 |
About This Site
Daily Musings
News
News Archive
Site Resources
FAQ
Screenshots
Concept Art
Halo 2 Updates
Interviews
Movies
Music
Miscellaneous
Mailbag
HBO PAL
Game Fun
The Halo Story
Tips and Tricks
Fan Creations
Wallpaper
Misc. Art
Fan Fiction
Comics
Logos
Banners
Press Coverage
Halo Reviews
Halo 2 Previews
Press Scans
Community
HBO Forum
Clan HBO Forum
HBO IRC Channel
Links
Admin
Submissions
FTP Uploads
HTTP Uploads
Contact
|
|
|
Oblivion 7: God's Chosen
Posted By: Reclaimer<Xenoragnarok@aol.com>
Date: 30 July 2003, 11:14 PM
Read/Post Comments
|
Author's note: YES! It's finally here! :: exhales :: This took a lot out of me. This is a looong chapter.
Master Chief and a team of hardworking marines had dug a trench in 20 minutes. This trench, however, was different. As medics began to carry bodies of those who hadn't made it, it had become obvious that this was a mass grave. One marine, the very same that the Chief had witnessed die, was laid to rest in the trench. While someone played Taps on an old, brass French horn. they covered the fallen with red Martian soil. The ancient musical instrument, completely obsolete yet undying, produced a rich melody that accompanied the dead on their way to wherever souls go.
In other circumstances, their comrades would have been given a proper burial, but the sake of Earth, Mars, and humankind were in the balance. The Covenant would throw everything into upsetting the balance.
Master Chief sunk into his seat as the Pelican hit a pocket of anti-aircraft fire. The shrapnel didn't really spook him much, but this chance was the first for him to relax since he had touched down on Mars six hours ago. Since then, he had killed plenty of Covenant, helped load wounded onto Pelicans, and buried the dead. He was just a little tired. He noted the relative silence of the marines. There were a few chipper ones, but most were biding their time quietly until it was their turn to buy the farm.
"Sorry about that, just coming into a little bit of turbulence. Remember, folks, flying pieces of hot, razor-sharp metal can't kill you; they can only maim and gruesomely disfigure you," said the pilot over the intercom.
"Well, that did it. I'm feeling better already," said one of the less silent marines while gripping his rifle tightly..
"We're going to have to get you some diapers at base, Thompson," Sarge said.
"Gee, Sarge, you gonna change 'em for me, too?"
"Don't even think about it, Thompson."
Aside from the booms and bangs from below, the marines once again fell silent. Consequently, Master Chief was left alone with Cortana.
"Cortana,' he asked, 'Have you been able to hack into the Covenant network?"
"Affirmative, Chief. I'm receiving unbelievable amounts of data. It seems that the Prophets have been called to Mars by ruins located below New Baghdad. Those stubborn fools... They're anxious to go after another one. Haven't they learned? They confess to be superior life forms, and yet.. Chief, if my theory serves me correctly, the Flood of Installation 004 were just one of countless species. Halos are scattered throughout the universe, and each are seeded with a Flood sample. After 101 thousand years of isolated evolution, the Flood samples must be vastly different from one other."
"What, you mean, there could be purple Flood with giant lobster claws and butterfly wings?"
"Exactly."
"Well, what is our course of action?"
"Wait, there's more. The Covenant are about to launch nukes to destroy major cities on Earth. If we don't stop the hammer before it falls, the unleashing of new Flood may become irrelevant to humankind. There is only one course of action. We must board the flagship, God's Chosen, and prevent any nukes from getting to Earth. I've radioed ahead and tipped off General Bradley to the imminent holocaust. Emergency procedures have been initiated, and we've been given a ride out off of this rock. Oh, and, Chief, you and I are about to get an upgrade."
Master Chief banged on his helmet to get it working right.
"I was wondering when I'd get some new threads to replace this old piece of junk."
"Oh, Chief, you and this suit have been through a lot together."
"I know,' he said, teary eyed, 'she's my first. I don't know if I can leave her."
Cortana laughed.
"Chief, cut it out. You're going to make me cry."
John smiled playfully. It was a much-needed gram of fun in a sea of despair.
The Pelican began to land as they arrived at Alpha base. The rockets on its underside flared to float the bird down gently, and technicians came out to secure and maintenance the Pelicans along with medics to spirit away the wounded to the base's field hospital.
Master Chief arose from his seat and clanked his way down the exit ramp. The techs and medics gasped; they were shocked to be staring at one of the legendary Spartans. He didn't say a word and kept walking. Marines, Army regulars, and Orbital Drop Shock Troops each gave him the exact same, shocked expression.
John entered the General's tent, walked in, and stood before the stocky desk of the most powerful man on Mars.
"Spartan-117, reporting for duty, Sir."
General Rodgers looked up from his work and gasped.
"Welcome to Mars, Chief. Coffee?"
"No thanks. My suit recycles my urine and brews its own brand."
"Right, well... Suit yourself. That must be some awfully good coffee, though. Moving on..."
The general's face, contorted by a mixture of shock and awe thanks to the coffee revelation, returned to normal as he activated a hologram of Mars.
"Chief, as you know, New Baghdad is here."
He pointed to a flashing dot on the hologram.
"Now, I don't know why the Covenant would settle down in our fair capital, but Cortana tells me she does. Care to fill me in, Cortana?"
"Thank you, General. As you know, the Chief and I have been missing since Reach fell. The reason is... we were here."
Cortana uploaded the data to the hologram machine, and Installation 004 appeared next to the planet, Threshold. She began again.
"This is the ring-world, Halo, General. It was constructed by the Ancients for one purpose only: to hold this."
The hologram morphed into an infection Flood and cycled through its various incarnations.
"The Flood is a parasitic life-form that controls the body of its fallen host. Their destructive potential is exponential, and they are continually evolving. This footage is an actual battle on Halo's surface. Notice the way they overwhelm and destroy their prey."
The hologram morphed yet again. This time, it showed a battle between a platoon of Covenant made up of elites, jackals, and grunts and the Flood. The General watched with wide eyes as battle-hardened troops were ambushed by creatures that seemed to rain from the sky. The Grunts were destroyed immediately, either blown sky-high by exploding Carrier forms or ground up by small, skittering critters. The Jackals formed a phalanx to protect themselves from charging combat forms but were beaten down to a pulp anyway. The Elites, meanwhile, held their own. They fired away at the surging mass of monstrosities around them until their firearms were out of ammunition. They borrowed pistols from the dead grunts and used those up, too. There was no escape for the elites, however. Their shields failed, and they were covered in a coating of popcorn with tentacles. The camera centered on one of the elites. It fell to its knees. His body became filled with a mass of writhing tentacles, and from the surface of the skin, General Horner could see the internal movement of the infection Flood's appendages. The elite could make no sound but only grope at his neck to fight back the Flood's mind-control.
"General, the Covenant are currently searching for coordinates to a new Halo below New Baghdad. It seems they haven't learned their lesson just yet. The Chief and I would accompany you, but as you know, we have other things to do."
"Right,' General Bradley acknowledged, 'we've prepared a shuttle to take you to the UNSC Iroquois."
Cortana gasped.
"Chief, that's the Captain's old ship."
Master Chief already knew.
"I know...,' he whispered, "Perhaps it is fate."
General Bradley interrupted his thoughts.
"Oh, and, Chief, they've got a present for you."
"Been dying to open it, sir."
With that, the Chief walked out of the room and toward the shuttle bay. He got the same ooh's and ah's in his exit as during his entrance. He disappeared into shuttle and sat down. There were a few marines going up, and they chatted with him a bit. He told them about how he would make sure that the Covenant got a bullet through the head with their names on it and even signed their rifles. Finally, the shuttle lifted, sliced through the thin Martian atmosphere, and broke free of its gravity. The familiar feel of space returned to the Chief, and the shuttle eased into the docking bay of the UNSC Iroquois.
The Iroquois had been repaired since the last time Keyes had taken it for a spin. It now had the latest and greatest armor, engine, and weapons human technology had to offer. Master Chief walked through the corridors, reminiscent of the Pillar of Autumn, and entered the bridge. There were no grunts to shoot or elites to kill this time.
Captain Turner rotated toward him.
"Hello, Master Chief. I already know all about your mission. Cortana has told me everything. We are intercepting God's Chosen as we speak."
"Thank you, Captain Turner. I was also told that you had a gift for me."
"Yes, yes, it's waiting in the repair hangar. There's even a kooky scientist that wants to see you."
"Thank you, sir."
Master Chief turned to go when Turner stopped him.
"Chief, are you sure you don't need anything else? Doing what you're planning is crazy. You'll die!"
"I'll make it."
"Oh, and, Chief, Keyes was a good man. We'll miss him a lot."
"So will I, sir. So will I."
Master Chief turned around and continued on to the repair bay. On his way, he passed the armory and the engine room. Memories of the Pillar's final hour danced in his head. Finally, after countless corridors, he read a sign that read, "Repair Bay 1." He entered; it was gigantic.
Jimmy waxed the helmet of the Mark VI battle armor. He was done getting the internal bugs out of it and thought it needed a little aesthetic help. It now sparkled brilliantly. The door to the hangar opened, and in walked a green version of Goliath.
Jimmy jumped to his feet. His heart pounded in his chest; this was it. His colleagues' sacrifice hadn't been in vain. He sheepishly walked toward the green giant and held out his hand.
"Sorry, if I shake your hand, I'll break it," the Spartan said.
Jimmy retracted it quickly and waved it around nervously.
"Oh, umm, okay. Right this way, Sir."
The Chief followed him.
"This armor is superior in every way to your old model there. As you can see, the old model has been greatly streamlined. That old thing you're wearing is quite a clunker. Anyway, as you put it on, you'll find that you are much stronger and faster. That's because we've upgraded the hydraulic fiber system. Your muscles and bones should adjust to it quickly. Umm, just take this."
He handed a glass of blue, chalky liquid to the Chief. The Chief took off his helmet and gulped it down. It tasted, oddly, like Strawberry.
"The armor plating has been improved as well. Our chemists were quite clever. They devised a formula that deflects plasma weapons to an extent. That's not to say it's totally immune. Too many hits, and you're toast."
John began stripping out of his old gear. He clicked off his leg plates, took off his boots, and slipped out of his "pants." He also inserted Cortana's memory chip into the new suit's slot.
"Also, you'll find that your shield system has been refined. It will now last longer, now. Twice as long, actually... Anyway, as for Cortana, she'll have more RAM and processing power. I think she'll like her new body. In the visor, you'll be equipped with all sorts of goodies, night vision, X-ray vision, heat-vision, stuff like that.
The Chief had stripped of his old suit and had begun to put on the new. He slipped on the left glove.
"Ahhh, yes, and now for the coup d' grace. Your hand is equipped with a plasma sword."
"Plasma sword?"
Cortana studied the energy blade's data.
"Nice work! You and your team have done a miraculous job. Chief, ask me, and I'll activate it for you. Be careful not to poke yourself, though."
"Yes, ma'am."
He was now almost fully armored and ready for battle.
"What is your name," he asked.
The scientist marveled at his work. It was complete.
"My name is Jimmy, Jimmy Rollins."
"Maybe I'll see you again someday. Perhaps for Mark number VII."
He held out an unarmored hand to shake Jimmy's. Jimmy shook it. Master Chief and Cortana then turned and exited the hangar.
Jimmy fell into his office chair and exhaled. It was over.
The Chief and Cortana walked down a corridor. A radio inside the helmet crackled with static; through it came desperate cries from desperate men. A gun rack folded outward, and he picked up a battle rifle. Entering an elevator, they were whisked down to the lower depths of the ship.
"The core defense is too intense. Our grid is maxed, I don't think we can last another run," screamed a pilot
"Admiral, tell your men to hold their positions. Reinforcements are on the spoke."
"The entire fleet is engaged, Cortana. With respect, what the hell sort of reinforcement have you got?"
The Chief walked out into the docking bay and over to a lever labeled, "DO NOT PULL."
"It's passing below your position, ma'am. Proximity zero."
Master Chief lifted his arm and put his hand around the lever.
"What if you miss...?"
"I wont."
He pulled it. The double blast doors slid back and left nothing between him and God's Chosen except outer space. Down below, he saw mother Covenant rape of Mother Earth. Filled with anger, he jumped out.
|
