative HQ, I have control of the Football. We have got more Spirits inbound, and they have fighter escorts. If we don't do this thing now, we'll be overrun! Do I have authorisation?"
"Ugh, that's a negative Sergeant that is danger close! We still have people in the valley, and on the wall. The Asset has not been evacuated and the EMP could damage it"
"Dammit, you've gotta be -blam!- me! Sir, we have a chance to stop these bastards here and now!" Miller exclaimed.
"It doesn't matter Sergeant! You do not have clearance to activate the Football! Get your squad out of there!"
"Negative HQ, we still have a job to do! I will arm the Football, and set it from remote detonation, on channel one-oh-nine, code eight, eight, three, five, one, oh. You can detonate when ready" Miller said as he punched in the arming codes on the small device in front of him.
"Dammit Sergeant, you're endangering the lives of valuable assets on the ground! We've got fucking Spartans down there!"
Miller was momentarily stunned. Spartans were almost mythical, but they were a huge force multiplier if you were lucky enough to have them help you. Or if the shit had already hit the fan.
"Uh, copy that HQ, Miller out" the Sergeant stated before they could cut him off.
Miller slid the tiny nuclear device underneath one of the heavy ammo crates and stood back up. As he turned around, a massive Elite stumbled through the smoke, plasma repeated firing wildly, lighting up the dark sky with pulses of blue light. Miller stiffened, trying not to give away his position with movement, but it was too late. The sharp eyes of the Elite had detected the tiny shimmer of movement and stopped, eyes watching for any irregularities.
The Sergeant stood deathly still, even his breath put on hold. He forced himself not to go for his gun, because the much stronger alien would tear him to pieces before he could fire a shot. Suddenly, the alien gave a horrible grin of pure malice.
"I see you, puny human!" it roared in delight, and raised its plasma repeated right at Sergeant Miller.
The Elite fired just as Sergeant Miller dived to the side. Superheated plasma scorched the ground behind where he had been just a split second a go. The soldier swiftly snapped off a duo of rounds that simply splashed off the aliens shields with a flicker of yellow. With a roar of rage, the massive Elite swung its repeater towards Miller, who didn't have time to dive again.
But before the Elite could fire, a massive figure suddenly appeared behind the alien and jumped on its back. Miller hit the dirt and snapped his rifle forward just in time to see the figure jam something into the Sanghelli's jaw. There was a small flash of light and the alien crashed to the floor, dead. Miller flicked on his flashlight and illuminated a huge humanoid figure that almost seemed like a robot!
"Noble Team, at your service Sergeant" the soldier said, holstering his pistol. "May I suggest you get your squad to fall back to you? The party's about to start"
Miller climbed to his feet, too awestruck to say anything.
"Move it Sergeant! We don't have time to mess around up here!"
"What the hell is going on here? Who the hell are you?" Miller asked, still in disbelief.
"We are Noble team, Sergeant" the Spartan said as his team slipped from the shadows into the light. "I'm Commander Carter, and my mission is the same as yours. We're going to blow this place to hell, and unless you want your troops in the middle of it, I suggest you get them to fall back!"
Miller, shaking off his dumbstruck look, palmed on his radio, as five other members of the Spartan squad moved back into the darkness, presumably setting up a perimeter.
"All units, fall back to my position! Apparently the party is just about to start, and you don't wanna miss it" Miller said firmly.
"Uh sir, that could be a problem" PFC Sanders reported. "I'm pinned down by what's left of the vehicle depot. The Elites are looking for me!"
Miller looked towards Commander Carter in alarm, but he was already gesturing into the darkness. Evidently he had been listening in on Miller's communication.
"Stay here Sergeant. We'll get him" was all the Spartan said before he too dissolved into the rapidly thickening darkness.
Sergeant Miller quickly scurried behind a ammo crate and crouched low as he waited for his squad to arrive. When he heard the crack of a tree branch behind him, Miller whipped his rifle around and nearly put a round straight through Private Hampton's skull.
"Shit Sarge. I'm on your side remember?" he whispered as he joined Miller behind the crate. "So who's hosting the party?"
"Spartans. Noble team's here" Miller replied concisely, never taking his attention away from his surroundings. Nights on Reach were long and arrived quickly, leaving the entire valley in near blackness aside from the muzzle flashes and streaks of plasma occasionally lighting up the night sky.
So one by one, the remaining members of Millers squad filed in. Except for PFC Sanders. "Sanders? You still alive out there?"
"Dammit, radio silence, radio silence!" Sanders quipped, but all of a sudden, the night sky erupted into a flurry of plasma fire, green and blue shots flitting through the darkness like deadly fireflies.
Sergeant Miller gritted his teeth. What the hell was going on out there?