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The Inferno: Canto the First
Date: 16 September 2006, 3:33 am
The Inferno: Canto the First
As Xavier, Spartan-13, sat in the rapidly descending dropship, he had a growing feeling of concern as the Pelican rapidly descended through the atmosphere of Loki III. He looked to his right at his team-mate, Roland, Spartan-7. Roland looked up, and drew two fingers across his faceplate. Xavier returned the gesture.
A wave of nausea rolled over Xavier as the Pelican hit an air pocked, dropped, and shook back and forth. The pilot called from the cockpit.
"That was nothing. Just a minor bump. We're approaching the landing pad now. Drop off in five."
The normally cramped cabin of the Pelican was cavernously empty. Other than the two Spartans sitting side by side, the cabin was empty. The only other things in the cabin were a bountiful supply of weapons and ammunition.
Xavier had selected a MA3C Assault Rifle, modified with scope, ammo counter, and silencer. He had also taken a M6D pistol, also modified with a silencer, as well as an M90 Shotgun for close quarters work.
Xavier and Roland were the two best hand-to-hand and stealth attack members in the Spartan outfit. They had trained exclusively on each-other, to the point where they each unbeatable by the other. Their assignment was to infiltrate the hive city of Tartarus on Loki III, find the command and control center the Covenant had established therein, and eliminate their highest ranking officers. The idea was to throw the lesser Covenant into disarray, giving the Marines on the planet a fighting chance.
The entire planet of Loki III was covered in massive sprawling cities of billions of people. As space ran out, and new buildings needed built, new cities had been rebuilt on top of the old ones. There were now anywhere between three to five layers to all the cities. However, Tartarus had been one of the oldest and most important cities. It now had nine existing layers.
The Pelican touched down softly onto the pad. The two Spartans quickly disembarked, running towards the outer gates. There was a sound of thunder, and Xavier turned to see a pair of fuel rod rounds splash into the side of the Pelican.
A pair of Banshees had already found the Pelican and were firing on it. The Pelican listed dangerously to port.
"November-5, respond," Xavier spoke coolly into his headset.
Another fuel rod round splashed against the port engine of November 5. The pilot's voice cracked in over the microphone. "Port engine is gone! I can't hold her up any longer. I'm going down!" the pilot screamed in terror as the port engine burst into flame, sending the already listing Pelican into a death spiral downwards. It crashed violently into the side of Tartarus Hive. There was no more response from the pilot.
Roland tapped Xavier on the shoulder. He cocked a thumb over his shoulder towards the entrance doors. Xavier nodded in response. They double-timed it over towards the large metal gates. The doors slid open, revealing a horror amongst horrors.
Three scores of bodies were strewn about the entrance hallway. The majority were Covenant, but at least a third wore khaki fatigues. There was plasma scoring on the walls, and large burns on the ground were plasma weapons had over-heated or melted down. The floor seemed to be made of a rolling tide of brass casings, however. Energy swords and combat knives lay at their master's feet.
"My God. What happened here?" Xavier asked as he looked at the charred bodies and pale faces. Beneath the brass and plasma, there was an ocean of blood and entrails. The smell of death and decay was overwhelming in the tight, confined room.
Roland and Xavier waded through the blood and bodies of the entrance hall. "I think I'm going to be sick," Roland commented. Xavier patted him on the back. "Be strong, brother. We'll get through this, I know it."
They made it to the massive, vaulted doors of the interior chamber. They were two stories high and made of solid titanium. There was plasma burning that showed where the Covenant had tried to cut through them. Xavier approached the consol that controlled the door operations. He brought up the city's entrance codes, and quickly typed 71131921, and the machinery behind the doors whirred to life.
Xavier waived Roland over to the door console. There was a small message inscribed above the controls. Written in blood.
"What is it?" Roland asked.
"A message." Xavier said, and then recited it. "Lasciate ogne speranza, voi ch'intrate." He paused. "What does that mean?"
"It's Latin," Roland said. "It says, 'Abandon all hope, ye who enter here."
And with that, the great doors opened.
Lysander's Battle Plan:
Dear Constant Reader:
This is a new series I'll be working on. It'll be the main project I'll have going for a little bit. I'll still post new single works pretty often, and continue less frequently on existing series.
If you've read the Divine Comedy of Dante Alighieri, you can already (and quite obviously) see the parallels between his work and mine. They may seem a bit on the overt side, but bear with me. (The inscription on the door, the 9 layers, etc.) However, even with said references, this is NOT a word-by-word Halo version of the Inferno. There will be references to the Inferno, some subtle, some as obvious as this opening.
Of course, though, even the greatest orator is mute without his audience. Judging on the review, I may or may not continue writing this. My work is for the people, not myself. If you don't like this, please, PLEASE, let me know that I should go back to something else. If you like them, please let me know so that I know my work isn't falling on deaf ears. I thrive on feedback.
Sincerely yours,
-Lysander
†DEUS EX MACHINA†
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