Years of Days: Book One- The Ring

Since the previous novel wasn't working out so well, I decided to start on its sequel and then revise its predecessor accordingly (as events prior to this novel may change drastically), and hopefully both novels will at least end up being halfway decent.

So, here's the summary: Kyran' Miyako, a former Sangheli interrogator, is promoted to the rank of Elite and like many other Covenant soldiers, is tasked with the retrieval of a Sacred Icon in a Halo Ring. Except things don't go as planned when they arrive.￼ And they make first contact the first enemy they had ever feared.

Chapter One: Fate
On a Covenant space station many parsecs away...

Newly promoted Elite Kyran' Miyako boarded the Covenant ship, followed by a rather apprehensive Yenee. They were preparing to go on a mission to bring back the Sacred Icon from a Halo Ring and Yenee incessantly voiced his opinion on the matter. Ever since he heard about the mission, he had been whining and complaining and more. He was a bit outspoken, for a Grunt.

"Bad idea! Bad idea! Me think we gonna die. Me feel it in me icy bones," Yenee declared, looking around the ship anxiously, as if he was already expecting sudden death and destruction. "Me want to go home."

"Be silent, Yenee," Kyran snapped, sitting down on a seat. "We are on the most important task of our lives. We could finally begin the Great Journey. If we die, we die for a great cause."

"Cause indeed!" Yenee snorted, also sitting down. "We're gonna die. I know it. Me may be pessimistic, but me pessimistic for good reason!"

One Elite sitting next to Kyran leaned over and whispered, "What is the matter with him?"

"I think someone mixed the methane in his tank with carbon dioxide again," Kyran muttered sarcastically. "That's what I think is the matter."

"Me heard that! Me not like comment about me tank! Me tank pure methane! Nothing else." Yenee had very good hearing, for a Grunt. He fingered the Needler in his holster. "One side bright. Me got Needler instead of Plasma thingy."

As Yenee spoke, ship rose off the platform, and blasted off into space.

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"We're orbiting the Ring now," the Sangheli pilot said. "We will land in a minute. I am still trying to find the clearing where the other ships are."

Kyran heard several Elites acknowledge the pilot with a few shouts of enthusiasm, while a few others stayed silent, much like the Grunts and Hunters. He glanced over at Yenee, and saw he was trembling.

"Coward,"￼ he thought. But he shouldn't think that. Yenee (as much as Kyran loathed to admit it) did save his life during their battle against... oh great. That incident again. When Kyran freed some heretic prisoners so that they could help end a heresy. He was nearly killed several times- including when he initially freed the prisoners- but Yenee and his Grunt friends managed to keep him in one piece. In the end, Kyran and Yenee were the only survivors. Everyone else in the base was dead. They covered up the fact that they released the heretics, because if they were found out, then they would be executed.

Kyran wasn't sure how he felt about the whole situation. Even when he killed the last standing heretic after the destruction of the General's heresy. He remembered the heretic's name clearly. Zen' Demari.

Former Elite, traitorous heretic, and unlikely to ally. Until Kyran stabbed him in the chest and impassively listened to his last words of life.

"He was a heretic," Kyran told himself. "I did what I needed to. He is dead. All those heretics are dead. It is in the past. No one knows what really happened except for Yenee and I. I must focus on the task at hand. The Great Journey is so close..."

The sound of the pilot's voice interrupted his thoughts. "We have landed. We will soon be on the Great Journey. Let us go and find the Sacred Icon."

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As the group of Covenant soldiers exited the ship, Kyran was immediately aware of their environment. He saw several other Covenant ships in the clearing nearby, the tall dark green trees, and felt the mugginess of the environment. It reminded him of that base, as it too was surrounded by a similar environment.

"Again with the base," he thought. "What is the matter with me? Am I becoming weak...?"

His thoughts were interrupted by the squad leader, an Elite, saying, "All right. I received orders from Supreme Commander Vadam that all our squads will split up and search for entrances in different parts of the jungle. We will take the south. Follow me."

Kyran, after a moment of hesitation, followed the rest of his squad. "I need to focus. Focus. Your destiny is at hand."

Chapter Two: Fire
"Halt!" the squad leader called out. "I see movement ahead. And I think I smell Humans."

Kyran pulled out his sword at this. Humans here. On the Sacred Ring. Not a good sign. This means that they too must also be after the Sacred Icon. And the Covenant could not let them get their hands on it.

"They are merely an obstacle. Humans or no Humans, we will be successful," the squad leader told them.

Kyran looked over at Yenee and saw him fiddling with his Needler.

"What is the matter now?" Kyran whispered as the group began to advance towards the Human soldiers.

"Me have bad feeling about this," Yenee replied.

"Save your pessimism for after the fight," Kyran told him. "The last thing we need is more complaining."

"Me just stating my feelings. You not need to insult." Yenee fell behind with the other Grunts, clearly not wanting to continue speaking.

"Unggoy," Kyran thought as they neared the Humans. "They never learn."

And then the squad leader shouted out the order to attack.

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If there was one thing Yenee hated the most, it was being treated like he was nothing. He felt the same for how his fellow Grunts were treated by their superiors. What vexed Yenee even more was that he saved Kyran's butt several times back on that base, and the Sangheli didn't even bother to give him a mere "thank you."

"At least me get Needler this time. Still wish me got promotion, though..."

There was no time for regrets, however. Yenee managed to quickly bring down a few Humans with his Needler, then dodged as one soldier leapt at him, hands bare. Likely he was planning on strangling the Grunt.

Yenee pointed his Needler at the Human and shot him in the chest.

"He's dead now," Yenee thought. He scrambled into the nearby bushes and started picking off a few Humans from there.

Bullets whizzed by Yenee's hiding place, barely missing him. He was about to take aim at another soldier, then saw Kyran standing over an incapacitated soldier- who was laying on the ground groaning- poised to strike with his sword.

But as Kyran was about bring the sword down, he hesitated for some reason. An expression of confusion was on his face.

Before either Kyran or the soldier could do anything, another Elite shot the Human in the back.

Yenee was puzzled by what had just transpired, but decided not to think about it right now. He shot a few remaining soldiers, then came out of his hiding place.

Then he heard shouting and turned to see an Elite yelling at Kyran.

"Why did you hesitate?!" The Elite asked not so quietly.

"I am... not sure," Kyran murmured. "It will not happen again." He paused and asked, "Where is the squad leader?"

"Over here!" Yenee called, pointing at the squad leader, who was busy looking around for any other Humans.

Finally the leader said, "All clear. Let's move. Keep an eye out for any more Humans. Those were not the only ones."

Yenee looked back at Kyran, who was approaching.

"What happened?" The Grunt asked as they followed their fellow soldiers through the jungle. "You hesitate. Me never see Elite hesitate."

"You do remember that I was originally an interrogator, correct? I trained for battle, yes. Especially after my promotion. But until that incident at the base, I had never really been in a battle."

"You been on training missions," Yenee pointed out.

"Those were on a smaller scale, so small it wasn't really a battle. Couldn't have a Minor die on the job. Besides, no one I killed back then pleaded for their lives," Kyran snapped.

Yenee flinched and decided that this conversation was pretty much over. He fell back with his fellow Grunts.

One Grunt asked, "Why you so concerned about why he hesitate? He is Sangheli!"

Yenee shrugged. "Me not care. Me just curious."

Then he thought about what Kyran said earlier.

"Besides, no one I killed back then pleaded for their lives!"

Yenee shook his head in confusion. So one Human pleads for his life. So what? There should have been plenty of pleading from other Humans when Kyran interrogated them... right?

"Then again, a lot of soldiers like to die with some dignity."

Yenee brushed some dirt off his Needler. This was going to be a long day. ____________________________________________________

"Idiot," Kyran thought to himself. "I am an idiot. Clearly my judgement is impaired. Otherwise I'd have killed that soldier... stop pitying yourself. You have a mission. You must retrieve the Sacred Icon. These Humans are nothing more than obstacles. They will fail. We will succeed. It is our destiny."

Kyran's resolve was hardened. There was no time for regret. No time to dwell on the past.

"I am getting something on sensors," the squad leader announced, looking at a pad on his arm band. "It is a structure approximately fifty meters from our current position. It might be an entrance."

The Great Journey was almost at hand.