The Fallen Chapter 4 Section 4: Power Regulation
Posted By: Hikaru-119<n8jtv@arrl.org>
Date: 13 August 2003, 3:38 PM
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Note to the reader: For those of you who are reading this (both new and old readers) I want you to know that this is a hopeful account of the future Halo 2. If you are new to this than you should be informed that I've tried to base this on the Heroic/Legendary difficulty setting as best I could. Enjoy and give me some new suggestions for later in the storyline.
Chapter 4 Section 4: Power Regulation
0500 Hours November 21, 2553 (Military Calendar)
Unknown Structure in Sector 0012 by Grid 019 On Halo's Surface
Cortana had done a good job gaining control of the Lucifer dropship and bringing it back to the structure. At least fifty new Covenant firearms had been captured and one powerful ship was at their disposal. The fighting outside had ceased except for a few fire fights throughout the woods. The other Covenant dropship also had not returned as of yet. Cortana set down the massive craft and the Chief exited from the port troop deployment bay
He looked around and saw maybe twenty marines holding down this position. His Spartans were not anywhere to be found. He searched for a moment until he stopped and called them up on the radio.
" Blue-One to Blue and Red Teams. Over. " he said.
" Red-One here. What is it Blue-One? Over " P.O. Lucas-015 responded.
" Where are you people currently located? Give me a status report. "
" We have merged with Blue Team and are currently sweeping out the forest for any straglers. No injuries. " The Chief was relieved by this.
" Very well Red-One. Continue patrol and report back when you are finished. Blue-One out. " He turned around and went towards the edge of the structure. Red-One acknowledged the order and killed the com channel. It was at least eight stories high and about three hundred meters wide.
" Chief I'm detecting multiple signals from within the structure. Almost all of them are Covenant. " Cortana said. He had some cleaning up to do. Unfortunately his rifle was still out of ammo and the marines already took the spare munitions off the dead. He'd have to work with his M6D for a while. At least until he could manage to procure a new weapon. There was a massive opening in front of him.
Beyond the opening a few faint lights could be seen in the darkness. The Chief went inside with his pistol at ready and faded into the shadows. The ceiling was high up with only a few lights active giving barely any light to the metal floor below. He was a good twenty meters inside when he heard a creaking noise behind him. He turned and the outside light was disappearing. A massive door was locking him in. There was no way he could have made it out in time. The door shut and he was trapped.
" Cortana please tell me there is a way to open the door. " he said nervously.
" There is a security station five levels down. We can unlock the doors from there. " she replied. The moment of relief was shot to hell by the sudden firing of plasma weapons from the darkness. Blue lances of flame impacted on the Chief's shields taking them out with just six shots. He looked for a motion tracker signal, but found none. Stealth Elites he thought running for his life. The firing slowed and halted. This lapse gave the Chief's shields a chance to recharge.
He quickly turned on his shoulder flashlight and panned side to side. A slight glimer was seen and was gone just as quick. The Chief looked again and fired a single round once he saw once more. It impacted tearing a small hole in the Elite's shoulder armor. The tall creature fired its weapon. The Chief side stepped the blasts and fired two more rounds into the Elite's chest. It still did not die, but its entire body was seen from the impacts. Another round was sent towards its head. The tiny explosive shelled muntion made its way through the back of the Elite's head. The Covenant warrior fell dead letting out a final roar as its brain leaked onto the ground below.
The Master Chief went over to the corpse and examined the plasma rifle. It was nearlly at full charge. An excellent replacement for his battle rifle. He set down his MA8A and brought up the plasma rifle. A smaller door was near the body and in it a ramp leading downward. He advanced through this opening and walked carefully checking his motion tracker every so often. As he was going down the dark ramp the sound of water dripping could be heard echoing through the confined space. When he reached the bottom he could see clearly without his flashlight. Only problem was the area was crawling with Covenant.
He poked his head out the door and looked to his right. The walls were slate gray and had little indentations running along their vertical axis. From there it also looked like there was more of the structure on the other side of a massive gap spanning several hundred meters. Near the edge of this gap a pair of Jackals were stationed with their backs turned to the Chief. He brought his head back and checked his ammo supply. Enough for maybe a fifteen minute engagement. He'd be able to hit them, but his exsistance might be given away to the other Covenant he was picking up on sensors. He saw it was a risk worth taking.
He magnetically attached the plasma rifle to his side and brought out his pistol. They weren't even fifteen meters away from the door. He leveled the pistol on the one on the right and slowly walked over paying close attention to his motion tracker as well as the targets in front of him. When he was two meters away he leaped forward and smashed in the first target Jackal's head.
It fell dead and hit the floor with a dull 'thump'. The other say its comrade die and turned to meet a double punch in the face from the Chief. Its jaw was broken and its snout was shoved into the brain cavity. The ugly beast dropped to the ground with enough force to of cracked its skull. Both targets were down. He grabbed one of the plasma pistols and carried it in his left hand. He walked over to the wall on the opposing side of the gap and crouched. He creapt along the edge until he met the corner leading into another room. A single signal was coming his direction slowly.
The signal was ten meters away when he heard the clikcing of mandables. He was the tell tale sign of an Elite. There was little time to think as it was closing distance fast. Its shields would be up and would be hard to take out with what he had. Except for the plasma pistol. The glow would give him away, but the Chief didn't care. He depressed the trigger and held on aiming upward as to where its center of mass would be. The Elite cleared the corner and looked down to see a fiery blast hit him in the chest.
Its shields blazed silver and dropped completely. The Covenant warrior fell to its knees and got back up before the Chief got off a shot with his M6D. The bullet missed and the noise activated even more motion signals. The Elite became enraged and swung at the Chief making contact. The shields took the brunt of the damage and dropped to a third of the original strength. The Chief stopped hesitating and fired both weapons at once. The combination of solid projectile and plasma was one that the enemy could not take. The Master Chief did not stop firing until his M6D's clip ran out of ammunition and the plasma pistol had over heated.
A hole nearly the size of both of his fists combined was burned into and out of the Elite. The howling of Covenant baying for blood could be heard throughout the entire structure. It was a chilling noise that made his blood run cold. The red tracking signals then began to converge and became one big mass coming his direction.
" Chief threat level is increasing. I recommend going over the edge. " Cortana suddnely said. Her voice nearly startled the Chief. He then thought of what she just said and was puzzled.
" What do you mean? " he asked watching and listening.
" You can fall down a floor and survive. You'll recieve no physical injuries...unless your shields are down. " she replied. He went over to the gap and looked down. There was enough room for his body to make it and enough for a freefall that would be the end of him. So he dropped his plasma pistol to the floor below. It landed not even recieving a scratch. He knew having the weapon down there would be handy later. He then grabbed the other plasma pistol from the second dead Jackal and attached it to his side along with the M6D pulling out his plasma rifle. The Covenant were almost to his location when he fell, landed, and spun immediately running for cover.
He slammed his back up against the wall and watched as the tiny amount of shields that were left began to recharge.The tracking signals were right above him when they were at full. A single NAV point appeared on his HUD with the words Bridge Controls written next to it. He walked in the general direction of the NAV point and went through a complex hallway system leading him downward.
He made it to his destination in roughly ten minutes. He was at the edge of the gap next to a holo-panel. Tiny symbols decorated the controls to the bridge. He reached over and touched one that looked like a blue rectangle. The hiss of pressured being released was heard and he saw two metal bars extend outward from beneath him. On the opposite side of the gap two others also came out and a bright blue beam of light formed over the gap. The light bridge had been activated. He stepped out onto it and looked up several floors. A single Grunt was seen looking around.
Its eyes were drawn to the light and it cocked its head quizotically. It continued looking until another Grunt came up to it and tapped it on the shoulder. The alien was startled and spun around to its ally. Before anything was spoken it lost its balance and fell backward. The other Grunt reached out to grab him, but missed. It watched as its friend fell into the depths below and saw the bridge. It also saw the Master Chief and backed away.
" Chief I'm picking up heavy enemy radio traffic. They're coming down here get across the bridge before they get reinforcement. " Cortana said. He didn't need her to say it twice. He looked down to the control panel and shot it immediately running acrossed the bridge. When he was half way several Grunts began firing at him. With their plasma bolts always hitting behind him they became frustrated and left for the floors below them. By time the COvenant had made it to the bridge he was already acrossed. He stopped and waited at the control panel on his side. " Shoot! Chief what are you waiting for!?"
" A trap. " he replied. The Covenant started to cross the bridge. About four Elites and several Grunts had gotten half way and fired their weapons. A few shots impacted on the Chief's shields. He waited a second longer and activated the bridge controls again. The light faded and the bars retracted. The Covenant on the bridge saw their mistake and fell to their deaths below.
" That was cheap...I like it. " Cortana said complimenting the Chief. He turned around and went over to the door that was on this side. Two green lights flickered and the door opened to his presence. Inside were several holographic screens and a single one in the center. " That terminal try there. " Cortana said. The Chief went over to the center and looked around. He scanned for anything that looked like it would open the outside doors.
Most of the symbols were green or blue except for a trio of them that were red. He figured they were the main doors. He pushed the red symbols and they turned to green and then to blue. The opening doors were faintly heard from his location. Another noise was heard as well. It sounded like a nervous animal breathing. The Chief listened for the sound and followefd it to its origin. He exited the security room and walked around to the back. In a corner a orange shelled Grunt was standing with its plasma pistol at ready. The Chief was exposed to it for a second and the Grunt pulled the trigger. The Chief stepped back and saw no green flame eject out towards him. The enemy frantically pulled the trigger and still no projectile was sent towards the Chief.
The Covenant warrior paniced and searched its pocket for a grenade. The Chief saw this and fired five rounds into the Grunt's chest. Its armor boiled away and the final two blasts burned away at its flesh. It fell down and still tried to get off the grenade. It pushed the orange activation button and pointed towards the Master Chief wth its last breath. The Chief jumped away from the Grunt and watched as it disappeared in a flash of blue fire. A hole was burned right through the floor and left a two meter wide opening into the pit below. The Chief then returned to the security room to see what else he could see.
He examined the panels and noticed one of them flashing ornage and then to red. Another hologram was flashing next to it as well. He went over, touched the smaller button and heard a winding up noise. It was immediately followed by a massive roar. He slid back and brought up his plasma rifle by pure instinct. He heard three more and walked out to the gap. Three beams of light came in from above and illuminated the area. He looked up at them and saw clouds moving overhead and a shadow passing over momentarially. Suddenly three blue beams shot straight up and faded away.
" I see. It looks like this is a power regulation station for the ring. Interesting. " Cortana said examining the energy that was just fired up and into space. His attention was taken from the beams of light by a sudden radio transmission.
" Red-One to Blue-One! Over! " the voice on the other end said.
" I copy you Red-One. What is it? " the Chief replied.
" The Lucifer dropship has returned with additional reinforcement. Approximately a hundred Covenant infantry are left. " an explosion was then heard from the other end. " We are holding off best we can. Pelicans are giving heavy support. We need you out here ASAP. "
[indnet]" Understood Red-One. Give 'em hell. I'll be outside soon. ETA fifteen minutes. "
" Please hurry. Red-One out. " The Chief closed the link and walked over to the bridge's controls. The Covenant on the other end were pissed. Their weapons were out of effective ranges and hadn't a chance to hit the Chief with any accuracy. He liked it like this. He looked out onto the Covenant and put away his plasma rifle bringing up his M6D. He zoomed in and began picking off what he could. He continued doing this until all of the lesser infantry had either retreated or had been killed. Which left only the eight Elites enraged.
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Blue-Two fired his sniper rifle at the advancing Covenant and reloaded. Three enemy units instantly had their backs blown to bits from the anti-material munitions. He heard the dropships and looked up to see the Covenant had retrieved their stolen dropship and left with it ditching the ground units. Fortunately most of the plasma weapons had been grabbed by the more intelligent marines.
" Red-One to all UNSC forces. Fall back into the forest and engage al those that follow. We can't afford to lose. I repeat fall back into the forest. " The order was heard and carried out with no disagreement. The remaining Covenant forces advanced on the battered UNSC and took out several of the marines as they ran into the woods.
It was actually quite amazing that anyone could hear anymore. The staccato noise of battle rifles, the whine of plasma weapons and the sound of grenades drowned out even the screams of the wounded. It was hell for both sides. The Covenant scattered into the woods and took out most. The humans had managed a retreat and were near the woods edge. Near wide open fields where armor could be used. They were forced out of the dark woods and ran into the middle of the field.
" Red-One to all Pelicans. We need armored support and heavy suppressing fire along the tree edge. Can you deliver? Over. " Lucas said.
" This is Omega 74. Roger that Red-One. We are inbound hot. Keep your hats on. " The Spartan looked at the tree line and watched as the last four marines made it out and joined the thirty some survivors. Everyone crouched down on their either on their own or their wounds forced them too. The ten Pelicans came in and fired their chain guns throughout the trees. Their rockets immediately followed. Splinters and fire filled the tree line as they let loose their destructive capabilities. Most of the Covenant were wounded or killed within the first ten seconds of the support fire. The Pelicans finished their initial attack run and touched down over by the marines.
" Know about God now don't ya! " Red-One heard a marine yell once the fire balls gave out. The marines then turned around and saw their Warthogs being deployed. All but three were the standard anti-infantry model A's. The other three were the troop transport model D's. There was enough room for everyone to mount up and start attack runs on the Covenant that were foolish enough to come out. The Spartans however did not get board any of the vehicles.
They stayed there crouched aiming at the tree line. As they did the battle field suddenly got quiet. Only the engines and the crackling of burning wood could be heard. Then a single roar from an Elite was heard and the ground trembled and the sound of Grunts could be heard. They poured out of the woods guns blazing at the Warthogs. The marines returned the favor and held down their triggers sweeping back and forth.
Despite heavy losses the Covenant still advanced crawwling over the dead as they did. Ammuntion was running low on the chain guns and still they kept coming. The Spartans were in the thick of it keeping their heads down from the incoming fire. Up above they saw three more dropships leaving from near the structure. Two medium class Phantoms and a light class Spook. It was a reasonable explanation for the sudden increase in enemy forces. The fighting continued for another two minutes and then seven guns went 'click.' Most of the marines looked down on their guns and saw the barrels glowing red from the heat. Ammuntion in the guns had run out and it was time for another retreat. The Warthogs ran and gave their other shooters a few moments to shoot leaving their Spartan allies behind.
The seven of them held out taking down Elite officers and working their way down. Shields were hit hard and the Covenant were now the getting the batttering as the Pelicans came in for a fianl machine gun pass. Most of the enemies retreated and were halted by another force coming in. The shooting stopped and the Spartans looked outward towards the decimated tree line. Coming out was the Master Chief with luminous blue blood staining the outer layer of his shielding. Red-One waved the Chief over. The Spartans regrouped and waited for their next set orders.
" Spartans, " Cortana said, " This area is unacceptable for a base of operations. General Kits has found a new spot for us to take up as home for a while. " They looked at each other and then to the distant structure. Nearly seventy human lives had been lost taking this area and for only a few hundred dead Covenant. They didn't like the numbers. Omega 74 touched down near them and the Spartans got on board. The dropships picked up their Warthogs and they left for this new spot General Kits had found.
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