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On A Pale Horse: Against All Odds
Posted By: Silent Hunter<silenthunter18509@yahoo.com>
Date: 4 January 2004, 4:22 AM
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I know my writing isn't as good as it normally is. I apologize, and ask that you keep reading. I'm just running low on inspiration...and will to write. Hopefully my reading First Strike, and the Flood (I know, I am way behind with these things) will save this series...
Unknown Time / Covenant Detention Facility, Location Unknown
John had crouch-walked out the door, with his fellow humans following not far behind. He leaned around the corner. No signs of Covenant. He kept a plasma pistol pointing forward, ready to shoot anything that moved. He came to a 4 way intersection. There were signs suspended from the ceiling. They appeared to be Arrows with Symbols. There were two arrows pointing to the right. One with a Red Symbol, one with A purple symbol. The Arrow pointing forward had a gold symbol. The arrow pointing left had a small purple symbol, with a 'normal' sized green symbol following it. For some reason john looked at the Green one, and thought 'exit'. He couldn't explain it, it was just a gut feeling. Last time he had this feeling was on Halo, when he just 'knew' what did what on the forerunner holo-panels. He turned around, pointed to the left hallway, and whispered "This way, look out for covenant patrols. No one shoots, unless you're certain they've spotted us." They all nodded in acknowledgment.
John slowly walked down the hallway. The hallway was lighted by what appeared to be some kind of crystal on supports in the purple metallic wall. He came to a door similar to the ones on Covenant cruisers. It had a purple symbol on it. He couldn't remember where he had seen that before, but assumed it was from Halo, or another Cruiser. A light cast on it made it appear like red metal. As John approached it, the light changed to yellow. Then after 5 or 6 seconds, it turned to white, and then the door opened, revealing a lift. John tilted his head in the direction of the lift, and all 5 of the marines piled in. John was the last in, and he pushed a button on a holo-panel in the wall. The door closed, and then john felt himself pulled to the floor as the lift accelerated upward. After a few seconds, the lift slowed to a halt at a door. It parted, and John half-ran out. He slowed, and hunched over in a slow crouch walk. He missed his armor. He felt somewhat naked without it. Without it, he felt like a part of him was missing. Then he thought...the armor...If the covenant reverse-engineer it, then the power of the covenant infantry would be increase a hundred-fold. John now had to get out. He could transmit a self destruct code. And then he would have to pray that his armor was within transmit range, and that the Covenant engineers haven't learned too much...John settled that out of his mind. He had to first get out.
John spotted two red elites barking at each other in their own language. They seemed to be arguing. John turned around, and whispered "hide..." The marines ducked into alcoves, behind communications uplinks, any cover they could find. John hid in an alcove. He used the mirror finish on the covenant weapons to see what's going on. Although slightly distorted, he has a good view. The two red elites were still shouting at each other. A golden elite shouted louder than the two. It said something, but John couldn't hear anything. The two red elites took turns talking to the gold elite, and then the gold elite said something to both of them, and walked away. One elite turned down the hall the marines were in. John pulled the plasma rifle back, and got his stun gun out. He set it on high. The elite hung its head low, and was to occupied with it's own thoughts to notice the Spartan coming up behind it, until cold metal touched it's skin, and a 100,000 volt shock fried its mind, and it slumped to the floor.
"All clear" John whispered as he looked at the elite twitch on the floor. He dragged it into the alcove he was hiding in. He continued to lead the 5 man team down the hall, past where the elite's were arguing, and around a corner. He came to another Intersection. Symbols with arrows were painted on the corner walls. He followed the path the green symbol pointed out. After a minute or so, the light crystals turned from white to flashing red, and alarms blared throughout the ship.
"Shit!" a marine shouted.
"Weapons ready! Let's move, Double quick!" John and the marines got the marines drew plasma weapons out. John ran down the corridor. The marines were running a little short of a sprint, but to John, it was little more than a jog. John turned a corner, and unloaded on a covenant patrol of Grunts and jackals with his plasma rifle. The marines did the same with their weapons. They were caught completely off guard, and didn't get a shot off before they succumbed to the plasma burns. John continued down the hall, following the green symbol at intersections. At one intersection, an elite jumped out. John got a plasma pistol, charged it as it was taking fire from the marines, and discharged it at the elite. Its shields gave out, and it's skin blistered, and burned. It fell to the ground, and john put several finishing plasma shots into its head. He checked everyone. With the exception of a few burned limbs, and near-hits, everyone was fine, and could go on. He continued down the hall, meeting resistance as he went. He came to a familiar looking room...with 5 doors...and a meter wide gash in a blast door. He was in the same building he had infiltrated days earlier...He remembered...Cortana...He had left her in that steam room. With that thick steam no one could ever find her without looking...not the covenant, not Miranda...not the ODSTs. He spotted a covenant communications uplink. "Who here knows the covenant communication equipment?"
"I do...sir..." said one of the marines
"Could you rig that uplink to transmit in a UNSC frequency?"
"I might..."
"OK, try to contact a UNSC boat...if we cant, then we're gonna find something to get us off this rock. But in the meantime, try to see if the UNSC is still here...I'll be back..."
"Wait, we need you to help us fight off a covenant attack..."
John gave a re-assuring smile "You don't need me...you're a leatherneck...you can hold them off...I'll be back in a few minutes..." He opened the door in the middle of the 5, and walked down the familiar hallway.
He thought about Cole Protocol Article 2...But that wasn't the reason for going back. He didn't want Cortana to fall into the enemy hands. He felt like she was a part of him, and he would not let the covenant have her. He walked down the long corridor. He Opened a door. This section of hallway was dark. John had shot the lights out. He continued down the hall. He couldn't see any covenant. His vision in the darkness was just as good, if not better than his vision in the light. He came to another door, and opened it, revealing a room he was almost killed in days earlier. He opened a door on the other side, and proceeded down the hall. He turned the corner, and almost froze. A pair of brutes were walking down the hallway. John fired his plasma rifle into them. They were very Surprised, but they shook it off, and charged John. He charged his plasma pistol. He fired it at the Brute in front's head. It melted off, and the brute slumped to the floor. John ran at the second brute, and speared it to the ground. He got his stun-gun out, and put it to the brutes neck. It shrugged off the 100,000 volts, like it was a static shock. It stood up, with john still plunging the stun-gun into its throat. It put an arm around John's neck, and threw him like a pebble. He hit the ground hard. John fired his plasma rifle into it. It let out an angry growl, and charged John. It attempted to clothesline him, but he ducked it. He put his stun gun into the back of his head this time. It spun around, but John had a death grip on its neck. He made sure to keep himself from getting grounded, or he would be shocked as well. The brute slowed down. Its hair began to smoke, and it fell to the ground. John got up, and examined the brute. A foul smell filled the air as its hair caught on fire. He felt a headache, and he proceeded down the hallway, but not before picking up a covenant grenade launcher.
He spotted a vent with the cover blown off. He climbed in, and crawled down the shaft. damn it's a lot easier without my armor... He thought. He followed the scratches made by his MJOLNIR armor when he went through earlier. He went around corners, down slopes, and finally arrived at his goal: a steam shaft behind a blown out fan. He jumped down, and searched through the steam. The lights were a great help. He crawled the ground. John began to sweat. After several minutes of searching he touched a glassy object. He picked it up...John let out a chuckle "Damn, is she gonna be pissed..."
PFC. Parker had tried every frequency used by the UNSC...no response came. He had given up, and drawn his plasma pistol out to help the marines to keep the Covenant from pouring through the doors, and overrunning them. The Spartan was gone for more than 10 minutes...He had no idea where he went, or why. He just wished he would have stayed behind. After a few seconds, John opened up the door which he went into, and fired some new covenant weapon down each of the doorways. The explosions rocked the building. He continued to fire the weapon until all the covenant was dead. Only 2 marines were standing. 1 was still alive, but with severe injuries. John walked over to Private Parker. "Any luck?" Parker shook his head grimly. Then on the uplink, they heard something they will never forget...
"This is the Battle Cruiser Atlantic, we have received a distress signal from this area, please confirm, over."
TO BE CONTINUED
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