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The Story of Ryan Kast, Part Two
Posted By: Charlie Froese
Date: 26 July 2005, 8:57 pm
Read/Post Comments
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Here's a link to Part One of my story. Read it before you read this one. If you have read Part One, enjoy!
http://halosn.bungie.org/fanfic/?story=Charlie_Froe0629052054541.html
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The Story of Ryan Kast, Part Two
By Charlie Froese
"This has to be the most fun I've ever had," Caulfield whispered sarcastically. He and I were lying in a puddle covered in broken leaves and smelly dirt as small insects crawled all over us. We were only seven meters from the nearest group of Hunters. Maloney and Schwartz, our backup team, had set up shop in a tree 100 meters from our position.
The Hunters hadn't moved an inch in the past hour. The only thing that reassured me of their existence was their ragged, irregular breathing. I was beginning to think that this whole thing was pointless when every single spike on the Hunters' backs suddenly flared up. They all hunched down as their fuel rod cannons began to glow.
"What the hell?" I whispered. I gripped my assault rifle, aimed at the nearest Hunter, and then I heard a loud roar. A Pelican dropship appeared above the clearing and began raining bullets on the Hunters. The walking tanks fired their cannons at the new arrival. It was pointless, however, and the Hunters dropped one by one under the unrelenting gunfire.
Caulfield and I jumped up and helped bring the beasts down with our assault rifles. It was all over in a matter of minutes. The dropship slowly descended until it was only a few meters away from the ground. Five men jumped out of the cargo hold and made their way toward us. One of the men walked over and gave me a curt nod. He had gray hair, a chiseled face, and carried a modified M6D pistol in his hand. I was looking into the face of one of the greatest soldiers I've ever met.
"Major Trask," I said, saluting.
"At ease, private," he said. Then his hard features cracked into a smile. "It's damn good to see you, Kast." He put his pistol away and held out his hand.
"It's good to see you too, sir," I said as I shook it. Trask withdrew his hand and nodded to the four men surrounding him.
"These are Privates Ripley, Campbell, Reeves, and O'Donnell," he said. "They're only a small part of my team, but in my opinion are the best." He pulled a folded piece of paper out of his pocket and beckoned me over to the Pelican. "There's something important I need to show you, Kast."
"One moment, sir," I said, pulling a small light out of my pocket. I blinked it twice in the direction of Maloney and Schwartz. A moment later came the reply: two blinks from Maloney's light.
Five minutes later the two soldiers emerged from behind a bush. Schwartz walked up to me and saluted.
"Sir, who killed those Hunters?" Then he noticed Trask and the four privates. "Major Trask? Sir!" He saluted again, looking slightly embarrassed.
"At ease, private," Trask said. "We killed them. Now if you three would please step aside, I need to talk to Kast." Caulfield, Schwartz, and Maloney backed away with miffed expressions on their faces.
"With all due respect, sir," I said, "What you tell me, you tell my team. It's always been that way, sir." Trask looked at me, his expression full of contempt. Then he softened.
"All right, son," he said. "Come on." He walked over to the Pelican, his soldiers in tow.
"Thanks, Kast," Maloney said softly as she stepped beside me. "It takes real guts to stand up to Trask like that."
"Of course," I said to her. "I would never ditch my own team, even for Trask." I looked at Schwartz and Caulfield. "Let's go see what he has for us." We walked to the Pelican and climbed into the cargo bay where we saw Trask and his men already seated. Private Ripley stood up and banged on the door separating the bay and the cockpit. Someone in the cockpit banged back and started the engines. The Pelican roared as it ascended above the trees. I looked out over the forest and was in awe of the beauty of the ring. The sky, hard to see before, was speckled with stars and other celestial bodies. The largest visible objects were the gas giant and the moon. They loomed over the ring like escorts sent to shield the ring from any harm. It was inspiring, in a way.
The Pelican accelerated forward, just inches from the forest canopy. I assumed that this was to help hide the Pelican from prying eyes. I looked over at Trask's men and sized them up. Ripley was huge; he stood 6'5" tall and was extremely muscular. His head was shaved and his arms were covered in tattoos; most of them contained ODST phrases and mottos. Campbell was also tall, but seemed a bit too thin to be a Helljumper. He had a serious face and closely shaven black hair. Reeves was slightly stocky and had a mean face. It looked as though he could snap the assault rifle he held in two. O'Donnell was the shortest of the four; he was only 5'9" tall. He wasn't thin, but wasn't fat, either. He was the typical military cliché, with brown hair, brown eyes, and a scar that ran from his temple to his nose.
"What happened after you were separated from us on the Autumn, sir?" I asked. I was curious to find out what happened.
"At first we thought you were killed by that Elite hunter-killer team along with Bates and Forrester." Trask said. He paused and shook his head. "But then we came upon the drop bay and found your pods missing, so we figured you had already left. After we reached the surface we found your pods along with a damaged Ghost and a dead alien." Maloney's hands clenched as Trask mentioned the Elite. "We were about to follow your trail into the forest, but then this Pelican picked us up. We set up camp about five kilometers from where we killed the Hunters."
I nodded, and then felt the Pelican slow.
"We're here, sir," Campbell said to Trask.
"Good," the major said, "Kast and his team need debriefing."
The Pelican descended into a small clearing. It hovered a few meters away from the ground and allowed its passengers to disembark.
I stepped off the dropship; Maloney, Caulfield, and Schwartz were right behind me. Trask and his men hopped down and made their way to a small tent in the middle of the clearing. The Pelican slowly rose above the trees and accelerated away. I turned and followed Trask to the tent. Standing guard outside was a Helljumper named William Burke. I knew him as one of the first ODSTs in our unit. He saluted. I returned the salute and stepped inside the tent, my teammates right behind me.
Inside the tent was a wooden table topped with navigation equipment and motion detectors. Trask and his men stood around the table as five other soldiers stood guard around the perimeter of the tent.
"Like I said before, Kast, there's something very important I must tell you," Trask said. "Sit down." He pointed to a couple of chairs placed haphazardly around the table.
"I prefer to stand, sir," I said. Trask looked at me and then nodded.
"Alright, then," he said. He pulled out the paper he had showed me earlier and spread it out on the table. My teammates and I crowded around the table and peered at the paper, which appeared to be a hastily drawn map.
"What is this, sir?" Schwartz asked. He looked up and gave Trask a quizzical glance.
"This is a map, son," Trask said, stating the obvious. "We drew it up shortly after we arrived here." He pointed to a group of spiky circles. "This is the group of Hunters we killed." His finger traveled to a large square above the Hunters. "This is what we're all worried about," he said. "This is a structure, apparently built by the schmucks who own this ring. We've been monitoring Covenant activity around it, and what we've found is not good." He paused and took a deep breath. "Teams of Spec-Ops Hunters have been..."
"Whoa!" Maloney said suddenly. Her face reddened as everybody stared at her. "Sorry, sir, but did you say Spec-Ops Hunters?"
"Yes, private," Trask said. "They wear black armor instead of the customary blue." He paused. "The Hunters have been escorting Elite councilors into this structure. We've never encountered councilors before, but transmissions intercepted from the Covenant battlenet have informed us of their existence. These councilors are not soldiers; they are politicians."
"Now, the reason these Elites are being escorted to this structure is a mystery. I believe it is something very important, however." Trask looked up, a gleam in his eyes. "We're going to infiltrate that structure." I smiled. This sounded like a good old Helljumper mission. Or, in the words of Schwartz, "Get in, kill, get out."
"So," I said, "What's the plan?"
"This is Kast. I have a visual on the structure. There are four Spec Ops Elites guarding the entrance," I whispered into my comm. "All the councilors have been escorted in, as far as I can tell, and there's no sign of Hunters or other backup." My team had set up camp in a large bush at the edge of the forest. The structure stood in the middle of a huge clearing. It was dome-shaped, with a large spire protruding from the top.
"Roger that, Kast," said Trask's raspy voice through the radio. His team was located atop a small hill covered in vegetation. The plan was for Trask and his men to get inside while we functioned as a backup team.
I dropped the binoculars and picked up my sniper rifle as his men crept down the hill towards the Elites. The aliens were on edge, constantly clicking their mandibles together in agitation. I heard one of Trask's men emit a low, long whistle. One of the Elites growled at the unfamiliar sound. He motioned for its comrades to cover him as he made his way towards the edge of the foliage. The alien pushed aside the leaves and branches, activated its shield, and entered the darkness of the forest.
I waited, my eyes on the spot where the Elite vanished. Two minutes went by and it still didn't emerge. The other Elites fidgeted restlessly, their plasma rifles sweeping back and forth along the edge of the forest. The silence was broken as Ripley stepped out, an assault rifle in each hand. He fired, his rounds cutting into the unshielded Elites. They dropped in quick succession under the merciless barrage of bullets.
The rest of the team crept out, Reeves dragging the dead Elite.
I couldn't help but marvel at the efficiency of Trask's team. They worked as though they could communicate telepathically.
"Sir," Maloney whispered, pointing to the entrance of the structure. "We've got reinforcements."
Sure enough, a small group of Jackals and Grunts stampeded out and began firing wildly at everything around them. Trask's team fell back into the trees and scattered. They set up positions along the edge of the clearing and took out the aliens using guerilla tactics. The Grunts were so scared and confused that they started shooting each other, their barks and squeals becoming almost deafening.
"Kast," said Trask's voice through the radio, "Come on, we're going in." I looked up and saw Trask and his men emerge from the trees firing at the remaining Grunts and Jackals.
"Let's go, team," I said as I got to my feet. Caulfield pulled out two pistols as Schwartz and Maloney prepped their assault rifles. I grabbed my shotgun and together we ran from the cover of the forest.
One Grunt noticed us and squealed, his plasma pistol spent. I slammed the butt of my weapon into the side of his head and kicked the center of his chest. The petite creature gasped for air as it fell to the ground. I spun and fired into the center of a Jackal's back. It shrieked and fell.
"Kast!" Schwartz yelled as he reloaded his gun. "The entrance!"
I looked up and saw four Elites sprint out of the structure. Three of them wore black armor and carried dual plasma rifles. The fourth one wore gold armor and sported a glowing energy sword. It roared and punched his hand into the air. The other Elites sent a flurry of plasma in our direction. I managed to dodge the first few blasts but caught two of them in my chest. The white-hot plasma melted my armor away and burned into my skin. I yelled and tore the smoldering mess off.
I heard a whooshing sound and looked over to find Campbell holding a rocket launcher. He had fired two missiles at the knot of aliens. His aim was perfect; the Spec Ops Elites were torn to pieces.
The gold plated Elite bellowed and charged straight at Campbell. The rest of us fired our weapons at the interloper yet did not bring its shield down. Campbell dropped the launcher and pulled out an assault rifle, but it was too late. The Elite swung his blade and neatly cut Campbell in half.
I gaped as the soldier fell in a heap to the ground, a shocked expression on his pale face. I recovered my composure and quickly snatched a plasma grenade from a Grunt corpse. I activated the grenade and hurled it at the Elite. The glowing orb attached itself to the alien's arm. The Elite roared as a cloud of blue-white plasma engulfed him. The cloud cleared and the Elite lay dead, still clutching the handle of its sword.
"Come on," Trask said. "We need to get inside before something else goes wrong."
O'Donnell covered Campbell's body with a few stray branches, his head bowed, while Reeves grabbed the Elite's energy sword and deactivated it.
"Could be useful," he muttered as he placed it in his belt.
"Let's go, then," Trask said, leading the way to the structure. We crept inside and the doors slid shut behind us, drenching us in darkness.
"Turn on your night-vision goggles, everybody," Trask whispered. I complied and slid the goggles over my eyes, revealing the inside of the structure.
It was a giant circular room containing a large spire pointing up through the roof. I assumed this was the same one that could be seen from the outside. Upon closer inspection I noticed that the spire was giving off a faint blue glow.
"Apply silencers," Trask said. "We need to stay silent." The silent room was filled with a soft click as everyone snapped silencers onto their guns. I holstered my shotgun and pulled out my silenced M6D.
"Reeves," Trask said, pointing to the spire. "Get close to that thing and see what happens." Reeves looked a little apprehensive.
"Sir?"
"Do it," Trask said, glaring at him. Reeves exhaled and crept forward. As he neared the spire, it suddenly glowed brilliant blue and rose into the air. The floor around it retracted to reveal a large hole in the ground. Seconds later a lift rose from the depths.
Trask waved his hand forward and we all clambered onto the lift, a very shocked Reeves bringing up the rear.
"How do we work this thing?" Schwartz asked. His question was answered a moment later as the lift began to descend.
"Keep your eyes open," Trask said. "It's too weird that the Covenant haven't sent any more troops to combat us."
"All I'm worried about is the Spec Ops Hunters," Maloney said. "Regular Hunters are bad enough." She bit her lip and fiddled with her assault rifle. The lift continued downward for nearly five minutes.
It finally reached the bottom of the shaft and stopped with a soft hiss. We all pulled off our night vision goggle, for the room was lit. I heard a loud bark and turned to find four Grunt guards standing frozen in shock. Trask raised his pistol and fired four shots. The Grunts squealed and fell, dead before they hit the ground.
"Stow those weapons, Ripley," Trask growled. "We'll need them later." Ripley crept forward and shoved the four plasma pistols into his knapsack. I used the momentary pause to study the room we arrived in. It was square, and fairly small. The room was completely bare except for the lift and a large mural-like carving on the wall. It depicted what looked like a group of bloated jellyfish attacking some sort of biped creature.
"Hey, Caulfield," I said, pointing to the mural. "Check that out." He walked over and examined it.
"Maybe those little creatures are some kind of insect," he said.
"Maybe," I replied. "But why make a mural of it?"
"I don't know."
"Come on, men," Trask said. "Let's go." He led the way towards a door on the wall opposite the mural. Trask placed his hand on the controls and prepared to open the door.
"Wait, sir," Ripley said. "Listen." We all strained to hear what Ripley heard, and then we heard loud roars and squeals coming from the other side of the door.
"What the hell?" murmured Schwartz as the commotion grew louder, coupled with the sounds of plasma fire and the loud blasts of Hunter fuel rod cannons. Then something pounded on the door. Trask jumped backwards and pointed his pistol at it.
"Get back to the lift," he said, a note of fear in his voice. "Come on!" We all ran back to the lift, Trask still aiming at the door.
"Sir?" Maloney asked. "What is it?"
"I don't know," he said as the lift began to ascend. "But whatever it was scared the shit out of the Covenant. Something non-human was attacking them."
"What?" she said. "Non-human?"
"Are you saying there's another goddamned hostile alien species?" Schwartz said.
"I guess so," Trask replied. "Just be careful. Shoot first; ask questions later."
The lift reached the top of the surface and plunged us into darkness again.
"Put your night vision goggles back on," Trask said, pulling his goggles down over his eyes. We all complied. Suddenly a long, unearthly wail broke the silence.
"What the hell was that?" Schwartz whispered, sweeping the room with his assault rifle. The spire in the middle of the room suddenly glowed bright yellow and bathed the entire room in light.
We all ripped our night-vision goggles off and tossed them aside.
"Oh my God!" yelled Reeves. We all turned and saw Reeves staring at a jagged hole in the wall. Small squid-like things were pouring out of the hole, filling the air with an acrid smell.
"Fire!" Trask yelled. "Kill those things!" We all opened fire on the creatures. They popped as soon as they were hit, but hundreds more were still pouring out of the hole.
"Caulfield!" I yelled over the din of the weapons fire. "Those are the things on that mural!"
"I know," he shouted back. "It's doesn't do us much good now, though, does it?"
"This isn't working!" Trask yelled. "They're surrounding us!" Sure enough, the bloated creatures were forming a ring around us, ensuring that we wouldn't escape. My assault rifle clicked as the magazine ran dry.
"I'm out!" I shouted.
"So am I!" yelled Reeves.
"Use those plasma pistols!" Trask shouted. We dove for Ripley's knapsack and pulled out the pistols. We used those until they were dry. Soon we were all out of ammo.
"Shit!" yelled Schwartz. "Shit, shit!"
The swarm of creatures stood still for a moment, and then pounced.
END OF PART TWO
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