A/N

It's tempting to list all the aspects that made The Cole Protocol a letdown in my mind, but not only would that be a waste of space, but would probably give this oneshot into the category of "angst." However, that isn't to say that it was without its good bits, among which gave me the idea for this oneshot. No spoilers are present however.

Parameters

"Officer present!" Lieutenant Percival shrilled.

The cadet's voice echoed throughout the dome-shaped lecture hall, a stark contrast to the airless ball of rock that was Luna as a whole. Having been the first extraterrestrial body ever colonized by humanity, it was a paradox that had existed for centuries-sound existing in the moon's domed cities, non-existent outside it.

The nature of the sound changed though. And over the last nine years, it had changed for the worse...

Regardless, the paradox continued. Following Percival's apt confirmation of his presence, the lecture hall was filled with the sound of approximately seventy rears lifting from chairs and one hundred and forty feet snapping to attention. Monotemous perhaps, a scene repeated at the start of every lecture in the Luna OCS Academy, but at least in this case, the devotion to duty was heartfelt. After all, regardless of what the higher ups thought, men like Jacob Keyes demanded respect.

Like the nature of sound, Lieutenant Keyes' movement was something of a paradox. He was at the podium almost instantly, never once breaking his stride despite the injuries he'd suffered on the Meriwether Lewis. Upon reaching the podium however, the gray haired, stiff collared man cast his gaze around the lecture hall, favouring each of the cadets with a sharp-eyed stare that instilled a sense of respect and unease in equal measure.

"At ease, take your seats gentlemen," the lieutenant said eventually.

Once again, sound was echoed throughout the chamber.

By the time the echo faded, Keyes had typed the required combination of numbers and letters on his podium's keypad, the lights dimming and a hologram forming as a result. A simplified star system appeared, one with a single world and an asteroid belt, presumably the only two points of interest. An involuntary groan escaped from the cadets.

Keyes' eyes twinkled, albeit hidden by the darkness of the lecture hall. "Fear not gentlemen, I think I've yakked on enough about the finer points of navigation, especially since you'll all have your own pet AI to do that for you."

Scattered laughter rang throughout the assembly hall, all eyes centred on cadet Scanlon. His sweat talking of the administrative AI Sirocco wasn't going to be forgotten anytime soon.

"Today, I thought I would do something different," continued Keyes. "I would like to have a discussion. A discussion as to simply where, when and why we fight."

A murmur rippled through the cadets, though was quickly broken by Cadet Davies.

"Easy sir," the youngling said. "To whoop ET's arse whenever he shows up!"

Laughter once again rippled throughout the crowd and even the lieutenant cracked a smile. However, it was fleeting. Just like life had become these days.

"A commendable reply," said Keyes eventually, the laughter having subsided. "But not a particularly useful one. After all, the same phrase could be used in any point throughout history, providing that ET was substituted for the enemy of the time."

"But aren't things different now?" asked Davies.

Keyes shrugged. "Perhaps. Perhaps not. But considering that nearly a decade ago the term Innie would be in that sentence, the difference is somewhat academic."

No reply greeted the lieutenant, the cadets realizing that he had a point. It had been shocking for all of them to learn that not only was humanity not alone in the universe, but that his neighbours were apparently a conglomeration of alien beings bent on genocide. And while they'd all reflected on the ramifications of such a fact, how centuries of soul searching had been answered and numerous religions cast into spasms of rewriting their history books, the fact remained that their new neighbours were a force to be reckoned with. A sad indictment of sentience really...

"Do not underestimate originality," continued Keyes. "Considering that you'll all be captaining your own ships in a few months time, you'll soon be in a position where the underused organ that is your brain has to act on its own accord rather than simply processing the sound of my voice. You've already been bombarded with a wealth of knowledge of everything from navigation to propulsion, but has it ever occurred to you as to when and where you must fight?"

Silence greeted him.

"I thought not," said Keyes, typing on his podium again. A number of purple blips appeared on the edge of the star system, supposedly representing a Covenant fleet.

"This is a state of affairs that has been repeated over the last few years," said the lieutenant, gesturing to the hologram. "A small Covenant fleet exiting slipspace into a planetary system. A system..." he typed a few more buttons, the planet turning a shade of green, "that is controlled by the UNSC. He turned his attention back to the cadets. "In such a situation, you are aware that an enemy fleet has entered a star system and in all likelihood, is aware of a human occupied world. In this case, what do you do?"

"Prepare to defend it?" asked Cadet Shepherd.

Keyes nodded. "Perhaps. Or, you could attempt to engage the enemy..."

The audience murmured. Everyone had read Admiral Cole's reports on his reclamation of Harvest, how a ratio of approximately 3:1 was required to defeat Covenant ships. It was a long held rule of thumb that a defending force would be outnumbered by an attacking force. And considering the issue of technological disparity...

"Begging your pardon sir, but isn't engaging the enemy a bit...risky?" asked cadet Fields.

Keyes nodded. "Indeed, it is. However, when one considers the system's features..."

The purple blips began moving towards the planet. In return, a number of green blips started heading out from the planet, seemingly intent on intercepting the invaders around the system's asteroid belt. The purple blips thus changed their course, and headed towards the asteroid belt.

"This is an example of how our enemy thinks," said Keyes. "At least as far as we can tell..."

A series of red dots appeared between the purple blips and green blips. After about thirty seconds, the green blips had all disappeared, but not without taking a fair number of purple blips with them.

"Ploughing headlong into defeat..." murmured cadet Jones. "That's your plan?"

Keyes shook his head. "Not exactly. However, when one considers the alternative..."

The hologram shimmered, the purple blips returning to the edge of the system. Once again, they set a course for the planet, but this time, the green blips remained in orbit. Upon reaching the planet, a number of red dots appeared again. This time however, the green blips disappeared almost instantly, the purple blips unscathed. And as a result, the planet turned from green to purple, a representation of what had occurred at Harvest and numerous other worlds...

...glassing.

"As you can see, the defenders were once again defeated," said Keyes, the hologram disappearing and the lights returning. "Unlike the engagement in the asteroid belt however, the Covenant were practically unscathed."

"We still lost though..." Jones murmured.

"Indeed," said the lieutenant, his gaze narrowing. "But understand cadet, fighting is not entirely about whether you win or not. After all, given our current circumstances, victory is not to be expected. What is to be expected however, is that you make the Covenant's victories as pyrrhic as possible."

No cadet responded to him this time. They all knew what they were undertaking, how signing up for the navy was akin to signing your own death warrant. Sure, the recruiters and propaganda vids said otherwise, but they could only go so far.

And to hear it from Keyes...

"This is why we fight," said the lieutenant. "We fight whenever and however we can to ensure that the Covenant is slowed down as much as possible. And if that means seeking out the enemy in an asteroid field, then so be it. Both caution and aggression have their places gentlemen, but understand that despite our situation, the latter should not be ignored out of hand."

Silence once again greeted him. Keyes sighed. He was hoping for some kind of response. This lecture had gone far too quickly.

Just like their lives will, he thought sadly. Here they were, trying to teach cadets two years worth of lessons in ten months. If the current rate of loss continued, that ten months was likely to be halved.

Keyes knew that he was playing the role of the devil here. He knew that these men were going to their deaths, though not necessarily immediately. The only question was whether their sacrifices would be worth it. Time would tell. For now though, time itself was a rare commodity, and it seemed fair that these men get to spend it how they wanted before they seized their destiny among the stars...

"Class dismissed."