Part 22

Forerunner Subterranean Chamber

John took a step back, scanning his surroundings for anything resembling an ambush. But he was looking directly at a living breathing Forerunner. Ambushes didn't seem to be an element of their behavior, and besides he was supposedly a Reclaimer. But the statement made by the male Forerunner standing before him was unusual, and unexpected, to say the least.
"What do you mean, expecting me?"
"We have waited a very long time to meet you John. You are the pride and joy of our work, and the subject of much debate," replied the Forerunner.

Unlike the previous Forerunner on the shield world, this individual was younger, healthier and, apparently, better equipped. He had short blond hair, a fair complexion and was dressed from neck down in an armoured jump suit of some kind. It was white in colour, with interlocking plates that moved and shifted as he walked.
John lowered his weapon. "I think you're going to have to be a little more informative than that."
Cortana suddenly jumped deep into his mind. "Chief, I'm reading massive power surges in every direction. All of the stasis pods have been opened and the small fleet of ships' are already powering their engines. I think we've just woken a sleeping giant," she said hesitantly.

The blond haired Forerunner slowly walked towards John, arms by his sides. "What do you remember of your parents John?" he asked.
"My parents, why do want to know that?"
"What do you remember John?" repeated the Forerunner.
"Not a lot, barely anything in fact." John answered.
The Forerunner took another step towards John and then, despite having his helmet on, looking him in the eyes. "John, what you know about yourself and your family is very different to the truth."
"What do you mean?" John answered impatiently.
"Your mother may have given birth to you but it was we that created you. You were designed, long ago, to be the soldier that we needed you to be."
The rest of the Spartans slowly walked forward towards John and the Forerunner, with their weapons at their sides. Cortana also appeared again, on a holographic plinth nearby.
"Chief, what does he mean?" Cortana asked.
"I don't know."
"Thousands of years ago, when mankind was barely able to start fire, we began an intense genetic displacement program called Destiny. Here we selected a number of individuals from your species and altered their DNA. They were changed in such a way that they would follow a pre-determined course of existence. Several of your distant ancestors were selected for this program."
"You...designed him?" Kelly queried.
"More than that, we selected his genetic line to carryout a specific role," replied the Forerunner.
"What role?" Cortana asked.
"To save every species in the galaxy, all except the Flood and, of course, the Scourge."
"The Scourge?" John asked.
"The species we encountered on the shield world the enemy." Cortana intervened.
"Precisely, Cortana."
"How do you know my name?"
"We know a great deal." The Forerunner returned his attention to John. "You were designed to follow certain pre-determined genetic markers. You were destined to become a soldier, the saviour of all. Your bloodline was created to grow in strength and, at times, to avoid trouble when necessary. Your brain works in such a way that you will always duck at the right time. You will always jump at the right time, and you will always fire at the right time."
"Are you saying...that I can't be killed, that I'm invincible?"
"Far from it, you are as mortal as those around you; you are as mortal as we are."
"So what stopped me from being killed as a child or my parents being killed before I was born?"
"Because your parents were meant to look after you, but...Catherine Halsey was designed to find you. She was another with a pre-determined path. One that would see her create some of your species most prized technologies, including your augmentations."
Cortana quickly realised the possibilities, the answers she could find. So she started with a simple example. "What about, Albert Einstein? Was he another one?"
"Partly, he was destined to set the foundations for human science and the knowledge that they would all be founded upon."
"So what now then?" Fred asked.
"We prepare for the coming war. The Scourge know of your existence, and they will try everything in their power to eradicate you. It is only a matter of time before they come to destroy both you and every trace of your species. We have a small fleet here, and more on the way, but it will be some time before we can muster all of our remaining forces."

All of a sudden the entire dome was enveloped in a bright red glow, all of the Forerunner vessels rose from their landing area in the hangar section and the tall spire in the centre began to rise towards the ceiling of the chamber.
"What's going on?" Fred asked.
The Forerunner quickly glanced at a small display on his wrist, and then up towards the surface above them. "They're here."
"Who? The Scourge?" John asked.
"Yes," replied the Forerunner with a hint of apprehension.
The COM crackled into life as the voice of the Arbiter pierced the tense atmosphere surrounding the Spartans.
"Spartan, it would appear that you infamous enemy has finally arrived and in greater numbers."
"How many?"
"Twelve ships, Spartan. And they are much larger than the one you encountered. They have assumed a standard line, but are holding their distance from our combined fleets. I am sorry my friend, but we were only able to equip half of the attending vessels with shields, the rest have only their hull armour to protect them."
"It'll have to do," voiced Cortana.
"I will do what I can, but I fear this battle may be our last. They outgun us in every way. The battle will be short."
"Sounds like good odds to me," Kelly said.
John nodded and made his way towards the lift in long deliberate strides.
"Where are you going, John?" The Forerunner asked.
John stopped and calmly turned around. "To finish this fight," he answered.

Part 23

On board the Sangheili flagship, The Shadow of Intent

"Status report," ordered Thel. His time as the Arbiter was destined to be short and his honour to be reclaimed upon his death, but Thel knew, deep down, that he had done more than enough to regain his dented pride. But in hindsight the original cause of his demotion was down to the Spartan.
The destruction of the first ring had filled him with doubt and shame, but now he felt an enormous sense of pride. Being defeated by a lone Spartan in combat was no longer something that would fill his heart with shame; instead he thought it was probably his greatest achievement. If Thel had succeeded in his role as the fleet master, then the Spartan would be just an echo of humanities' hope and they would all be doomed against an enemy of unspeakable power.

"All ships report ready. Our cruisers have taken up their positions on the flank, all spirit, phantom and seraph craft have been positioned to cover the human orbital stations," Rtas reported.
The fleet would do what it could to inflict as much damage as possible, but the outlook was bleak. His main responsibility should be the protection of the human ships. For once it would be down to them to save what was left of the Covenant.
"Ensure the capital ships remain clear of each other. I do not want the destruction of one vessel to doom us all."
"What of the human ships, Arbiter?"
Thel pondered his options, but there were few. Even so, there was always a path to victory, he thought, even if it came from a suicidal engagement. He began to gain a new sense of understanding. This must have been what it was like for the humans when they fought their more advanced Covenant counterparts. "Position the shielded human ships to our rear, and the unshielded vessels behind them. They must be given the chance to fire."
"Understood, Arbiter," Rtas replied.

Thel looked on as the fleet finished moving into position, each of them displayed on the command deck as a series of floating holograms. The human ships moved, almost reluctantly, to the rear of the main fleet, protected by a wall of Covenant capital ships. Thel hoped to use the human ships in rapid pop-up attacks, but there was no telling as to how quickly the enemy ships would adapt.
He had to be flexible and inventive.

Forerunner chamber, Earth

John raced through the caves, followed by the rest of the Spartans. The Forerunners had chosen to remain in the chamber to ready their fleet and prepare the defences. John hoped that they could stall the attack on Earth, giving the Forerunners the chance to fight back.
John quickly cleared the mouth of the cave, only to be dazzled by the morning sun.
His faceplate immediately polarized to compensate.
Beyond the mouth of the cave were almost three full companies of marines, all of them escorted by warthogs and Scorpions. At the forefront of the formation was the familiar sight of Lord Hood, accompanied by Dr. Halsey.
Hood rushed over to meet with the emerging Spartans. "What did you find, chief?"
John stopped in front of Hood. "Forerunners and lots of them. They have a chamber beneath the cave system along with their own personal armada. But unfortunately they have more pressing concerns."
"I heard," Hood dropped his head. "The Arbiter is organising the fleet, but I'll need you and the other Spartans up there as well. If the enemy attempts a boarding we'll need everything we have to stop them."
"What about me?" asked Cortana.
"You'll be joining me on the Cairo. I need that lightning fast brain of yours to coordinate the pattern of fire."
"Just like old times," she replied.
"Chief, you and the rest of the Spartan II's head up to the Shadow of Intent; assist the Arbiter in any way you can, Dr. Halsey will be going with you."
"I need to stay here. I need to study the technology that we have long been searching for," Catherine protested.
"An order is an order Doctor," Hood replied sharply.
"What about us?" Ash said. "What about us 3's."
"General Moore will update you, but you'll be helping to defend the cave entrance, just in case our new enemy decides to pay us a visit down here."
Ash looked disappointed. He wanted to be with the rest of the Spartans.

John walked over and placed his hand on Ash's shoulder. "I'll be counting on you down here Ash. If the Scourge break through the fleet they'll be heading straight for here. I need you to stop them."
Ash looked up and nodded. "Don't worry, John. We'll stop them."
"Pelicans inbound for EVAC, stand by!" Voiced a marine.
John looked up to see two Pelicans swooping down and along the valley. They were both escorted by a pair of Longswords.
Cortana's voice popped into John's head. "Good luck Chief."
"And you," he replied.
"Give'em hell, Chief," said Hood, grabbing a rifle.
John nodded. "Look after her."
"Don't worry; she'll see us all through."
John wanted to keep up with the goodbyes, but had his orders again. He bounded off with the rest of the Spartan II's and Doctor Halsey into one of the waiting pelicans. Hood and a handful of naval staff headed for the other.
John strapped himself in before they blasted into the sky, heading for the fleet.

The Shadow of Intent

"Human drop ship in-bound Arbiter. It carries Spartans," Rtas reported.
"Good. Get them on-board and up to the bridge as quickly as possible."
Suddenly, an alarm echoed throughout the bridge.
Rtas looked up, frustration written across his weathered face. "The enemy fleet is advancing. They have adopted an arrow-head formation with a single vessel further out in front acting as a vanguard."
"They wish to test our firepower, to see if we are a threat," Thel concluded.
"The lead vessel is within range!"
"Send in the cruisers. I do not want them to see the effectiveness of the human weapons until they are all in range."
Rtas conveyed Thel's orders to the leading phalanx of cruisers. Eight of the glistening vessels immediately set off towards the isolated Scourge ship, weapons firing.
The alien vessel simply stopped, absorbing the raining plasma fire before replying with a storm of energy.
The lead cruiser was hit square in the face before the alien ship fire again, destroying the cruiser. The second and third were hit with the dissipating energy and careered of course. Powerless and adrift. They were quickly finished off with a scything lance of green light.
The remaining cruisers adopted a scattered line formation before returning fire. Plasma torpedoes and plasma cannons did their best to fell their foe, but the ship simply absorbed the torrent of fire, its hull rippling in the cascading light of battle.
"Shall I order the humans to fire?"
"No, Rtas. I must see with my own eyes if we can defeat them."
"Our weapons are having no effect, Arbiter."

Thel could see the obvious, but he also understood Rtas' frustration. The might of Covenant weaponry, that had caused the humans so much misery and grief in the past, was now all but redundant.
"Order all remaining cruisers to concentrate their fire on the alien vessel."
Rtas anticipated his order and sent in the remaining cruisers. Twenty-seven vessels rushed forward until they were almost on top of the alien ship. Then they fired.
Thel watched closely as they peppered the ship with everything they had.
Then he saw it. A small plume of ionized gas escaping from the rear of the enemy ship.
"Order the cruisers to fire again, but tell the Relentless Pursuit to fire on the escaping gas."

The cruisers fired again as the Relentless Pursuit flanked the enemy vessel. The hull of the ship rippled again before the flaming stream of gas erupted from the rear. The Sangheili cruiser fired.
The alien hull ceased rippling like water. It shattered and cracked like glass.
The scourge ship returned fire at close range, destroying another four cruisers. But the damage was done.
She exploded in a shower of light and debris.
Rtas roared in approval before regaining his composure. "The alien vessel is destroyed, and the Spartans are now onboard."
Thel smiled.
Rtas' elation quickly vanished as the console he was attending began to emit a familiar warning tone. "The remaining alien vessels are increasing speed. They intend to finish us now."
"Push the other capital ships forward, lay down a barrage for the human vessels."
"Yes sir."

Thel had managed pull in fourteen other capital ships from their duties around the sector. Each one had three-times the firepower of a cruiser, and could last a great deal longer but they were also less maneuverable.
Each of them fired. Their weapons directed on a single target in a combined effort. But there was no one to target the weak spots of each ship.
"Send in the humans. Tell them to concentrate their fire in attack groups of no less than five vessels," Thel ordered. "Mark the targets for them."
Rtas summoned the human ships into the fight.
Each ship dropped into a small task force of five ships before engaging the Scourge fleet. Thousands of Archer pods opened up with their dangerous cargo before each ship engaged with their primary weapon.
Over fifty MAC rounds streaked towards their targets.
They hit. The hulls of several enemy ships rippled and then gave way to the sub-luminous slugs. The Covenant capital ships continued their firestorm, adding to the barrage.
Five Scourge ships exploded. But the remaining six carried on, firing as they came.
The doors to the command deck suddenly slid apart and four of the Spartans came running in, followed by the human doctor.
The atmosphere of the bridge immediately lifted. The initial success against the scourge and the arrival of the Spartans was more than welcome.

"Are we winning?" John asked.
"For now," smiled Thel. "They have six remaining ships."
The holographic view of the battle chimed as dozens of MAC rounds erupted from the orbital stations.
They hit the advancing vessels with pin-point accuracy. Cortana was doing what she was best at--multitasking.
Four of the six ships exploded.
"Make that two ships remaining," Thel corrected.
John and the others watched as the two ships separated. One carried on towards them whilst the other sped directly for earth.
John activated his COM. "Ash, you'll be getting some uninvited guests."
The COM crackled. "Roger that."
The remaining Elite vessels fired everything they had at the Scourge ship hurtling towards them.
Several of the more modern human frigates managed to reload their MAC's and fired at the advancing ship.
It exploded.
"Arbiter, several smaller vessels were launched before the alien ship exploded," Rtas said.
"Track them and engage."
The smaller ships sped through a gauntlet of fire. All but one was destroyed.
The single craft, the size of a pelican slammed through the shields of the Shadow of Intent and into the ship, burrowing into the hull.
"Hull breach!" A young officer screamed. "Deck four."
"What's the fastest way there?" John asked.
Thel pointed over to one of the other bridge officers. "Ceris, escort the Spartans to the impact area. Take a security detachment with you."
Ceris responded with a pleasing grunt before speeding away with the Spartans.

Thel knew that if anyone could stop the boarding action, it was the Spartans.

Part 24

Deck four of the Shadow of Intent

Kelly covered the left hand side of the curved corridor, HHAG at the ready. Linda walked steadily behind her whilst John and Fred moved ahead. Ceris-the accompanying Elite-walked further behind them with another six of his kind.
Though equipped with weapons that would normally cause even a Spartan to seek cover, the Elites were rightfully cautious of this new and dangerous threat.

Kelly moved passed another open doorway that lead into a separate corridor, she swept left and right with her HHAG until she was confident the area was clear, and then she moved on.
Linda had slung her 99SRSD-Sniper Rifle on her back, and had opted for the more deadly and effective HHAG. The only reason she even carried the Sniper Rifle still was due to the unique Covenant design of the assault carrier. The Shadow of Intent was filled with loading bays, winding corridors and open plan chambers that made it ideal for long range engagements. But if she encountered the Scourge in this particular section the HHAG would be the perfect choice for a close range engagement.
Linda swung around to cover the rear, where Ceris was located. He gave a respectful nod before she turned her attention back to the front of the group.

Unlike the Spartans, who used the protruding organic shaped bulkheads for cover as they moved, Ceris instead walked along the centre of the corridor.
Linda knew the Elites were far from stupid and assumed it was an act of defiance, presumably in retaliation to the Scourge boarding. The Elites were extremely proud of their flagship and were determined to show that.
Linda looked on as Fred and John moved in perfect unison, each Spartan in the team covered their respective arc of fire, but John and Fred moved forward like a pair of armoured twins, each of them perfectly accommodating the others movements.

Then as they rounded the corner to the next section they both suddenly stopped.
John raised his hand as a gesture for everyone to stop and take cover.
"Enemy, left corridor," John reported.
"How many, Spartan?" Ceris asked, his mandibles clicking in anticipation.
John carefully poked the barrel of his HHAG around the corner of the corridor and used the optical link to assess their numbers. In the small section of the extended corridor was the familiar sight of the Scourge vessel, but with just its nose visible. Around it were a collection of differently equipped aliens, all with the same slow shuffle for a walk.
"Fifteen to twenty, but they all seem to be equipped differently to one another. Some have short barreled weapons, others have long barreled weapons. There are even a few with nothing at all."
"Do they have anything resembling our Hunters?" probed the Arbiter on the COM.
John glanced at the display again to double-check. "No."
"Then allow me to send you some of my own."
"I thought they sided with the Brutes?" John said.
"Some of them did, but not all. They fight for different reasons."

Fred quietly moved over towards John. "I saw the footage of your fight with these things. We'll have to be fast or use a distraction, before they know what's happening."
John thought for a moment. The aliens that he fought with on the Forerunner shield world were slow to learn and slow to react and, more importantly, he didn't have any other Spartans to think about.
Fred shook him from his thoughts. "The Hunters are here."
John turned around to see a pair of Hunters walking along the narrow corridor. Their shield arms were angled in an odd position so they could fit, sided by side, in the corridor.
"Ceris," John started, "Ask the Hunters to use their shields as their primary weapon."
Ceris nodded and began talking to the pair of walking tanks.
"Kelly, do you feel like a warm up?"
Kelly raised her head. "Always," she replied.
"What do you have in mind?" Fred asked.
"Kelly, I'll send you in first, but you'll have to be damn fast. There's another corridor section at the end, head for that. Ceris, you send the Hunters in after she's clear. I need them to go wild in there and take out as many of them as possible, after that we'll move in and take down the rest. You ready Kelly?"
Kelly moved up level with John and Fred, followed by the pair of Hunters.
John found it odd to be knelt down at the corner of the twisting corridor, with his back to a Hunter, but if they were now allied with them, all the better.
"Stand by, Kelly."

John continued to watch his enemy as they wandered around in the large open corridor. They were making no attempt to seize the ship or kill the crew, why?
"Go!"
Kelly sprinted off in a lightning quick reflex of muscles. She rounded the corridor and saw all of the aliens in an almost relaxed posture. But they quickly changed when they noticed the Spartan dash past them.
They were far too slow and Kelly rounded the second doorway at the end. The remaining aliens readied their weapons and headed off to follow, but they were stopped by a deafening roar as the Hunter pair came stomping through sweeping their shields from left to right. Several of the aliens were almost cut in half as they were hit; others were knocked to the floor, only to be trampled on a second later.

Six of the aliens raised their weapons to fire at the Hunters as they barreled through the crowd. Then they all dropped to the floor, all of them with gaping holes in their armour.
John and the rest of Blue Team moved past the Hunter pair, HHAG's smoking.
Upon seeing John, despite his armour covering his face, the aliens let out a screech.
They were quickly silenced as each of the Spartans emptied several magazines into the screaming figures.
They all died very quickly.

John walked through the pile of broken bodies, giving each one a well aimed shot to the head for good measure. "Arbiter, the threat has been neutralised," John sounded.
"I am glad to hear that, Spartan. Make your way back to the command deck. We will be heading for the other ship as soon as our shields are operational."

John wanted to get down to the surface as soon as possible. Ash and the others would be on the receiving end of a much larger force. "We need to get down there, now."
"There is no way to ascertain the status of their ship to ship weapons, Spartan. It could be the end of us all," replied the Arbiter.
John could understand the Arbiter's position. He had one of the largest Covenant ships at his disposal, and despite being fearless in nature he was far from stupid. Loosing a powerful asset in an attempt to destroy the Scourge ship would be a foolish act.
"What about the rest of the fleet?" John asked.
"Battered and bruised, Spartan. Many of them are experiencing power fluctuations due to the Scourge beam weapons. It will be some time before we can reorganise the fleet again. I can, however, provide you with a number of Spirit drop ships, a company of Elites and a Scarab."
John smiled. "I'll take it."
"Very well, Ceris will take you to the main hangar bay. I'll drop the scarab once we are in position."

John followed Ceris along the purple-blue corridor to the main hangar bay. The scarab would be a welcomed gift. But then his attention changed to Ash, Olivia and Mark. He needed to know how the fight was going.
"Ash, status report!" John barked on the COM.
Static washed the channel for several seconds until the panting breath of Ash broke through.
"Heavy casualties, strong enemy presence, Scourge ship intact but holding off at three kilometres," a long pause betrayed Ash's usual aura of confidence, things were obviously bad down there, "assistance required."
John wondered why the Forerunners had failed to act and why the Scourge vessel hadn't simply blasted the UNSC forces to pieces.
Maybe the Scourge want the Forerunner technology for themselves, he thought.
"Help is on the way, Ash."
There was no reply, but John didn't wait for one. He simply followed Ceris to the waiting line of Covenant drop ships.
The drop would be hard and fast, the fight would be difficult and the enemy would number in the hundreds.
Good odds for a Spartan, he thought.

Part 25

Ash ducked as another bolt of green iridescent energy shot above his head. His SPI armour fizzled and sparked as the photo-reactive panels attempted to mimic the alien firepower.
He quickly redirected his power reserves from the adaptive plating to the suit's inadequate protective layer. He hoped that if he was hit by a glancing shot that his armour might be able to absorb the energy, but he had to admit, after watching John's exploits with the aliens, that any chance of surviving would be slim at best.
He ducked and rolled to the side as another volley of shots rained upon the small boulder that he had been using for cover only a split second before, the rock bubbled and boiled under the intense energy.

Ash looked to the side as rolled back into cover. To his relief Mark was back on his feet, firing at the Scourge forces that were slowly starting to surround them. The initial rush by the Scourge had been devastating for the two companies of marines that were helping them defend the cave entrance. All of the Scorpion tanks had been destroyed in just a few minutes. Only one of the armoured beasts had managed to get off a second volley before being reduced to a pile of molten slag and Mark had been hit by flying shrapnel in the resulting explosion.
Only a handful of warthogs remained, all with Gauss cannons and possibly a total of three platoons of marines. The rest were either dead or dying.
"Two more, hill on the left!" Olivia screamed.
Ash looked over towards a small knoll on the left flank. Stood in plain sight were two of the odd looking aliens.
Unlike their more slender counterparts, these Scourge were bulky in appearance with several appendages or arms that held a variety of weapons.
Mark let off another magazine at the creature on the right before reloading and firing again. The creature appeared to squirm, more in discomfort than pain, before dropping to the floor, dead.
The other creature raised its variety of weapons and fired them at the defending force. Cluster-bombs of bright light ricocheted around one squad of marines, before exploding in a dark wash of silence.
The remaining weapons struck out in lances of fire and lighting, destroying another warthog and killing a pair of marines that were reloading their SGM-15's.
The nearby bandolier of rockets exploded and another handful of marines fell to the floor screaming.

Ash levelled his HHAG at the lumbering alien and fired.
The creature was over two-hundred metres away and at this range the HHAG was much less accurate.
The alien creature, as though sensing a more dangerous threat, began to charge down the small hill towards Ash.
Mark fired another trio of sniper rounds, which struck the creature in the face, but it carried on its relentless charge.
Ash quickly reloaded his HHAG and carefully aimed at the alien. He waited until it was only thirty yards away before firing. The linear induction motor of the rifle emitted a low hum before a cloud of hyper-sonic rounds impacted on the surface of the aliens armour.
The Scourge hulk slowed, stopped and then collapsed to the floor in a bloody mess.
"We're getting murdered out here," Olivia remarked on the COM.
Ash had to agree, but there was little else they could do until John arrived.

Spirit Drop ship: Vengeful Duty

John looked on as Ceris descended through the wispy white clouds above Europe. The holographic display of the Covenant drop ship projected their surroundings in amazing clarity and detail.
Around him the rest of Blue Team sat in quiet awkwardness as the unusual seating area was ill equipped for a Spartan.
"I see their seats haven't changed," Kelly whispered over the COM.
Fred shifted in the angled seat; the frame creaked under his armour. "Or improved," he laughed.

John looked at his team. He was pleased that he could have these moments with them again. His previous, isolated, exploits on the Halo constructs had been a stark reminder that Spartans were now a rarity. Or so he thought.
Dr. Halsey's return from the Micro-Dyson sphere within the remains of Onyx had given him a new found sense of family.
The newer Spartan III soldiers had added to the small numbers of remaining Spartans, something which gave him a great deal of hope. But what he was more surprised by was the involvement of Colonel Ackerson in the project, and his desire to put a Spartan II in charge of the whole thing, in this case Kurt.
John had to admit, that it was the last thing he expected from a person deeply opposed Dr. Halsey's work.

John thought back to the brief run-down of events that Fred had gave him back in Stuttgart several days ago.
The other Spartans had problems of their own, and like their Halsey produced counterparts, they had also dwindled in numbers.
The remaining, active, members were not a concern. John knew Ash and his team could handle anything that was thrown at them, but the others were beyond his control.
Tom and Lucy had been taken to a remote testing facility in Fiji, where they were trying to unlock the remaining stasis pods found on Onyx, but according to a brief examination by Cortana, they were no closer to achieving anything.
He activated the Spartan team roster and then selected a wider and more informative sub-menu of the various Spartan teams that had been deployed over the years. There were so many MIA's.
John scrolled to a separate list that he had compiled himself; one that he used to remind himself of those that had made the ultimate sacrifice. At the top of the list sat a familiar and missed name: Samuel-034.
John had lost so many Spartans, so many friends, that he sometimes felt as though his own luck or his 'destiny', as the Forerunner put it, was an unfair advantage over the remaining members of his team. He was now more determined than ever that no more Spartans would die, that no more friends would be lost.

The Covenant drop ship suddenly shuddered and vibrated. John shook himself from his thoughts and looked over towards Ceris. "What have we got?"
The young Elite tapped away at several different coloured rune-covered panels and then turned around in his chair, his mandibles clicking. "The Scourge are attacking on almost every front, Spartan but the cruiser is sitting off at a short distance. I am detecting no power surges from the vessel. It would appear that only the troops are doing the fighting,"
"Take us in low. Use the gap to the south. I wouldn't keep these drop ships here for long, they'll only become targets," John ordered.
"Agreed, Spartan," Ceris replied. He turned his attention back to the detailed display and then ordered the other drop ships to head for the small gap in the Scourge line.
John felt his insides move into his stomach as the tuning fork shaped craft dive-bombed towards the battle raging below. At the last second the craft pulled up, and they followed the lines of trees and hills until they were almost at the drop zone.
John re-checked his HHAG, as did the other Spartans. The Elites had opted for the more effective carbine rifle instead of the now useless plasma rifle, but John noticed Ceris still had an energy sword in his possession.
John looked at the sweeping terrain, judging the descent. "Drop in ten seconds!"
All of the Spartans rose from their orthopedic racks as one, and then moved towards the edge of the deployment ramp.
The remaining elites moved forward as well followed by Ceris who quickly relegated one of his warriors to piloting duties.
John smiled. The sign of a committed and determined former enemy, ready to lay down their lives for the survival of humanity, made him feel more at ease with his survivor's guilt.
The shell of the drop ship opened up, revealing green plains of sweeping grass. To the right of the craft was the southern edge of the cliff face, which ran along the landscape and into the horizon like a big cragged scar. To the left was the shape of a sweeping hillside, pot marked with small stone circles that were formerly used by sheep during the winter. Accompanying these were a few isolated groups of trees, most of them covered in leaves of bright green and red berries. A few at the far end, however, had been reduced to burning ash from the nearby firefight.
John looked for the human battle line.
Three hundred metres from the drop ship, and centred around the cave entrance were the defending troops. Only a few platoons of marines remained, along with several warthogs.

As John looked on at the raging battle the sight of tracer fire and energy weapons filled the air, explosions sent both aliens and humans cart-wheeling through the air.
John had seen enough. He activated his NAV marker and placed it on Ash's position, which was in the dead ground of the hill, and leapt off the floating Covenant drop ship. The other Spartans quickly followed along with the accompanying Elites.
They raced along the grassy plain and into the hell storm that surrounded them.

Cave Entrance

Ash reloaded his HHAG with the last magazine and then rushed over towards Mark, zigzagging to avoid the incoming fire. Mark was still using his sniper rifle, and that meant he would still have plentiful supply of HHAG magazines.
Ash had estimated that the remaining Scourge troops numbered at around 250, but not all of them were attacking.
Upon their arrival they had simply parked the cruiser off to the north without using any of the ship-board weapons. If they had the battle would have been one-sided and over within seconds. Instead the Scourge had opted for a ground assault with around 500 soldiers, something which Ash was thankful for.
Most of the more athletic looking Scourge had formed a loose line around the defenders, before advancing down the hillside and onto the flat plain. The majority of the Scourge assaults had come in these thin waves before a more organised and heavily armed advance began.

Ash checked his NAV screen for the location of the other Spartans. He had briefly seen the drop ships swan-dive towards the south where they disappeared behind another hillside.
The small display screen showed John and the other Spartans moving quickly along the ridge of the hill along with ten or so Elite squads. Ash quickly glanced behind to confirm the data, and saw the hurried silhouettes of the relief force.
"Friendlies inbound," John announced over the COM.
Mark looked at Ash and gave a two fingered gesture on his faceplate--the Spartan smile.
"Glad to hear it," welcomed Ash with a smile. "Watch the area beyond the crest of the hill, in the dead ground. It's filled with ugly's and what I think is some kind of commander."
"Acknowledged," came the reply.
Ash turned his attention back to his team and chinned the standard voice emitter in his helmet. "I'm almost out."
Without disturbing his aim or concentration, Mark indicated a tactical pouch on the rear of his armour. Then he squeezed off another shot. It hit a Scourge soldier in the eye. Then he fired again, taking out the other eye. The alien dropped to the floor, twitching like a dying fly before giving in to the Grim Reaper.
Ash located the pouch and grabbed four magazines of the dart filled ammunition. He was impressed that the weapons had been so effective against the Scourge, even the bigger ones with the weapon pods could be taken out.
Ash fired off another few rounds at several of the approaching aliens. Two of them dropped to the floor, the third, only injured in the legs, collapsed but began to crawl towards Ash.
He was immediately tempted to take a run up and use the aliens' head for a penalty kick, but another few bolts of iridescent energy quickly changed his mind.
Ash set his weapon to single shot and then peeked out from behind the smouldering tank hulk that both he and Mark were using for cover.
He fired two shots at the alien, hitting it square in the face. It briefly twitched and then collapsed completely.

Around them were several, seemingly, isolated pockets of Scourge troops. The majority of them were beyond his line of sight on the far side of the hill, the area that John and the other Spartans were heading straight for.

Spartan II - Blue Team

John rushed towards the crest of the hill and then suddenly skidded to a halt on one knee. "Everyone, grenades," he ordered.
The rest of the Spartan II's and the Elites pulled out handfuls of grenades and tossed them over the edge of the hill, followed by another handful and another. The echo of exploding grenades rolled up the hill like a racing drumbeat of deadly music.
John peered over the hill.
Down in the gulley of the next hill were around a hundred Scourge soldiers, but instead of their usual organised silence they were in complete disarray. Dozens lay dead or concussed by the grenades, but that was all that John needed.
"Let's finish this," boomed John rising up to his feet.
The Elites roared and then swept over the hill with the Spartans, weapons firing.
The Scourge soldiers were slow to react to the charge. John gave them no time to regret their poor response.
He rushed headlong into a crowd of the dark suited aliens firing off an entire magazine into the aliens. Six of them dropped like a toppled stone wall.
Another two moved to stop him, but they were too slow for his Spartan reflexes.
He kicked out at one of them, almost wrenching its head from its shoulders.
The other tried to grapple the HHAG form his grasp.
John snapped the weapon down from the aliens' grasp and then brought it back up into its armoured face.
The alien was launched from its feet and into the air, landing on another Scourge soldier.
Both of them remained still.

John carried on through the crowd of aliens, punching and kicking wildly.
Around him the rest of the Elites and Spartans were wreaking havoc with the black suited soldiers in hand to hand combat. Piles of Scourge dead lay all around them, broken like toys left in the hands of a gorilla.
Kelly was making the most of her exceptional speed as she broke limbs and armour with deft sweeps of her hands and feet.
Fred was smashing his way through like a steamroller, while Linda was now using her sniper rifle like a baseball bat.
It was carnage but, to a Spartan, damn good fun.

John clothes-lined another alien into oblivion and then stamped on its chest to make sure.
A group of three more approached him, arms raised; ready to fire their energy weapons.
He rushed them, rolled and then slammed into their legs.
The aliens toppled over like bowling pins.
John rose up and kicked the nearest alien in the head. At the same time he clicked his magazine release catch and the empty box dropped to the floor. He slapped in a fresh magazine and shot the other two dead.
By now Ceris had upholstered his sword and much to John's surprise it was able to puncture the dense and adaptive armour as he laid waste to a small crowd of the aliens, decapitating most of them with razor-like precision.

Suddenly a bright beam sliced through a group of elites, vaporising them instantly.
John looked to where the energy beam had come from.
Stood on top of a small cluster of rocks was a Scourge solider in blood red armour. It was adorned with strange inscriptions and ornate patterns on plates of scale-like power armour. In its left hand was smoking flat tube that was glowing at one end.
Its right arm was larger than the insect-like soldiers and was covered in a plethora of sharp jagged barbs with a clawed hand at the end.
Its head was similar in appearance to the helmets worn by ancient knights, with beveled edges and sweeping curves. All of which lead to a large pair of green glowing eyes.

By now Ceris had seen enough and in an act of revenge he charged the creature with his energy sword. But this alien was much faster and stronger that the regular field of Scourge soldiers.
The alien fired its weapons a second time, but Ceris dodged with a roll. He reached the creature and swung his sword; glancing the shoulder of the alien with its blade.
It reeled and then countered with a clawed hand, catching Ceris in the stomach. He fell back, blood streaming from his wound.
The alien rose up ready to deliver the killer blow.
John acted.
He picked up the body of a nearby Scourge soldier and hurled it at the ornately armoured alien.
The creature tried to move out of the way, but John could flip scorpion tanks with his bare hands. The dead alien slammed into the creature like an artillery shell, throwing it off balance.
The creature tried to respond, but John was already running towards it like a charging elephant.
He jumped and slammed into the chest of the alien with both of his armoured feet. The alien reeled backwards and toppled off the cluster of rocks.
John followed up the attack and dived on top of the alien and grabbed its arms in his vice-like grip.
They grappled with each other, trying to out do the others movements. John grew impatient and delivered two head-buts to the aliens' face.
It was stunned.
John took the initiative and straddled the creature, using his legs to restrain his opponent's arms.
It panicked in anticipation.
John pounded the aliens' face with his immense fists, pile driving piston-like punches into the Scourge monster. His arms became a blur as he hammered the thing into next week.
Seeing the creature was beyond help he picked up its lifeless body and threw it into the air, pulled out his HHAG and filled the alien with super-high velocity rounds.
The creature danced in the air with the impacts before landing with a heavy lifeless thud.
It was over.

John rushed towards Ceris, but he was already too late. He was dead.
He turned towards the Scourge cruiser, waiting for the coming fire. But it never came.
More aliens appeared below the ship and began their slow advance towards the Spartans.
The COM crackled into life. "I have a gift for you Spartan," sounded the Arbiter, "but I would advise the use of cover."
John and the others didn't wait to ask and crouched behind the pile of rocks.
Linda activated a bubble shield.

Above them the familiar shape of a Scarab appeared but it made no attempt to slow its descent, Instead it plummeted earthwards heading straight for the Scourge cruiser.
In vain the cruiser tried to avoid the impact, but it was too slow. The Scarab smashed into the enemy vessel, cleaving it in two. A huge fireball enveloped both, and the marching troops were engulfed in the firestorm.
The cloud and dust settled.
No Scourge were left alive.
The bubble shield depleted its charge with a pop. The Spartans and remaining Elite warriors stood up and surveyed the landscape.
The countryside was on fire.
"You are indeed deserving of your former title Spartan," an Elite voiced. "You are indeed a Demon, the destroyer of our enemies."
The Elite smiled with its four hinged jaw and then let out a roar. The other Elites did the same, a sign of defiance to the enemy and of respect for John.
He nodded.

The rest of them walked over to the Spartan III's. They could only see Ash and Mark at first and then Olivia appeared behind them.
Several squads of marines still remained. They were all helped onto a Pelican before it sped towards the nearest MEDCEN.
"Spartans, head check," John ordered.
All of his status lights for Blue Team winked in acknowledgement. That was good, he thought to himself.
"Let's see what these Forerunners are up to, Spartans."
Blue team made their way towards the entrance of the cave, but a brief transmission from Cortana on Cairo station immediately changed the atmosphere.

"Chief, another Scourge ship has just appeared out of MAC range, but this one is ten-times the size of the Shadow of Intent. Get your ass up here, now!"

Part 26

Cairo Station, Earth orbit

Hood looked on as his crew prepped the station for the coming fight. The station now had a full complement of MAC rounds in the hold and the Covenant shields were operating at a reassuring 99.89%.
The fleet was almost ready after the initial battle with the Scourge cruisers and they had even managed to complete the refit of another two battle cruisers with shielding technology, but, despite all of this, Hood remained worried and equally uncertain of what the next few hours might bring.
The Scourge super ship had simply sat beyond the range of the MAC stations since it had arrived, and that was over twelve hours ago. Several probes had been launched towards the immense vessel by both the Elites and an orbiting UNSC science and survey ship, but all had returned intact, and with their valuable scans. The scourge vessel had almost ignored them.

Hood activated his personal display. A magnified image of the Scourge behemoth flashed upon the screen.
The ship was vast in sizeover twenty-two kilometres in length, and had the unusual appearance of a gigantic beetle with a large armoured carapace and a sweeping prow similar to the Covenant ships. It had a series of wing-like structures, all equipped with a multitude of weapons that could no doubt destroy every ship in the fleet with a single shot, but despite the overwhelming firepower at its disposal, it remained beyond the reach of the defending ships.
"Cortana, anything new?" he asked hesitantly.
Cortana appeared on a holo-plinth on the other side of the small and dimly lit operations cell. Her hologram immediately gave the room a ghostly glow.
"Nothing yet sir," she answered. "The Osiris, the Valiant and the Elite cruiser Dark Foreboding have all completed their close range runs with no reaction from the enemy ship. It appears we are both busy studying the otherlooking for an advantage to conclude this fight."
Hood frowned. "That ship must have more firepower than the entire fleet put together,"
"Most likely, but we managed to destroy twelve of their ships and there's the Forerunner presence to consider. They want us to make the next move."
Hood's frown deepened into criss-cross of scar-like lines at the mention of the Forerunners. He gritted his teeth and then tightened his grip on the edge of the desk. "Why haven't the Forerunners intervened? All they've done, so far, is sit in that damned cave whilst Humans and Elites lay down their lives!"
"I know," Cortana sympathised. "But I'm sure that they have something in mind."

Hood turned around to one of the other display screens. It was listed with all of the recent casualties.
There were too many to count.
He sighed. Rubbed his eyes and then focussed on the current situation.
"How's the Chief doing?"
Cortana shot him a quick smile at the mention of John. "He and other Spartans have almost finished their task. All of the defending Marines have been briefed on the use of the HHAG rifles and the remaining ammunition boxes have been issued to the fire support teams on the Ontario MAC Station."
"Good," Hood said. "Have them report back to my office when they're finished, Cortana."
"Yes, sir," she beamed.

Hood walked out of the operations cell and along the corridor to his personal office. Inside was a comfortable black leather chair behind a solid oak table.
It was the same chair that he had pondered his next move as the Covenant swept through a tentative and fragile human empire. And it was the same chair where he had issued orders for the men and women of the UNSC to fight to the last, to die with little hope in sight.
After years of death and destruction being thrown in his direction, Hood was now in the same situation as those he had ordered into battle. But he was glad, in a way, that he would now face the same danger as those who had died. The only problem was that this battle would ultimately decide the fate of both Humanity and the Elites.

Hood sat in his chair, opened a drawer and pulled out a bottle of 78-year old Talisker Scotch Whiskey.
He poured himself a small measure of the pale brown liquid and leaned back in his chair. He creaked into the soft leather, took a sip of the whiskey and stared up at the office ceiling.
He closed his eyes and thought of anything that could help the fleet.

Hood knew that the only weapons that could damage the scourge ships and soldiers were ballistic based weapons, or anything that utilised kinetic energy. The majority of the Covenant weapons were energy based which meant they had to use enormous amounts of firepower to even match the effectiveness of a single human weapon.
He took another sip of the warm liquid.
The scourge soldiers were also as troublesome as their ships. They moved in a slow, deliberate mannerpreferring to study and learn about their enemy before attacking. This presented a small window of opportunity for an initial attack, but once the Scourge had decided on how to deal with their enemy things would become very difficult, very quickly.
There was a knock at the door.
Hood put away his drink and sat upright in his chair, straightening his uniform.
"Enter."
The door slid open, revealing the familiar sight of the Spartans.
Hood stood up. "Chief, please come in. I'm afraid there's not much room in here but make yourselves as comfortable as possible."
John and the others stepped forward into the office. The door closed behind them.
"The marine training and deployment around the station went without a hitch, sir. But it'll only really prove useful if the Scourge decide to board us."
Hood nodded in agreement and then sat back down in his chair. He stared off into the opposing wall and then looked up at the towering Spartans. Despite the offer of comfort they all remained standing. "What do you all make of our new enemy?" he asked.
"Sir?" John queried.
"Speak freely, Spartans. What are your thoughts on the Scourge?"
The Spartans relaxed slightly.
"They're tough but not invincible," John replied.
"And for once our weapons are more effective than the Covenant," Fred continued.
Hood looked at the younger, newer Spartan III's. "What about you?" he said looking at Ash.
"The HHAG's have given us a much needed advantage in any close quarter battle situation, but we're lacking on the protective front," stated Ash confidently.
"Unfortunately our ships are in the same predicament," Hood agreed. "Even with the Covenant shielding in place we can only really fight them using hit and run tactics. Fighting them face to face is a dangerous game."

There was a faint knock at the door.
Before Hood could say anything, the door opened and in rushed a withdrawn looking Catherine Halsey with an armful of data pads and a coffee cup.
"Please, come in," grumbled Hood.
Catherine glanced at everyone in the room over the rim of her glasses. "Ah, just the people I need to see." She quickly dumped the pads on the desk and took a sip of the now cold coffee. She pulled a disgusted face but then continued drinking, ignoring the lack of heat in favour of a burst of caffeine.
Hood grabbed the discarded data pads and set them all in a neat pile. "What can I do for you, doctor?"
"I've been thinking," she started.
Hood raised an eyebrow.
"The Spartans are still at a disadvantage because of the immense energy produced by the Scourge weaponry. But I think I have found a way to lessen the vulnerability of their power armour."
John and the others stepped forward. They were interested.
"Go on," prompted Hood.
"The Arbiter was generous enough to provide me with samples of the hunter shield and Brute armour, and one of their engineers. We were able to fuse Covenant armour directly onto a suit of Mjolnir armour that we had down in the lab." Catherine's tone began to change as did her body language. She began to display a more positive attitude.
Hood looked over at the Spartans and then back at the doctor. "Are you suggesting that we can give them new armour?"
"Yes," Catherine smiled.
"Do we have time? It'll take weeks to calibrate each suit to the wearer will it not?" Hood gasped.
Catherine pushed her glasses up. "I already had all of their specifications on file. The new suits are ready, sir. I just need the Spartans to give them a test run."
Hood stood up. "Well, Chief. Are you up for a new toy?"
"If it'll give us an edge, yes sir," John replied.

All of the Spartans followed Dr. Halsey out of the small office before heading for the monorail-mounted transit car.
After a short ride they reached a room filled with computers and technical equipment. The room itself was roughly twenty metres in diameter with a tall ceiling and a single large viewing area one floor up. Stood in the glass fronted viewing area was the familiar sight of General Moorethe R&D officer. Stood next to him were Admiral Cole and a high ranking female officer with grey hair that John was not familiar with.
Dr. Halsey cast them a quick glance as she made her way to the far side of the room. Stood there were seven large containers.
"Cortana, open the HAZMAT containers," ordered Catherine.
Cortana appeared next to the line of containers. "Yes ma'am."
One by one each of the containers was lifted up to reveal a highly modified version of the 6th variant of the power armour. It was covered in additional plates of armour and a thin exoskeletal frame of some sort.
All of the Spartans walked forward.
"HAZMAT?" John queried.
Catherine smiled. "Stops people from touching my work."

John walked up to one of the suits, inspecting its armour. There were unusual plates of armour added to the standard issue of power armour which made it look bigger, in fact, almost Brute sized.
Catherine flipped open her laptop and keyed in a few commands. There was a thin whistle of air before all of the suits opened remotely. "The suits have been drastically redesigned," she started. "They are all capable of operating in a complete vacuum for an extended period of time and the onboard oxygen scrubbers are 77% more efficient. The armour is a composite of Brute and Hunter armour, all fitted as an additional layer to the standard Mjolnir frame."
Ash looked a little nervous, almost reluctant to accept the new armour in favour of his SPI variant. "What about the Photo Reactive technology?"
"Don't worry, Ash. This armour has a more effective camouflage system, with an updated software package. They also have increased speed, manoeuvrability, strength, reaction times and extreme combat durability."

John turned around to look at Dr. Halsey. She had a large grin spread across her face. "How did you manage this in such a short space of time?" he asked.
"Actually this has always been a working project. Ever since your first encounter with the Hunters on Côte d'Azur I have been thinking of a more effective armour system. The Hunter shield armour gave me that idea, but what I lacked was a sample. Now I have it, and the Covenant Engineers are able to work at an alarming rate."
"Can it take a direct hit from one of their weapons?" Fred probed.
Catherine placed her hand on one of the armoured plates. "This material is an extremely dense composite that can actually regenerate over time. It utilises an organic compound to achieve that. It should be able to take several direct hits. The exoskeletal frame acts as a Faraday cage to dissipate the energy from your armour plating. That, combined with the new shield technology and other enhancements should make you a far more dangerous opponent"
"An organic compound" Kelly muttered. "You mean those worm things?"
"Yes, but this armour uses a bio-neural circuit layer that not only increases reaction time but acts as a surrogate system for the armour plating as well."
John gave the armour a light tap with his knuckle, as if testing it in his mind. "Let's get these suits on, Spartans."

Everyone quickly donned their new armour.
John pulled himself into his suit and the neural link connected immediately. At first he was a little uncomfortable, but then his suit quickly moulded to the contour of his body and skeletal frame.
He slowly moved his arm, testing the reaction times of the suit on a small scale. The suit almost predicted the movement.
All of them started jumping around the large room, punching bulkheads and kicking out at the remaining boxes that were piled in the far corner.
Kelly was testing her speed with a few laps of a centrally mounted technical area, one that was used for testing the strength and recharge rate of the Mjolnir shields. To John and the others, she was just a blur.

Suddenly, a wall mounted alarm started to sound and several revolving red lights covered the room in a blood-red glow.
John looked up at the observation booth, only to see it empty. "Obviously they're not sticking around," he whispered to himself.
Hood rushed to a nearby intercom and keyed in the command cell access code. ". "Status report lieutenant."
John didn't need to use his imagination or the suits monitoring system to tell what the problem was. The look on Hood's face said it all. The Scourge ship was approaching.

John and his team made their way to several pre-arranged areas where they would help defend the station.
It was hoped that the Scourge would attempt a boarding like before on the Shadow of Intent, but in truth there was no way to be sure.
Hood and Dr. Halsey, however, rushed along the corridor to the command cell. There they would co-ordinate the pattern of fire from the remaining orbital MAC platforms as well as the fleet. As a last resort they would use nuclear mines and thousands of interceptor craft and Pelicans. After that they would be using sticks and stones.

Hood rushed into the command cell and immediately activated the holographic tactical console. The small table illuminated and the ghostly image of the Scourge ship appeared, floating, just above the flat surface.
As usual there was little detail that he could make out, even with the additional scans that had been run. The Scourge, apparently, had a need to keep their enemies in the dark whilst they would asses the situation before attacking.
Hood had a feeling that the first attack with twelve of their ships had been either an error on their part or a simple act of overconfidence, but he doubted the Scourge, after all of this time, were that stupid.
"Cortana, what are we looking at?"
The question was more rhetorical than anything, but Cortana appeared behind the tactical console.
"The Scourge ship is moving on a direct course for Earth and us. They'll be within weapons range in just under two minutes."

Hood stared at the hologram of the ship. Then he had an idea. "Cortana, divide the fleet equally into two separate task forces. Give the Arbiter command of one and leave the other to me."
"Yes sir."
Cortana's skin flashed briefly as she disseminated the order to the fleet. On the holographic display she panned the image to give a plan view of the entire system.
Hood looked on as the two fleet dividedeach force with an equal compliment of Elite and Human vessels. In the very middle was the stationwith its MAC at the ready.
"Push the fleets further apart, Cortana."
"But sirthat will leave the station vulnerable and unprotected."
Hood repeated himself and Cortana reluctantly complied.
On the display both of the fleets pushed away from each other, leaving the station wide open for an attack.
Dr. Halsey displayed a concerned look as Hood widened the gap, but she remained silent, hoping that he knew what he was doing.
Everyone in the command cell watched the image as the holographic ship sped through the system.
Then the Scourge ship slowed to a halt.
Dr. Halsey peered at the hologram. "What are they doing?" then she looked at Hood. "More importantly, though, how did you know they would stop?"
"I didn't, Doctor," he replied. "It was just a feeling. Our previous encounter was a simple face-off with them. And at all times they controlled the environment; they held all the cards and ran the game according to their rules. All I did was change the rules a little."
"They need to re-evaluate the situation," Catherine concluded, "before they can adapt and attack according to what they know."
"We have to take the initiative before they're ready. We need to be the one's attacking, not them. Cortana, order the fleet to attack. Get them to do as much damage as possible."
Cortana acknowledged the order and reassured the Arbiter of the plan on the COM. Elites were not one's for complaining and he was no different. The Shadow of Intent sped forwards along with the rest of the fleet, weapons at the ready.

Hood panned the image manually to show both of the fleets, Cairo station and the Scourge ship. "Cortana, how long till intercept?"
"Twenty eight seconds, sir,"
Hood rubbed the stubble on his chin as his mind tumbled through a range of scenarios. Then he decided on one. "How long will it take the station MAC rounds to reach the scourge ship?"
Cortana quickly realised what he was thinking. "Nine seconds. I can fire two volleys from all twenty-four planet side stations before the fleet reaches the enemy vessel."
"Do it," Hood grinned.
Cortana became a brief blur of lines and symbols as she rapidly calibrated the twenty-four nearest stations. A second later the station shook as the MAC released a slug the size of a Warthog at the Scourge ship.
Hood continued to watch as the display changed again to show the MAC rounds speeding through the vacuum of space. They all hit their targets, piercing holes in the mammoth-sized ship.
A second volley erupted from the stations, again, hitting the ship with pin-point accuracy. Small plumes of fire were ejected from the hull, throwing debris into space.
The fleet arrived and moved into their attack formations before peppering the Scourge colossus with MAC and plasma fire. They were damaging the enemy vessel, just not enough to kill it.

As Hood and Dr. Halsey watched the battle unfold, there was a rush of air in the command cell and the blond haired Forerunner, which John had previously talked to, appeared at the end of the room.
Cortana's eyes widened. "Sir, we have a visitor."
Hood turned around and then took a step back.
Several of the guarding marines aimed their weapons at the Forerunner, but Hood motioned them to lower their rifles. He gritted his teeth. "You must be a Forerunner."
"Yes. My name is Gethavron. I must apologise for a lack of action on our part, but we needed to prepare for this attack without letting the Scourge know our current condition."
"Really?" Hood responded.
"We have a ship on the way. It will arrive shortly. When it does you will need to order your vessels to withdraw. Otherwise they may be caught in the crossfire."
Hood looked once more at the holographic battle raging on the tactical console. "Very well," he agreed.
The Forerunner vanished without a sound.

The Shadow of Intent

"Prepare another plasma volley, Rtas!" Thel barked.
The ship hummed from deep within.
"Fire!"
The Shadow of Intent shuddered. Energy projectors and plasma torpedoes struck out at the Scourge ship, all fell harmlessly on the hull of the alien vessel.
Thel double check his personal console. No exhaust gas was being vented this time, but was most likely because of the sheer size of the enemy ship. They would need far more firepower to inflict a critical level of damage.
"The Human vessels are firing again, Arbiter," Rtas reported.

In all there were thirty-seven human ships capable of combat and all of them fired their Magnetic Accelerator Cannons at the same time. Thel watched them punch into the Scourge behemoth. Some hit thicker, tougher armour and were somehow stopped in their tracks. Other shots, however, penetrated the skin of the ship. But despite the success of the barrage the Scourge just sat there, taking it all.
Thel had to admit that his previous concerns with the twelve scourge cruisers had now been completely overshadowed by this monstrous ship.
"Arbiter, the enemy ship is powering weapons," Rtas warned.
Thel cursed under his breath. They needed more time and more firepower to stop them. "Order the fleet to fire one more volley, then drop us back to the planetary defences so the Human station will have a clear line of sight."
Rtas nodded and keyed in the commands.
The two fleets hammered the scourge vessel again and then turned and sped towards the defensive line of orbital stations.
The enemy ship simply ignored the weapons fire and continued to charge its weapons.

Thel knew that the Scourge now had some perverse fascination with his Spartan friend. Their next target would undoubtedly be the orbital command station named 'Cairo'.
He opened the ships' communications array and raised the station that the Spartans were on. "Lord Hood, this is the Arbiter. Our attack has proved unsuccessful. I recommend that you use your orbital stations to inflict further damage."
Hood's voice crackled over the hybrid link between human and Covenant technology. "Understood, Arbiter you did your best. Our guests may have an old friend arriving shortly." Hood was wary of using the word Forerunner over the COM channel. It may give the Scourge an idea of what they would be facing if they were listening. "Until then we'll be on our own."
Thel was pleased to hear the news. But trying to fight an enemy like the Scourge until a more effective vessel arrived would be a one-way fight. But then he had an idea.
"Fear not, my friend. I have something in mind." Thel cut the link and approached Rtas at his station.
His loyal friend gave him a crooked half-jawed smile.
"We need to protect the human station at all costs, Rtas. Order all Sangheili craft to create a protective cage around the orbital station. Tell the Humans to move off to a flank and continue firing."
Rtas nodded. He knew what Thel had in mind. At times of extreme desperation and when the only option was the survival of one particular ship, all other fleet ships would overlap their shields around a given target.
Rtas ordered the Sangheili ships to the station and sent his extended shield plan to the remainder of the fleet.

The larger capital ships moved into a defensive wall around the station and overlapped their shields. The only area left open was a small gap for the MAC weapon to fire.
The smaller cruisers and battleships also extended their shields, giving the Cairo station the same defensive properties as ten Covenant super-carriers.
The Scourge ship began to move and immediately opened fire on the congregation of Covenant ships. In the initial barrage three cruisers were destroyed and a capital ship was severely damaged.
The commander of the capital ship made the ultimate sacrifice and headed under his remaining power towards the Scourge super ship. The Scourge opened fire again, destroying the broken vessel before it could collide.
The Human stations opened fire as did the other ships. More direct hits were scored but the scourge carried on, firing as they approached.
Another four cruisers and two battleships fell to the storm of fire followed by two of the hulking capital ships.
The Human and Elite forces, again, returned fire.
The enemy continued their assault.
Bright green bolts of fire and scything beam weapons cut through the defensive wall.
Thel was sure they were doomed.
"Arbiter, another ship is emerging from Slipspace," Rtas announced.
Thel hoped the additional vessel was anything but Scourge. "Identify," he ordered.
Rtas smiled. "The ship characteristics match those used by the Forerunners, Arbiter."
"At last. Order the cruisers and battleships to join the Human ships. Keep the capital ships here, around the station."
Rtas keyed in the order.
The cruisers and battle ships moved away from the station and formed a small barrier in front of the Human vessels, which used their manoeuvring thrusters to pop up from behind the makeshift wall to fire on the Scourge ship.

By now the Scourge vessel had turned to meet its age old enemy in combat. Both were similar in size and were no doubt capable of destroying the other. Thel only hoped that the small amount of damage they had inflicted would give the Forerunner vessel the upper hand.
Both ships began to circle each other. The dark and deadly Scourge vessel was the first to fire. Thel surmised that the years of war between the two cultures had reduced the amount of time that the Scourge needed to asses their opponent.
The alien vessel cut out with its deadly beams, damaging a small section of the forerunner goliath.
The Forerunner ship was similar in appearance to the dreadnaught that had powered High Charity for centuries. But it was much larger with bulbous section of angled fins and section of pods that were all aligned towards the Scourge ship.
A large cradle like structure, at the centre of the ship, which looked as though it was designed for repair began to emit a bright light. Suddenly there inside the cradle was a smaller version of a working sun. The golden fireball, the size of a Covenant cruiser, shot from the Forerunner vessel and sped towards the other ship.
The Scourge vessel appeared helpless, but instead of being destroyed, the alien ship emitted a strange flail of energy which formed into a vast swirling maelstrom of darknessa black hole.
"It is like watching gods play with their toys," cried Thel.

The rest of the bridge crew looked on as the two ships sought victory. The Forerunner vessel repeatedly fired cruiser-sized suns at the scourge all of which were swallowed whole by the black hole. All, that is, except one.
A single sun evaded the defensive measure and smashed into the scourge super-ship. The hull, which was capable of deflecting or absorbing the combined might of the Covenant fleet, now shattered under the forces at work. The hull rippled and boiled as the glowing orb cut through the vessel like paper.
The Forerunner vessel fired again and again and again.
The scourge ship exploded in a shower of flame and debris.
"Enemy ship destroyed, Arbiter." Rtas' grin was short lived as he stared at the console. "There is an object moving towards the station at high speed."
"Destroy it!" Thel barked.
The fleet opened up on the small object, no bigger than a Longsword fighter, but it evaded their attempts to destroy it.

Cairo Station

"Is it a weapon or a ship?" Hood asked.
Cortana stared off into the distance. "I'm not reading any power spikes or any life signs, but the object could be shielded to conceal any energy readings."
"I'll bet my ridiculous military salary that object is some kind of boarding craft
Hood proved himself right as the object careered through the defensive shield-wall of Covenant capital ships. Their shield fluttered and shimmered.
The object slammed into the station and delivered its cargo.

John moved forward to the next section of the corridor. The remaining Spartans followed. They had all met at the previous intersecting corridor as they each headed down to the impact area.
John knew that the Scourge would react quicker than before. They were learning more and more by the minute and all of that would be put into practice in the next few minutes.
He heard screams and gunfire from the next corridor.
They rushed forward with their HHAG rifles at the ready.
What they saw changed their opinion of the Scourge forever.
In the next room, a large cargo bay, was the forward section of the boarding craft. But this one was bigger than the previous craft used on the Shadow of Intent. John looked on as several large figures swept through the defending marines.
The creatures were large - twice the size of a Hunter and they were tearing the marines apart, literally.
They were stood on two large legs with a body covered in armour and a pair of hulking, spike covered, arms. The head of the creatures were only partially covered. They had sweeping helmets with thin slits for eyes and an exposed mouth section that revealed a gaping maw of razor sharp teeth. Their skin almost looked reptilian in appearance.
John turned back towards his Spartans. "Big boys, in the next room. No ranged weapons but highly dangerous. Twice the size of a Hunter," he informed.
They all nodded in their modified armour.
"Let's see what these suits are capable of," offered Kelly.
They all agreed, and ran into the next room.

Kelly was the first to reach one of the aliens. She unloaded a full HHAG clip into the side of the alien. It stumbled. Found its footing again and then charged.
She dived out of the way as the monster slammed into the wall.
John jumped up and shot the alien in the face before pushing off with his feet from its chest. Fred followed up with a magazine in the leg.
The alien fell to the floor.
Ash levelled his HHAG at the exposed face and fired.
The creature stopped moving.
The remaining four creatures quickly realised what was happening and ceased their assault on the few surviving marines. They all charged straight for John.
He rolled to one side. Fired and then jumped back wards onto a pile of logistical containers and then jumped again.
The monsters reeled from the attack and struck out at the boxes, knocking them over like dominoes.
Olivia and Mark joined the fire fight and each used a full magazine to kill another creature before they had to dodge another charge.
Fred and Linda fired at the remaining monsters. One fell and then the other.
The last creature continued to hound John. He leapt from box to box kicking out at the large creature.
Fred jumped forward and fired a clip at the monster at point blank range. The creature reeled and then staggered forward to attack.
John leapt.
The creature struck out hitting John in the chest. He was thrown back wards against the wall, winded but alive.
The monster walked forward.
All the remaining Spartans fired their weapons at the Scourge hulk. It reeled again. Then John attacked.
He dived on the creature punched it in the jaw several times and then delivered a hammer blow to the top of its head.
The creature cried out and tried to grab John.
He shoved a grenade in its mouth, jumped onto its back and then kicked off; firing as he he did so.
The creature gave a muffled roar before its head exploded.
John and the others gave a collective sigh of relief.

Cairo Command Cell

John and the other Spartans stood in line as Lord Hood gave them each a commemorative medal and a friendly handshake. It was the least he could do.
"Well, Spartans the immediate threat is over. But from what I have seen we will need to prepare for the next time we meet."
The Spartans Nodded.
The Arbiter, now aboard to personally thank the Spartans, stepped forward and greeted each of them.
They all smiled.
Then John's vision tunnelled and darkened. His head spun and filled with stars.
He tried to clear his mind and regain his balance. But he fell.
Then silence came.

A deep roar echoed in his broken mind. He tried to protest, but he couldn't.
Then the roar settled into a voice-- A deep resounding voice that, somehow, seemed familiar.

"I have watched you from across the stars. You have become a true hero and saviour of all mankind. You were the key part in a puzzle, an enigma to which we were all a part of. But unfortunately that must come to an end..."

"...I must destroy you."

John recognised the voice.
"But you're dead. You can't be here," he protested.

The voice spoke again.

"The past no longer matters, Reclaimer. All that matters is the future. A future where every trace of your existence is but a distant whisper."

John regained his vision and slowly rose to his feet.
"Chief, what happened," asked a concerned Hood.
The other Spartans crowded round him and helped him up.
"What is it, John?" Kelly asked.
John shook his head. "Something spoke to me, something alien, something familiar and deadly. I thought it was the Gravemind at first, but then I recognised the voice. It was Keyes, sir"
"But he's dead, Chief."
"I know sir, but I think we may have more than one fight on our hands."
"The odds are even," Thel sounded.
They all agreed.
Then we need to prepare for whatever may come in the future.

The End...