RP:Glorious Oblivion

"Oh build your ship of death. Oh build it! / For you will need it. / For the voyage of oblivion awaits you." --D.H. Lawrence, The Ship of Death

GLORIOUS OBLIVION

=Introduction= It is the year 2552, the month of December. Earth is under siege by hostile Covenant Loyalist forces, and Humanity is on the verge of being utterly destroyed. This is the story of Humanity's struggle for survival, the Loyalist's quest for honor, and the Seperatist's search for truth. This is Glorious Oblivion. This is the battle for the Sol System. This is war.

Insert your character on any of the three major fronts: Earth, Luna, or Mars; add them to the list below, read over the rules, and begin. Good luck to you. You'll need it.

Participants
After recieving an invite from Spartan-091, post your name below.
 *  SPARTAN-091  |Admin|  [[Image:UNSC.jpg|15 px]] HelmetComm  00:32, 19 September 2007 (UTC) [MODERATOR] 


 * "Our Business is Life itself"  Umbrella  Corporation [[Image:Umbrella_Corp_Symbol-2.jpg|25px]] Communications[[Image:Umbrella Viruses.jpg|30px]] Products[MODERATOR] 


 * Kebath 'Holoree "Data Access"


 * AJ


 * Just Another Grunt Converse


 * --Petty Officer First Class [[Image:Spartan III.png|30px]]SPARTAN-G023  Comm ChannelMission History
 * RelentlessRecusant 'o the Halopedia Team http://images.wikia.com/rainbowsix/images/7/73/GDI2.jpg TALK • MESSAGE [MODERATOR] 
 * -Anno &#39;Rhculee(Recieve Commands from me)(My lance)
 * [[image:Photoshop_attack.png|35px]] Spartan-064 ,≈≈Ω≈≈De ma kh is http://www.wikia.com/skins/common/progress-wheel.gif Reporting [[Image:Private first class.jpg|25px]] •  Contributions
 * -- The State(Our Decrees and Law)(The State Alchemists we've enlisted)[[Image:ROY!.jpg|25px]] 00:06, 23 November 2007 (UTC)
 * Spartan 112 05:40, 23 November 2007 (UTC) and i dont have any special sig so BOO YA
 *  Master Gunnery Sergeant  Hank J Wimbleton IV COMHalo: Galaxy 22:20, 23 November 2007 (UTC)
 * SPARTAN-118
 * Chief Petty Officer [[Image:Jonathan.jpg|45px]] SPARTAN-039T COM Link Mission Log




 * Hollywood 02:53, 25 November 2007 (UTC)


 * CAF Master Corporal Spartan 501


 * [[Image:CommanderTony Logo.PNG|25px]] General  Tony  Talk 11/28/2007
 * --Project: Nemesis

Spartan-091

 * Role: SPARTAN-091
 * Location: Chicago, North America, Earth
 * Status: Active


 * Role: UNSC AI JLT 8011-10 "Juliet"
 * Location: SPARTAN-091 Neural Network
 * Status: Active


 * Role: 1st Lieutenant Skadi Kobolds
 * Location: Chicago area, North America, Earth
 * Status:


 * Role: Captain Sylvie Grey
 * Location: UNSC Frigate Fountain of Spring, Earth Orbit
 * Status: Active


 * Role: 2nd Lieutenant Miles Jaeger
 * Location: ODST onboard UNSC Fountain of Spring
 * Status: Active

RelentlessRecusant

 * Role: Dieter Friesen, UNSC Marine Corps 3rd Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta (SFOD-D)
 * Location: Earth
 * Status: Unknown

117649 Annihilative Repentance

 * Role: Colonel Nicholai Grevdaeht
 * Location: Luna
 * Status: Not yet active

Kebath 'Holoree

 * Role: Supreme Commander 'Holor
 * Location: Mars
 * Status: Not yet active

AJ

 * Role: SGM Arnold Lewis
 * Location: Kenya, Africa
 * Status: Active


 * Role: Brute Chieftian Jarvargus
 * Location: In Orbit around Earth
 * Status: Active

Just Another Grunt

 * Role: Sergeant Valea
 * Location: Earth
 * Status: Active


 * Role:Prophet of Vigilance
 * Location: Luna
 * Status: Active
 * Other:One of the main leaders of the Seperist forces.


 * Imogo Oth Warpol
 * Location: Luna
 * Status: Active
 * Other: Lolna's "Brother", currently gaurdign Vigilance


 * Role: Lolna Oth Waluig
 * Location: Luna
 * Status: Active
 * Other: Imogo's "brother", currently gaurding Vigilance


 * Role: Qzech'Mere
 * Location: En route to Earth
 * Status: Active
 * Other: Leader of a Loyalist Drone Lance

Spartan G-23

 * Role: SPARTAN-G023
 * Location: en route to Mars
 * Status: Active
 * Other: SPARTAN-III Gamma Company, Squad Leader
 * Role: Team Murmillo
 * Location: Mars
 * Status: Active
 * Other: SPARTAN-III Gamma Company Team
 * Role: Maverick-060
 * Location: Luna
 * Status: Active
 * Other: SPARTAN-II, Red-5
 * Role: Havargus
 * Location: Luna
 * Status: Active
 * Other: Brute Stalker
 * Role: First Lieutenant Peter Lewis
 * Location: Pacific Coast, Earth
 * Status: Active
 * Other: Marine Corps First Lieutenant overseeing the delivery of a nuke
 * Role: Special Operations Commander Kwas 'Pudmee
 * Location: UNSC Desert Fox
 * Status: Active
 * Other: Covenant Elite, Covenant Special Operations Commander

Anno 'Rhculee

 * Role: Anno 'Rhcul
 * Location: en route to Luna
 * Status: Active
 * Role: Vera 'Zenor
 * Location: en route with Anno 'Rhcul to Luna
 * Status: Active
 * Role: Senior Chief Petty Officer First Class CHRIS-087
 * Location: en route to Earth
 * Status: Active

Demakhis

 * Role: Imperial Admiral Dyr 'Jar Refos
 * Location: En route to Mars
 * Status: Active


 * Role: Major Domo Hasus 'Redonn
 * Location: En route to Mars
 * Status: Active


 * Role: Kemgor
 * Location: En route to Mars
 * Status: Active


 * Role: Ultra Sin 'Vordyee
 * Location: En route to Luna
 * Status: Active

Spartan 112

 * Role: The six Members of the Sacred Shadow Special Operations Lance
 * Location: En Route to Mars
 * Status: Active

SPARTAN-077

 * Role: Brachshaw,
 * Location: Onboard the Cleanser, with the Covenant Fleet in orbit around Earth and Luna.
 * Status: Active


 * Role: Zeta Squad
 * Location: Onboard the UNSC Autumn, in orbit around Earth.
 * Status: All members active


 * Role: Linda Farr
 * Location: Luna
 * Status: Active


 * Role: SPARTAN-077, Edward
 * Location: Onboard the UNSC Autumn, in orbit around Earth
 * Status: Active


 * Role: Rhino Squadron
 * Location: Onboard the UNSC Necropolis, awaiting orders.
 * Status: All members active

Rotaretilbo

 * Role: Fleet Admiral Sir Terrance Hood
 * Location: Aboard Cairo Station, an Orbital MAC Defence Platform, gyrosynched orbit over Cairo, Egypt, Earth
 * Status: Active
 * Other: Commanding Officer, All UNSC Space Forces
 * Role: Vice Admiral Cory Johnson
 * Location: Aboard UNSC Winston Churchill, a Marathon-class cruiser, space above Earth
 * Status: Active
 * Other: Commanding Officer, Earth UNSC Space Forces
 * Role: Commander Brandon Rebuga
 * Location: Aboard UNSC Desert Fox, a newly captured Covenant cruiser, space above Earth
 * Status: Active
 * Other: Commander of UNSC Desert Fox
 * Role: Lieutenant Bryan Hänkel
 * Location: Aboard UNSC Desert Fox, a newly captured Covenant cruiser, space above Earth
 * Status: Active
 * Other: N/A
 * Role: Master Gunnery Sergeant Hank J Wimbleton IV
 * Location: Aboard Honorable Vassal, a Covenant light cruiser, unknown location
 * Status: Active
 * Other: Unknown
 * Role: Ship Master Ligi ‘Fleomee
 * Location: Aboard UNSC Desert Fox, space above Earth
 * Status: Active
 * Other: Ship Master of Enduring Faith (aka UNSC Desert Fox); prisoner

Matt-256

 * Role: First Lieutenant Jane Parkinson
 * Location: Luna
 * Status: Active
 * Other: Commanding 5th Battalion's Third Company, which is currently stationed at Luna Station Gamma fighting off Covenant forces.
 * Role: Special Operations Major Shn'co Sthr
 * Location: Luna
 * Status: Active
 * Role: Master Gunnery Sergeant Dean Jackson
 * Location: Mars
 * Status: Active
 * Other: Commanding a small squad of Marines that are trying to disable a Covenant AA-Gun.
 * Role: Chieftain Taurus
 * Location: Paris, Europe, Earth
 * Status: Active
 * Other: Commanding a large pack of Brutes who are currently attacking Paris in France.
 * Role: Admiral Yakubu Agahowa
 * Location: Onboard the UNSC Devastator
 * Status: Active
 * Other: Commander of the Helios Defense Group stationed above Luna.
 * Role: Special Operations Commander Anfa 'Dela
 * Location: On Luna
 * Status: Active
 * Other: Commander of a Special Operations Unit.

SPARTAN-118

 * Role: Vice Admiral Will McKay
 * Location: En route to Earth on the UNSC Normandy to assist the defense of of Earth.
 * Status: Active


 * Role: Ship Master Amje 'Ailot
 * location:In route to Earth on the Everlasting Grace to 'reclaim' forerunner artifacts
 * Status: Active

Lordofmonsterisland

 * Role: Captain Jim Wilson
 * Location: Near Houston Station, in orbit of Earth, onboard the UNSC Annihilator
 * Status: Active


 * Role: Angela
 * Location: In the UNSC Annihilator
 * Status: Active
 * Other: She's an AI


 * Role: The Seven Members of the First Team Alpha
 * Location: On Luna's surface
 * Status: Active


 * Role: The Seven Pilots of the First Dragon Squadron
 * Location: Near Houston Station, in orbit of Earth, onboard the UNSC Annihilator
 * Status: Active


 * Role: The Four Members of Delta Team
 * Location: On Earth's surface
 * Status: Active


 * Role: The Eleven Members of the Squad of Unrelenting Reparation
 * Location: On Mar's surface
 * Status: Active


 * Role: The Seven Recruits for the Second Team Alpha
 * Location: On Luna's surface
 * Status: Active
 * Other: Children of the members of the first Team Alpha


 * Role: The Seven Recruits for the Second Dragon Squadron
 * Location: Near Houston Station, in orbit of Earth
 * Status: Active
 * Other: Children of the members of the first Dragon Squadron

Hollywood

 * Role: Staff Sergeant Pierce Hae-jin Hayase
 * Location: Earth
 * Status: Active


 * Role: Lieutenant Andrew Sharp
 * Location: Earth
 * Status: Active - Pilot of Pelican Romeo-017


 * Role: Lieutenant Christian Berkley
 * Location: Earth
 * Status: Active - Copilot of Pelican Romeo-017


 * Role: Crew Chief Hunter White
 * Location: Earth
 * Status: Active - Crew Chief of Pelican Romeo-017

User:Spartan 501

 * Role: The Spartan IIIs of Fireteam Romeo
 * Location: Earth, currently in Sydney, varies
 * Status: Soon to be active (pending article)


 * Role: Brock Juno
 * Location: Luna, Luna Garrision F/A/72, varies
 * Status:Active
 * Other: 145th Naval Sqaudron


 * Role: EABT Seargent Jack Richards
 * Location: Luna, Letrone Crater, Varies
 * Status: Active

CommanderTony

 * Role: Major Anthony J. Stubblefield
 * Location: Berlin, Germany, Earth
 * Branch: UNSC Marine Corps
 * Unit: 2/27 Infantry Regiment, 501st Marine Division
 * Status: Active

Nemesis Project

 * Role: Fleet Master Zund 'Nerom
 * Location: Earth
 * Other: Fleet Master of the Fleet of Imperishable Remorse

=Rules=
 * 1) There is a limit on Spartan characters. There were only 33 Spartans after genetic alteration. But, many died in battle. There are only 17 Spartans left alive. All Spartans must be approved by the Chief Moderators.
 * 2) Forces are only Covenant, Human, and Forerunner constructs. There are Flood on Earth only, but Annihilative Repentance is in charge of them.
 * 3) Please remember that the Humans are impossibly outnumbered, and that they can't win many battles without a large casualty list piling up. Covenant weapons are extremely formidable.
 * 4) Not all Elites like the idea of working with Humans. Keep this in mind.
 * 5) There is to be no "teleporting"; i.e. moving your character to another planet just to save him/her.
 * 6) Transport between Fronts is limited, and ships are hard to come by. All transits must be approved by a moderator.
 * 7) Please sign at the top of your posts and include the name of a background music track that you think would go along with your post. Put the track name and the artist in italics at the top of your post.
 * 8) Please get permission from another person before eliminating their character. If you do not, you will be penalized.
 * 9) At least try to play a Covenant character along with your Humans; this adds a little variety.
 * 10) Your character cannot come out of this fight unsccratched! He/she must have at least on injury before the RP is over (Thanks to AJ for this rule is to defeat god-modded characters!)
 * 11) If unsure about something, please ask a Moderator.
 * 12) Please consult the talk page for more in-depth rules on starships and inter-planetary defense.

=Fronts=

Earth

 * SPARTAN-091
 * Juliet
 * 1LT Skadi Kobolds
 * Captain Sylvie Grey (in orbit)
 * 2LT Miles Jaeger (in orbit)
 * SGM Arnold Lewis
 * SGT Jeff Valea
 * Senior Chief Petty Officer First Class CHRIS-087
 * Zeta Squad (in orbit)
 * Fleet Admiral Sir Terrance Hood
 * Vice Admiral Cory Johnson
 * Commander Brandon Rebuga
 * Lieutenant Bryan Hänkel
 * Ship Master Ligi ‘Fleomee
 * Chieftain Taurus
 * SPARTAN-077 (in orbit)
 * Captain Jim Wilson (in orbit)
 * Dragon Squadron (in orbit)
 * Joe Harrison
 * Michelle Walters
 * Donald Summers
 * Randall Cragin
 * Sherri Black
 * David Davis
 * June Della
 * Delta Team
 * Lead
 * Ratchet
 * Burns
 * Sarge
 * Peter Lewis
 * Special Operations Commander Kwas 'Pudmee
 * Brute Chieftian Jarvargus
 * Vice Admiral Will McKay (In route to Earth)
 * Ship Master Amje 'Ailot (In route to Earth)
 * Qzech'Mere (In route to Earth)
 * Fireteam Romeo
 * SPARTAN-G145 Scott
 * SPARTAN-G257 Maya
 * SPARTAN-G013 Jason
 * Rhino Squadron (in orbit)

Luna

 * Anno 'Rhcul
 * Vera 'Zenor
 * SPARTAN-060
 * Prophet of Vigilance
 * Imogo Oth Warpol
 * Lolna Oth Warluig
 * Linda Farr
 * Brachshaw (in orbit)
 * Nicholai Grevdaeht
 * First Lieutenant Jane Parkinson
 * Shn'co Sthr
 * Team Alpha
 * Roy Koel
 * Clyde
 * Edwin Davis
 * Lisa Davis
 * Kymberli Wilson
 * Jerry Peters
 * Marshall Black
 * Amy Black
 * Havargus
 * Admiral Yakubu Agahowa
 * Anfa 'Dela
 * 145th Naval Squadron
 * Major Brock Juno
 * Staff Seargent Jack Richards

Mars

 * Imperial Admiral Dyr 'Jar Refos
 * Major Domo Hasus 'Redonn
 * Kemgor
 * Ultra Sin 'Vordyee
 * Supreme Commander 'Holor
 * Team Murmillo
 * SPARTAN-G023
 * SPARTAN-G059
 * SPARTAN-G202
 * SPARTAN-G331
 * Special Operations Lance Sacred Shadow
 * Uasu 'Sojam
 * Ckpe 'Cinot
 * Asbe 'Cinot
 * Orbe 'Yatut
 * Eysu 'Eojus
 * Idbe 'Vadum
 * Master Gunnery Sergeant Dean Jackson
 * The Squad of Unrelenting Reparation
 * Jemsal 'Emvadson
 * Ketynic 'Ilwol
 * Nibesa
 * Jaig
 * Ank
 * Luzzda
 * Cer Muso Coun
 * Den Muso Hico
 * Jarikus
 * Samorulan
 * Ameigh Broley

=Roleplaying=

1
Breathe Into Me- Red

Jared-091, SPARTAN-II, looked at the remains of what had once been a thriving metropolis, a bustling city on the Cradle of Humanity. The cradle which had been invaded by bloodthirsty aliens bent on humanity's utter destruction. ONI had pulled him back to Earth after the Manheim campaign, and assigned him to the barracks in Chicago. The barracks, and half of its Marine garrison were now destroyed, burned away by Covenant plasma. He had to admit, the most unexpected alliance had come from the Covenant "Seperatists", as they dubbed themselves. He heard that his brother-in-arms, John, was now working closely with the Elite leader, The Arbiter, but had no idea where they were.

His current objective was to defend the city's last remaining anti-air defenses, which kept the Covenant capital ships off of the giant generators that powered the Super MACs in orbit. Waves of Brutes, Grunts and Jackals had already assaulted his position, but his ODSTs and their officer, a former ONI Valkyrie named Skadi Kobolds, had thrown them back each and every time.

"We could have handled them ourselves, I'm sure, but their help is nice," the voice in his head quipped in an angelic tone of flippancy.

"Sure, I know. We want as many humans left alive as possible, though Juliet.  Keeping them with me helps them survive that much longer," he said, reloading his SRS99C-AM4 sniper's rifle. Another Brute chieftan swinging a gravity hammer was brought down with a headshot. The Grunts under his command panicked, but were pressed forward by the Brute pack behind them, charging straight into the withering hail of fire laid down by Skadi's turrets and Scorpion.

The commander of the last armored vehicle at the sigt hollered in approval as his gunner blew away a Phantom dropship still entangled in the act of dropping off its troops. Blue fire dimmed Jared's blast-shield as the craft exploded, killing the nearest Covenant. An ear-splitting roar deafened him temporarily as the SAM-IRX missile launcher behind him sent its speeding projectiles after a Seraph fighter that strayed too close to the generator complex.

"I wish we had more of us," Jared sighed, sighting back in on the oncoming Loyalists.

"So do I, Jared. So do I."

 SPARTAN-091  |Admin|   HelmetComm  01:15, 28 November 2007 (UTC)

2
Lewis pulled back the bolt on his BR-55HB SR. Their mission was to ambush a pack of brutes, one led by a Cheftain. Only the best Marines in his regiment were selected and he was picked to be the leader. A SPARTAN-I, Lewis knew more about combat than some of the Generals. He turned and he saw two members of his squad, fumbling with M7 SMGs. Lewis picked one up, silently cleared the bolt, reinserted the magizine, and fired into a nearby tree. He handed the weapon back to the Marine, who by the rank shown on his HUD was a Corporal. Lewis picked up his Sergeants Cap, and looked at the sky. In the distance, a flight of Hornets were in fierce combat with banshees. Their missiles made contrails in the sky. One of the banshees made a tight turn, and fired its' fuel rod cannon at the Hornet. The hornet stood still for a while, then it burst into flames. The body of the vehicle spun, fire spewing from its aft section. He followed the vehicle down into the forest. He was so wrapped up in the battle above him, he was spooked by a member of the assault squad. He was a young Private, probably no older than 16 Lewis thought. The UNSC was running low on personnel, and they went to conscripting anybody they could get their hands on.

"Sergeant Major... I'm scared..." said the Private. "Its ok son, just keep your eyes front and your finger on the trigger." "Sergeant Major... have you ever been scared?" asked the Private. "Plenty of times kid... plenty of times."

Lewis walked away from the Private, patting him on his back. Lewis took out his M6D Pistol, checked it and chambered its' explosive fifty caliber round. He slid it back into the holster, and he took out his M7 from his chest holster. He checked its sights, checked the magizine, and slid the butt out. He re-inserted the stock and put the M7 back into its proper place. The other Marines were checking their weapons, a mixture of MA5Cs, M7s, M6Gs, BR-55HB SRs and two SRS-99D S2-AMs. Lewis felt that this finely trained assault force was ready. He took out his TACMAP and checked the location. A former UNSC Camp... they probably have already eaten the survivors. Lewis thought. He spun his arm in the "rally" signal and they began to move out.

-- AJ

3
EARTH

//December 12th, 2552, 1200 Hours// //Sol System, Terra// //Australia, Sydney, HIGHCOM Facility Bravo-6//

Thick plumes of dark black acrid smoke rose up into the sky, dissipating slowly in the bright noon light. The putrid stench of sweat and stale fear covered the towering city and military bases. Sirens wailed in the distance, and cracked glass craters glistened in the sunlight. Burning wreckage of vehicles and aircraft littered the narrow streets, and burnt and charred bodies lay everywhere, some still smoking. Dead civilians lay on the ground, dirty with the city’s waste, ragged holes in their fashionable core world clothing. MA5C and BR55HB SR rifles, dropped from fleeing or dead soldiers lay on the ground; ammo counters still flickering, many with cooled spikes and burned holes in them. Injured humans crawled over the hot ground, blood leaking profusely from wounds, moaning and crying out for help.

The clawed feet of a pair of Jackals emerged from a low lying one story officer building, clacking in delight, plasma pistols still, smoking, and the sound of the screams just now dissipating. They moved dartingly through the body littered area, unmercifully gunning down survivors. Some tried to flee, others accepted their death with courage and dignity; others still tried to hide, but the alien’s keen senses proved their efforts worthless. A pair of banshee fliers swooped overhead, scanning the city. Pieces of broken concrete from buildings provided hiding places for some, but few were so lucky. Covenant troops moved methodically through the city, rounding up survivors, herding them into tight nit groups, and then letting savage and depraved grunts tear through them.

Two Jackals moved into a dark alleyway, sweeping it for survivors, sniffing the air, and scanning the shadows with their bright yellow eyes. They moved cautiously into the alley, pistols up, sweeping them over the area in wide circles. Suddenly, a muffled shot resounded through the alley, and one dropped, a glowing spike through its forehead. The other turned, its face live with anger, and then it stopped, looked down, and saw a pair of blades from a brute spiker sticking through its chest. It looked down for a moment, and then slumped over into a pool of its own blood.

Half a dozen grunts trotted through a downtown plaza, plasma pistols and needlers clipped to their thighs and backs. Their patrol route was simple, and they were not horribly bright. However, they were highly vicious; they were among those who were allowed to tear the humans apart with their teeth. Among these grunts was one known as Dipgab, a slightly more intelligent grunt than normal. Still, he was not prepared for what would quickly happen. They moved out of the plaza, into an office building. Dipgab split his squad of twenty into five groups of four, and then sent them to sweep the base. He ushered his group behind him, hefting his plasma pistol in his small stubby hands.

However, when he tried to contact his first group, they did not respond. But Dipgab wasn’t worried; he was not horribly smart, and the fact that they did not answer was not interpreted as anything significant, despite the fact that they were in the middle of a war zone. However, when the second, third, and fourth groups did not respond at all, and he heard detonations, he almost wet himself. As he tried to gather his wits, he noticed a sharp clacking sound, which they had taught him in training to associate with human weapons. Suddenly, something hot and sharp cut through his abdomen, and he flopped to the ground. His vision grew hazy, and the world around him seemed blurred; all he could see was his bright, cyan colored blood leaking out of a half dozen holes in his stomach. He rolled over, spotting three of his friends and squad mates next to him. Then he saw the attacker, clad in black armor, and partially cloaked like some kind of demon ghost. He barely managed to scream, before he saw the figure rack it's weapon's slide and fire. Everything went dark.

Almost three kilometers away, a group of Brutes sat in the temporary encampment that they had set up, devouring pieces of meat that they had stolen from the human fresheners. Suddenly, a single one dropped dead, its next broken and twisted. The remaining members stood up and roared, but they were unsure where the attack was coming from. A single sniper bullet flash out, slicing through the heads of three brutes at once. The two remaining brutes turned to run, only to see a frag grenade at their feet. It detonated in a plume of shrapnel and heat, shredding their bodies like tissue paper.

Across the city, a force assembled to hunt down the unknown killer or killers of these groups. A group of almost two hundred swept the city, killing everything, but the ghostly attackers were no where to be found. However, they left something to remember them by: a Fury Tactical Nuclear Warhead. During the sweep, no one noticed the three small outlines slipping into the outback, now kept as a wildlife preserve. Exactly two hours, ten minutes, and seventeen seconds later, the warhead detonating, obliterating what was left of the city. Hundreds of marines, ODSTs, and other personnel had died defending it. A fiery plume rushed out and consumed the buildings, and anyone who might have noticed anything never noticed anything every again.

LUNA

//December 12th, 2552, 1200 Hours// //Sol System, Lunar Surface// //Letronne Crater, Lunar Complex G/T/39 //

Red warning lights signaling for combat procedures flashed in circles through a labyrinth of tunnels, and alarm klaxons blared painfully loud. The tunnels were filled to the brim with movement; soldiers, battle-hardened EABTs, moving through to their rally points in their large visored armor, pilots, willing to fly and fight and die in the cockpit, and technicians, keeping the base alive. Squads rallied at airlocks, and pilots sealed themselves into the cockpit of Rapier interceptors, trusting training and technology and even luck to get them through the hours and days ahead.

The command center of the lunar garrison in the Letronne crater was buzzing with activity. Technicians, command personnel, and others frantically talked over the problem they now faced. On the view screen at the center of the command center, a tactical map of the crater, and the space beyond it had been laid out; detailing the desperate tactical situation they were in. A large oval was the center of the screen, and inside it was to large Xs in the middle, as well as seven small circles, some of which were solid, some of which were blinking rapidly, and others were faded, with red circles around them. Blue arrows dotted the space near these “nodes” and were angled towards the large Xs, signaling they were returning to base.

In the middle of what seemed like a perfect storm, Commander Gregory Thompson stood apparently calmly, though he was not so calm on the inside. All around him, Lieutenants and aides rushed past, delivering messages about their situation. But to their confusion, he ignored them, and stood staring at the view screen, perhaps for a spark of inspiration. Little did they know that he was not ignoring them at all, but was in fact frozen with fear, and the world around him seemed to be moving dizzyingly fast.

“Perimeter cameras are down, bat-packs got EMPed!”

“Contact lost with Node Golf, hailing!”

“I’ve got that radar ghost again; it’s moving on Southwest vector!”

“Flak guns in mountain sector twelve are down; I think the backup power supply just got pulse!”

“Toon A-J arriving at the base, they require immediate medical attention, dispatch now.”

All of these seemed to flow over Gregory, he was so terrified. He had specifically gotten a reassignment to Luna after seeing several worlds glassed, and several friends murdered. Luna was in the Sol system; it was supposed to be quiet. He never thought deep down that the war would ever reach Sol. But it had. Even now, Covenant troops were encircling his base, and with them jamming his maser and radar, he couldn’t call for help. Searching for some relief, he reached down into his shirt slowly and drew a highly illegal stimulant that he had procured from a Russian dealer on his leave Earth side. No one noticed him snort it quickly, and for a moment, there was blessed oblivion.

//December 12th, 2552, 1300 Hours// //Sol System, Lunar Surface// //Letronne Crater, Node Golf//

A boiling blue electric sun lit the air for a moment, and then crashed with devastating force into the main complex of Node H, known as the Putting Range to most of the EABTs, due to its phonetic name. Deep in trenches and cover, dozens of EABTs from D and E platoons of the 117th EABT Division scrambled as artillery fire rained down on them. Deep in the distance, a pair of hulking scarab tanks and two dozen wraiths rained death down on the small human force of 80, impossible odds. Covenant infantry charged, plasma and spike weapons blazing, and dozens fell in heaps of charred and spiky flesh. Fire from MA5B/VC and MA5C/VC Assault Rifles cut through the Covenant infantry from well placed and well aimed shots, but the hoard was too large.

A devastating swath of green light flared, and a beam of plasma the size of a warthog exploded from the main cannon of the first scarab tank. Heat boiled away flesh and bone in an instant, and the humans fled before the unstoppable onslaught. Left and right, men and women fell, glowing spikes or burning plasma enveloping them. Gunfire lit the night, but it was rare, as more and more troops turned and fled or were cut down. A trio of bright blue spheres crashed into the small structure of the Putting Range, and when the plasma billowed away, all that was left was a crater, shining in the reflected light of Sol. There were no prisoners; not with the Covenant, not for human filth. Single spikes and bolts of plasma hit the craniums of any to injure to fight back or run, killing them instantly. In vacuum, no one heard them scream.

Only half a dozen injured troops managed to escape the slaughter, and limp back to the UNSC base. Among these was Staff Sergeant Jack Richards, the only remaining member of his squadron. When the group of beleaguered EABTs finally spotted the garrison, there hearts jumped for joy. They were welcomed into the base among other survivors from similar massacres that were happening as the Covenant swept the flanks and prepared to assault the main base. Some groups were better off than Jack’s, others were worse. However, they were all sick with dread and grief, shocked by the death of their friends in the last few hours.

Jack was similarly stunned, but as a Sergeant, he had duties to perform. He moved throughout the small part of the garrison were the survivors gathered, giving comfort and food, as well as weapons and ammunition. Before long, the EABT survivors had come to terms with their grief, and their sorrow had transformed into a burning desire for revenge. With vengeance in their hearts, they moved out to positions around the base, preparing for combat.

Within the hour, the base was in much better shape than before. Squads of seasoned troops patrolled the perimeter, and snipers were perched on the hill to the North, weapons ready. A single mythos tank stood in the center of the base, its main cannon rippling with energy, its crew on high alert. Trenches were dug, sand bags laid, and turrets placed and linked to large ammo bases in the center of the complex. The base was ready for war, and the Covenant would happily oblige.

//December 12th, 2552, 1500 Hours// //Sol System, Lunar Surface, 3 Miles beneath surface// //Letronne Crater, Luna Garrison F/A/72//

In the darkened hangar, sixty sleek, well maintained, and deadly Rapier interceptors sat silently in their launch pads inside the vertical shaft 100 yards long and wide. The Interceptors were motionless, and beautiful to the proper eye, in the way that a well maintained rifle was beautiful. The ship’s sleek lines and powerful engines gave it half again as much thrust as the common Longsword and its simple controls made a single pilot using it an option. The ship’s shining black finish gleamed in the reflected light of alarm lights, making it shine with a red sheen.

In the cockpit of this small but powerful fighter, a single pilot sat at the controls, casually smoking a Sweet Williams cigar, unusual for a fighter pilot. It went against UNSC regulations, but Major Brock Juno didn’t care much for regulations. His hair was a mullet of black, and a dozen scars on his face were result of illegal fighting, drunken bar disputes, and other elicit activities. Juno was his own man, not the UNSC’s, and though he cared for his species and for his pilots, more so than even he realized, he also loved pissing people off, something that had kept him from promotion for years, despite his talent in the cockpit, and which had landed him a backwater assignment such as Luna.

However he didn’t care; he got to help train the new jockeys straight out of launch, and humble them a bit too. Fighter pilots were notoriously arrogant, especially just out of the academy; he felt that it was his duty to wizen them up a bit (that, and he just loved bustin their balls). With the pungent smell of his Sweet Williams filling his cockpit, Juno felt more at peace than he’d been for a long time; this was partly because of the intoxication, and partly because he knew he’d finally see some real action, not just training recruits. He hadn’t seen combat for years, and even though his skill had not decreased over time, he was anxious to see the enemy once again, and in his new Rapier, no less.

Juno knew that his role in this soon-to-be battle was dangerous. If the infantry managed to create a gap that the five squadrons in Luna Garrison F/A/72 could exploit, Brock and sixty other pilots would launch, and attempt to destroy a covenant picket craft just beyond the mountains, barely out of range of the hidden artillery hidden in their cliff sides. In the meantime, every pilot was on standby, and no one would launch until proper authorization was given.

However, Juno didn’t care about the wait; better here in the cockpit with his Sweet Williams and with his small portable COMM pad blaring his favorite music than out there, trying to escape the crowds of EABTs moving throughout the place. He was absolutely content to stay right where he was, and see what happened next.

Spartan 501 01:50, 28 November 2007 (UTC)

4
The Orbital Stealth Insertion Pod gave a loud shake as it smashed into the lush green Martian field. James opened up the door and walked out. He made sure that the M19 SSM Rocket Launcher was full on ammo and did the same for his MA5K SD Carbine. Full. Words flashed across his HUD as the orders were all too clear. Romeo Company of the 23rd Marine Battalion and his team were under heavy fire from a pair of Wraith Mortar Tanks. HIGHCOM sent in air support but an Anti-Air Wraith stopped them cold. They decided that a marine assault would loose too many lives so they sent in a single stealth unit. James new he stood no chance on his own against the Loyalists. He needed his team if he was going to get through the battle alive. The Photo-Reactive panels began to change colour in order to blend in with the terrain as he moved on. It was a long walk to the enemy wraiths.

First Lieutenant Peter Lewis looked over the serene ocean. It was calm. He sighed and looked at the crewmen. “So commander, how long till we get to Compton?” He asked. A covenant CCS-Class Battlecruiser had recently landed above the city of Compton on the Californian coast. The marines in the city were immediately overwhelmed and massacred, and only one-tenth of the civilians had been evacuated. The remaining marines were forced to resort to guerrilla warfare until they could get reinforcements. Unfortunately, HIGHCOM had no men to spare. They decided that the only option left was to send a company of marines into the city with a nuke, and detonate it while the cruiser’s shields were down. The only problem was, HIGHCOM had no ships to spare from orbit so they were forced to use a civilian cargo vessel meant for the sea. “Not good sir, we have a Phantom closing in fast!” Yelled the crewman at radar. “That answer our question?” the commander said. “Sergeant, what’s the best thing we got to use against these guys?” Asked Lewis. “Just a few M202 XP SAWs and a M19-B SAM Missile Launcher sir.” Replied the NCO. Lewis cursed. “Okay then, I want you to get the M19 and the M202s to get to a good position so that they have a clear line of fire at the seraph turrets. The more of those bastards that we can nail before the exit the dropship the better.” Order Lewis. The marines went to their positions as the phantom came down. Lewis loaded a clip into his M7 SMG and took cover as the phantom came down. As soon as its side doors opened the marines opened fire. The combined fire managed to destroy the phantom’s turrets and the rest of the marines came out of cover and fired in unison. As the two SAMs struck the side of the phantom the marines stopped firing for a second. As soon as that happened three brutes jumped out of the badly damaged phantom. The first one was a red-armoured brute chieftain wielding a gravity hammer. The second was a red-armoured Brute Captain, and the third was a brute with no armour and a piece of shrapnel in his arm. The Chieftain smashed his hammer and the surrounding went flying back and smashed into the cargo boxes. Lewis fired his M7 into the oncoming Chieftain, but the brute simply smashed nearby marines to bits as it charged towards Lewis. Lewis’ M7 clicked empty as the Chieftain brought its hammer to bear, but before it could swing, as full clip from an SRS99D went into the back of its head. The other two brutes fell as well. Lewis sighed. “The LZ is coming into view! ETA is 13 minutes!” Yelled a crewman.

The jackal crumpled as its suit decompressed in space. Before the BR round could hit the ground, Maverick fired another well-placed shot at the next jackal. He floated in space towards the decompression chamber and entered.

--<font color="#000000">Petty Officer First Class <font color="#000000">SPARTAN-G023 <font color="#006400"> Comm Channel<font color="#000000">Mission History 02:28, 28 November 2007 (UTC)

5
LUNA

//Sol System, Lunar Surface, descending into atmosphere//

The Phantom cruised low, slowly nearing the surface of the enormous orb of rock and dust that the humans called Luna. Within the dropship, Covenant Sangheili Separatists prepared for landing and contacting the humans on the moon. Among them, a pair of SpecOps Elites, one male, one female, oversaw the preparations. The male, named Anno ‘Rhcul, said to the female, Vera ‘Zenor “This ship should slip through the Loyalist ship’s orbit. Then we can aid the humans in their effort to repel the Loyalists” ‘Zenor replied “Anno, I can’t shake the feeling that something bad is going to happen.” ‘Rhcul reached out and placed his hand on her shoulder. “Do not worry, Vera. Those stinking Jiralhanae-“ Suddenly, the Phantom shook. ‘Rhcul looked rapidly around the ship, as if the hull would come to pieces at any moment. “Seraphs?! How the hell did those dammed apes figure out we were here?!” The pilot yelled “Sir! I have to take the Phantom into an emergency landing!” The Phantom shuddered again as it lurched into the atmosphere. It began to spin, and ‘Rhcul glimpsed the chaos that occurred below. It was no wonder the Seraphs had found them. They had flown right into the midst of battle. The Phantom lurched again, and careened towards the ground. ‘Rhcul yelled out “Brace for impact!”

-=-=-=-=-=-=--=-===-=-=-=-=--=-=--=-=-=-=-=-=--=-=--=-=-=--=--=-=--=--=-=

The Jackal sniffed at the remains of the Phantom. The wreckage had crushed several Grunts, Jackals, and one Brute. It leaned down to inspect the ruined cowls of the ship. A hand shot up and grasped its neck. The Jackal gurgle at the grip squeezed the life out of it. The Jackal’s life finally left it, and the hand released the lifeless corpse. ‘Rhcul pulled himself out through the hole in the ship’s side, and then paused to help ‘Zenor from the wreckage. “Are you alright, Vera?” She nodded. “I’ll live.” ‘Rhcul looked out over the moonscape. After a few moments of searching, ‘Rhcul found an Energy Sword, two Plasma Rifles, and a Carbine. He handed ‘Zenor the Energy Sword and the Carbine, claiming the Rifles for himself. They both turned to the dangerous close battle, and ran towards the chaos. -Anno &#39;Rhculee(Recieve Commands from me)(My lance)

6
Location: Arkel Province, Luna, Sol System

Time: December 12th, 2552. 1700 hours.

Colonel Grevdaeht breathed in, the air from his oxygen tank tasting odd. Unnatural. The man had always hated small confines, and Nicholai's suit was seemingly air-tight.

"How far from the complex?" the Colonel was anxious to get back into the complex again. Small though it was, it had a steady supply of "good" air, as well as much more ammo and rations. Since the start of their mini-mission, which had started about 5 hours ago, ammo and oxygen were steadily draining away. Nicholai only had about half of what he'd started with.

Through the heavy metal of his armor's gauntlet, Nicholai could hardly feel his weapon. It was a standard issue G-IV M7J7 Carbine. He struggled to remember; how many of his former 840 rounds did he use up? How many lifeless metal shells were embedded in the bodies of dead Covenant, floating aimlessly in the dark void of space? Too many. He checked his HUD's clock again, and saw that barely a minute had passed. This took god damned too long.

The fellow CCS member's reply was a minute late. He was no doubt checking his map on his HUD. "About a mile left, sir." A mile? Nicholai knew he could walk the distance, but he was starving... add on to that the fact that he'd hardly gotten a minute of sleep in the past half-week, and the fact that he'd witnessed a quarter of his squad die at the hands of one Brute Chieftain.

"Is there a chance we might get an air-lift?" the query was from Dallas; the newest member of Nicholai's squad. "Not a chance. For one thing, the space from here to the base is chock full of Covenant forces... besides, there's about ten banshees circling the area" the answer was not Colonel Grevdaeht's, but rather, Spencer, the SPARTAN-III. He'd refused to give up his armor, and his SPI made him stick out, when he wasn't nearly invisible of course. At times, Nicholai couldn't even spot him among his squad, and at others, he was the most prominent figure in the group, shining bright green among a group of blackish silver.

But still, Nicholai wished there could be an aerial removal. The squad simply didn't have enough resources to get through alive. This was potentially suicide.

However, that was what CCS troops were trained to do. Highly expendable. Just like the SPARTAN-IIIs. Just like Spencer Aragold.

--"Seek the truth and, perhaps, you will find it"  Monitor  of Installation-07 CommunicationsContributions

7
EARTH

The UNSC Battleship Normandy burst out of slipspace after half a day of travel form a distant battlefield. "Wow!" Vice Admiral Will McKay gasped as the ship decellerated. "Alright, shall we get to work. Order the rest of Task Force 14 to form up in attack formation." Vice Admiral McKay ordered. Task Force 14 consists of 1 Yorktown-class Battleship, 2 Marathon-class crusiers, 6 Destroyers, and 14 Frigates. The total amount firepower for the lazy person is as follows: 1 super MAC cannon, 37 Heavy MAC cannons, 40 SHIVA nuclear missles, 1 NOVA (gathering dust), and thousands upon thosands of Archer missles. "Open fire on the nearest ships!" the vice Admiral ordered. The fleet accelerated and fired it MAC guns, launched 4 SHIVA nuclear missles, and fired many Archer missles. The MAC slugs flew through space in there trademark way and here is what happened: Grand total so far; UNSC: 44 Ships, Covenant:1 Ship.
 * The Super MAC slug hit a supercarrier, killing it.
 * Heavy MACS hit 2 crusiers, cripping them, 4 destroyers, cripping or obliverating them, and 1 Battlecrusier, doing servere damage.
 * The 4 SHIVA missles detonated in diffrent places, causing widespead damage, death, and pain. Dozens of ships were destroyed or crippled. Dozens more had downed shilds.
 * The Archers did their thing, blowing chunks out of ships and murdering Covenant. A total of 10 ships destoyed.

8
Time Unknown, Date Unknown, Location Unknown

Questions. ''Where? What? Why? When?'' They all ran through his head at once. How did I get here? All he could feel was the cold floor. All he could see was the ceiling. The purple ceiling. This place is Covenant. He tried to look to his side, but couldn’t. He couldn’t move. He tried to move his arm. It too would not answer his mind’s call. Neither would his other arm. Nor his legs.

''Be still for you are in the presence of the very gods!' He thought. But it wasn’t him. It was a new voice in his head, a deeper, gravely sort of voice. He shut his eyes, concentrating.

''What is going on? What Covenant trick is this?''

''Fool! The Covenant is as the ground on which the foot trods!''

Then is ONI messing with my head?

You humans and your organizations are naught but bait!

What then?

All will be revealed; until then, in this grave you shall wait.

''Good time? How long have I been here?''

All this time goes by and still you pester me with question?

How did I get here?

''We could not convert you. Desist; that was no suggestion.''

Convert?

''Oh yes. But this will be explained all in good time, human.''

''What holds me here? I feel no bindings?''

In the empty grave, there is no movement; ‘tis my lumen.

''We shall see. We shall see.'' The invading presence drained from Master Gunnery Sergeant Hank J Winbleton IV’s mind.

D + 00:19:46 (Master Gunnery Sergeant Wimbleton Mission Clock) \ Aboard unknown ship, unknown location

MOVE! Hank willed himself. Still nothing. He had been trying to break the iron grip this other being had on him for at least twenty minutes since he had awaken. He had tried everything that came to mind. Nothing worked. He had a thought. What if he were to think about something that would tie up the mental intrusion?

I cannot be defeated by just any mere mortal. the voice replied, as if on cue.

Good thing I'm not any old mortal, Hank replied. Hank searched his memory for something extremely difficult. Then he had it. 1/1-1/3+1/5-1/7+1/9-1/11+1/13... His brow twitched.

There is no escape from which place you are now being held! the voice demanded.

...-1/15+1/17-1/19+1/21-1/23+1/25-1/27...

There will be no mercy given, and there will be no grace! the voice shouted in his head. He continued his mathematical equation. Hank brought his right hand in front of his face. A smile widened across his face. He continued to calculate in the back of his mind. He was still in his uniform. The only injury he could surmise was a puncture wound at the base of his neck. It seemed odd that it didn’t hurt at all. Hank’s guns were gone, but when he felt his back, his katana was still there, sown covertly into the uniform. He drew it and smiled even wider.

“Let’s find out who you really are!” Hank shouted. He paused and looked around. He was in a room. There were two doors. One was red, signifying that it was locked. The other was white. Hank walked up and the door flashed several times and chimed before sliding open.

They were everywhere. They were on the floor. They were on the walls. They were on the ceiling. They were atop each other. The Flood is here. Hank stopped. What can I do?

You can surrender now, and we will feast upon your flesh, the voice weakly ranted, having no pull over him anymore.

“No!” he shouted in defiance. Hank suddenly understood what the puncture wound was, and what the voice had meant by convert. He couldn’t be infected! He didn’t know how, but it seemed to be true. Hank looked to his left down a corridor. Just what I need. There stood a human combat form holding an SMG. Its back was turned to him. He rushed forward and sliced it first across the waste, cleaving it cleanly in half, and then again cleanly from top to bottom. He picked up the fallen M7. Turning, he fired on the swarm. After only a few seconds, the corridor was clear and Hank was out of ammo.

D + 00:21:04 (Master Gunnery Sergeant Wimbleton Mission Clock) \ Aboard unknown ship, unknown location

Hank dropped the spent M7 and shifted his beautiful katana to his right hand. It was true that he could wield it just as well in his left, but he still preferred his right. Hank took a moment to consider the work of art his ancestor had forged so many centuries ago. The blade was made on an unknown metal. Diamonds couldn’t even scratch the surface. On it, written in Thai, an ancient and forgotten language, it read บดเยี ทำสัำย ม่ำ, which translated to Crush, Kill, Destroy. The blade was very fine, so fine that it could slice through steel like it was butter. Were this not so, Hank would surely not think it a practical weapon to use against the Elites with their shields and armor. Hank’s katana had never let him down, and he doubted it would let him down now.

Hank walked into the next room. It seemed to have once been an armory. On the right, Hank saw his helmet, his guns, and most importantly, his red shades. Hank sheathed his katana and approached the stack. He put the shades on, then the helmet, and finally holstered his two M7s, slung the MA5B across his back, and picked up one of the two M90s. The door across the way blinked and a chime sounded to alert Hank that the door was about to open. Hank grabbed an M9 fragmentation grenade from the table, primed it, and threw it too the door. As the door opened, revealing a clutch of combat forms, Elites this time, the grenade exploded, splattering the wall with green goo.

“It’s party time!” Hank shouted, grabbing up the rest of the grenades and then his second shotgun. He checked that both were fully loaded, and then set out through the door. A single combat form stood at the end of the corridor. He fired both shotguns simultaneously. The combat form was nearly shorn in half by the blasts. Hank flipped the shotguns up through the air, grabbing each by the pumps. He pumped them, and then flipped them back into his hands, fingers on the triggers. Two expended shells dropped to his feet. He’d have to conserve ammo. He only had two packs of sixty rounds in his small rucksack. Hank didn’t know where he was, but he figured he would have to get to the bridge to find the source of his problems. He had gotten as far on the math equation as he could in his head without concentrating, remembering down to the fiftieth decimal place. Now he had to focus as he listed each digit out.

Three. Hank charged down a corridor, hooked right, and blasted two carrier forms at range. Point. Both exploded, showering Hank with bits of flesh and green coagulation. One. Hank ran on, coming to a long service corridor. Four. The corridor was heavily guarded. One. A group of combat forms several meters ahead opened fire. Five. Hank dove into a roll around a bulkhead. Nine. Hank primed a grenade. Two. He threw it at the group and was rewarded by a shower of parts. Six. A group of carrier forms rushed forward. Five. Hank rolled another grenade forward. Three. There was another explosion, followed by a series of explosions. Five. Hank sprinted from cover. Eight. Hank blasted a combat form on the run. Nine. Hank didn’t have time to stop and cock the shotgun, so he slung it. Seven. Hank came to another group of combat forms and infection forms. Nine. Hank blew them away with his remaining shotgun. Three. Hank slung the shotgun and drew his assault rifle. Two. He rushed through another door. Three. He was in the bridge.

D + 00:24:37 (Master Gunnery Sergeant Wimbleton Mission Clock) \ Aboard unknown ship, unknown location

Submit to my indomitable will right this instant, it demanded.

Four! Hank struggled to regain control. Six! What Hank saw stunned him. Two! Before him, encompassing almost the entire bridge, was a single Flood entity of some sort. Six! Hank didn’t know what to make of it, having only encountered infection, combat, and carrier forms. Four! This was definitely the source of the iron will in his mind. Three! It must be using some mixture of Covenant technology. Three! If the Flood had ships, then all was lost. Eight! But Hank couldn’t fight this giant mass of flesh and tentacles. Three!

SUMBIT NOW BEFORE I TEAR YOU LIMB FROM UNHOLY LIMB!

''TWO! SEVEN! NINE!'' Hank clenched his fists in concentration. Five! He had to get out of here. Zero! There must be another way to win. Two! Hank spun on his heels and ran out of the room. Eight. He turned down a corridor. Eight. He only had fifteen digits left. Four. Hank ran, spraying and slicing as he went, down a service corridor. One. He came to another room. Nine. The door blinked thrice, chimed, and then slid open. Seven. He stepped in. One. Hank glanced around, looking for something vital. Six. There, that thick cable looked like it had some sort of major purpose. Nine. Hank took up his sword and easily sliced a neat line through the cable and the metal around it, cleanly severing it. Three. He did so a second time and then pried a piece of cable out, cutting the connection. Nine. The ship jerked as the engines and controls disconnected. Nine. Hank ran on towards the escape pods. Three. The ship violently decelerated and exited Slipspace, which surprised Hank enough that he nearly toppled over, not knowing that they had been in Slipspace at all. Seven. Hank jumped into an escape pod, which roughly similarly shaped to the Bumblebee lifepod used by the UNSC. Five. He hit one of the buttons and the door behind him sealed shut and a panel slid away to reveal controls. One. Hank began prepping for launch. Zero. That was as far as Hank knew.

Stay with me in my hollow grave for death is what you wish! Hank tightened every muscle in his body as if he were experiencing ten gees and then managed to bash his head into the launch mechanism. The escape pod blasted away from the ship. Hank feinted from mental stress.

Behind him, the Covenant light cruiser Honorable Vassal began accelerating uncontrollably. The pinch fusion reactors were no longer receiving responses from the control room, and as such, were increasing output at an uncontrolled rate. The reactors redlined. The Honorable Vassal sped into a nearby moon before exploding in a giant nuclear fireball. The explosion rocked the single escape pod violently, jarring Hank from his feint. He checked for his weapons. His sword was dug down to the hilt into the floor of the pod and one of his shotguns was still strapped over his back, but beyond that, he was unarmed. Of course, unarmed had little to do with lethality when it came to Hank.

1419 Hours, October 29, 2552 (Military Calendar) \ Sol System, Captured Covenant Cruiser UNSC Desert Fox

“Belay that!” Commander Brandon Rebuga shouted. The AI, Janglur Swifteye, gave him an odd look, but almost immediately understood. On the central screen, a Slipspace rupture opened, and the Honorable Vassal reappeared. On its port side, near the aft, an explosion ripped a huge chunk of its engines away.

“Sir, the engines have redlined. The ship is going to crash into Luna.”

“What is Hank up to?” Commander Rebuga wondered aloud. They all watched in silence as another explosion bloomed across the ship’s hull.

“I’m tracking a Covenant escape pod leaving the Honorable Vassal. It’s a ways out there.”

“Life signs?”

“From the ship or from the escape pod?”

“Both!”

“I’m running a thermal scan. The ship shows...lots of bodies. They’re all moving, but none of them are hot enough to be alive.”

“The Flood,” Commander Rebuga stated coldly. “I thought we saw the last of them at Installation 03!”

“The bridge is red hot. No idea what sort of anomaly this is.”

“What do you mean? Are there still crew in the bridge?”

“No, I mean the entire bridge is filled with something very alive...the escape pod reads one life sign.”

“That’ll be Hank. What is his current trajectory?”

“Currently heading towards the UNSC Autumn. It has a long ways to go, though. It should take him several days to make the journey from our position to the UNSC formations around Earth. Had he bailed out of the ship later, he would have a considerably shorter trip.”

“As long as he’s heading towards friends and not foes. Track the Honorable Vassal. Continue to scan for life signs. The Flood must not be allowed to spread!” The bridge crew watched as the Covenant ship lazily cruised into Luna, Earth’s only moon, leaving a blackened crater.

1834 Hours, November 3, 2552 (Military Calendar) \ Sol System, Captured Covenant Cruiser UNSC Desert Fox

Four days had passed. The fighting had died down. The Covenant was in disarray, and Commander Rebuga was intent on exploiting that. His captured cruiser was in the thick of the enemy, along with the UNSC Winston Churchill. Thus far, there had been no contact with the UNSC formed around Earth. The Vice Admiral was intent on mopping up the Covenant fleet before it regrouped and attacked Earth again.

“Sir, receiving a priority COM from the UNSC Winston Churchill. The Vice Admiral wants to talk with us,” Lieutenant Basham reported.

“Put him on.”

“Commander Rebuga, with all due respect, how long does it take to spin up a Covenant Slipspace drive?” Vice Admiral Johnson asked.

“Sir, the ship we were going to pursue has reentered the system, and is on a crash course with Luna.” The joke, which the Vice Admiral had been pestering the Commander about for four days, had gotten stale.

“''Well, in that case, I have important news for you. I managed to contact Fleet Admiral Terrance Hood, who is commanding all UNSC forces in the Sol System from an orbital defense platform above Earth. Apparently, the Elites are our friends.''”

“Wha?!”

“''I know, it’s hard to believe, but it’s true. Apparently, SPARTAN one-one-seven made friends with some important Elite character, goes by the Arbiter, I think, and now we’re all kissing and making up.''”

“So what’s all the fighting going on still? I see plenty of Covenant vessels engaging UNSC vessels, and vice versa.”

“''Apparently the Prophets, which are sort of like the rulers of the Covenant, betrayed the Elites, and established the Brutes, you remember them, as the new backbone of the Covenant. The Elites are none too happy.''”

“I can imagine.” The Commander turned to the prisoner. “Here that, split-jaw? We’re supposed to be friends.” Ligi ‘Fleomee looked at the commander, mistrust in his eyes.

“If what your leader says is true and the San’Shyuum have allied with the Jiralhanae and betrayed my people, then I am your friend, human.”

D + 46:04:57 (Master Gunnery Sergeant Wimbleton Mission Clock) \ Space

Hank silently cursed at himself for the fiftieth time for bailing out of the ship so early. It had taken him two days to make the journey to a nearby ship. Hank keyed the COM on the escape pod. No response. He keyed it again. Still nothing. Hank gave up, again, on the COM. This was bad. A UNSC ship wasn’t just going to allow a Covenant escape pod to dock. They would likely target him and blow him out of the sky. Hank shouted and expletive and slammed his fists on the panel.

“Identify yourself,” blared over the COM. Hank keyed the COM again. Still nothing. “''Incoming Covenant escape pod, identify yourself. Friend or foe?''” Hank found it odd that any UNSC personnel would even bother asking twice for a Covenant pod to identify itself, but he wasn’t about to question his luck. He keyed the COM yet again, this time in a pattern. Dot dot dash, dash dot, dot dot dot, dash dot dash dot, break. “''Roger that. Please proceed to starboard docking bay. And hurry, we’re due to land any minute now.''” Hank turned up the thrusters and aimed for the starboard docking bay. Again, it was odd that the UNSC would believe a Morse-code identification so easily, but, again, he wasn’t about to question his luck. His small pod eased to the floor of the docking bay, the hatch sealing behind him and atmosphere being pumped into the small chamber. The hatch in front of him unsealed with a rush and then slid open and he lifted off a few feet above the floor and moved through. When the small door to his pod slid open, he was greeted by the business end of more than one assault rifle. Hank felt reassured by the extra security precaution taken.

“Welcome to the UNSC Autumn…” the speaker paused for a moment as he regarded Hank’s Friend or Foe tags, “Master Gunns.”

“I’d ask permission to come aboard, but it’s a little late for that,” Hank replied. The marine who had just spoken, a staff sergeant, merely nodded, and turned. Hank followed the group as they led him to the bridge.

“And how did you happen by a Covenant escape pod?” the commander, one Captain Harold Lance.

“Sir, I’ll be honest. I have no idea. I woke up to find myself captured by a new race of aliens known as the Flood. I managed to escape and cause the ship to crash into Luna. I dearly hope I was the only survivor, because the Flood must be contained if we are to survive. If you would, scan for life signs around where the ship dropped out of Slipspace all the way along its course to the moon, as well as the crash site itself. The Flood must be contained.”

“I understand. Well, welcome aboard. If your CSV reads accurately, you’ll be a fine addition to this op.”

“Thank you, sir.”

1837 Hours, November 3, 2552 (Military Calendar) \ Sol System, Marathon-class Cruiser UNSC Winston Churchill

“So, have you released your prisoner?” Vice Admiral Cory Johnson asked Commander Rebuga.

“Y''eah. Says his name is Ligi ‘Fleomee. At least he can help us run this tub. You think he’ll want his ship back?''”

“The UNSC Desert Fox A-K-A the Enduring Faith will be the first example of UNSC-Elite relations. It will be a joint-run ship.”

“''Sir, Ligi requests that you stop calling him an Elite. He says his people are called Sangheili. I suppose the first step in this alliance will be calling each other by our proper names. He’s agreed not to call us scum or dirt if we stop calling him an Elite.''”

“Ha! Well, I suppose he’s right. I assume you do not have one hundred percent control of the ship, so have Ligi announce to his fellow crew that the humans are not their enemies, and that the Brutes…”

“Jiralhanae, sir.”

“…Jiralhanae and the Prophets…”

“San’Shyuum, sir.”

“Stop interrupting me! That the Jiralhanae and San…how’d you say it went?”

“San’Shyuum.”

“Yeah, whatever they’re called, that those guys betrayed them, and that we aren’t their enemies anymore.

“Will do, sir. Over and out.” The COM cut.

“How are the new FoF tags coming?” the vice admiral inquired.

“They are doing pretty well, Vice Admiral,” the ship AI, Will, replied. “I have managed to isolate Sangheili ships from Jiralhanae ships. Bringing up the updated TACMAP now.” The tactical display changed suddenly, half of the red ships turning green. “Blue, of course, are our forces. Green are our new allies. Red are our enemies.”

“Good work, Will.” The Vice Admiral assessed the TACMAP, finding that he was now in a swirl of green with few red ships nearby. “Set course for the Earth. Ask Fleet Admiral Hood if he wants us to form up.” Will nodded, his avatar brightening as he began to work.

1830 Hours, November 3, 2552 (Military Calendar) \ Sol System, Cairo Station

Fleet Admiral Sir Terrance Hood, or Lord Hood, as he was oft called, sat at the control stations of his orbital defense platform, in a gyro-synched orbit over Cairo, Egypt. The fighting had died down after the initial attack had been made, and Lord Hood had deployed all of his Spartans elsewhere. He was beginning to regret that, because it looked like battle was about to be joined. After the Prophet of Regret’s ship left the system, there had been no coordinated attack on Earth’s perimeter. But Lord Hood knew that would only last so long. For now, the battle was over. He could finally focus his attention elsewhere. He took the time to glance around the bridge of the Super MAC station. Alarms were going off everywhere, and there were several fires, all results of the Covenant’s attempts to board and destroy the station. He pulled up the TACMAP. He took pride in the fleet around Earth, in its nice formation. He zoomed the display out a bit so that he could see the remnants of the Covenant fleet. All around Earth, scatterings of Covenant ships were trying to regroup. Oddly enough, some of them were firing on each other.

“We’ve got a new contact. Unknown classification,” one of the crew, a Lieutenant Junior Grade, called out. Lord Hood only mulled on this for a second.

“It isn’t one of ours. Take it out,” he ordered.

“''This is Spartan one-one-seven. Can anyone hear me? Over,''” crackled over the COM.

“Isolate that signal!” Lord Hood shouted to one of the few remaining bridge crew. The officer nodded, signifying that the COM was open. “Master Chief? Do you mind telling me what you’re doing on that ship?”

“Sir, finishing this fight.”

“Is there anything we can do, Master Chief?”

“''Contacts. I think they are triangulating off of our signal. Requesting radio silence from here on out.''” The COM fuzzed to static. Lord Hood again surveyed the TACMAP. Some of the Covenant fleet was grouping around the ship. Others grouped away from it. As the two groups met, they clashed.

“We’ve got another new contact. Covenant assault carrier. They’re hailing us on E-Band.” Lord Hood nodded.

“More surprises... Patch them through.”

“''Sergeant Major Avery J Johnson, service number four-eight-seven-eight-nine-two-zero-one-one-four-A-J, reporting for duty. Over.''”


 * -- Master Gunnery Sergeant  Hank J Wimbleton IV COMHalo: Galaxy 04:58, 28 November 2007 (UTC)

9
'Nerom looked around the canyon, the light filtering through his optical aids tinged slightly red. "Must you insist on wearing that armor, Fleet Master? Would it not be easier to simply wear a Combat Harness?" they had been walking for so long in silence, and the fellow Elite's voice brought 'Nerom back to his immediate surroundings. "And what of the parasite, 'Poron? What should happen if the parasite were to ambush us, and you were left so vulnerable, while I remained secure?" the Zealot's reply was quick and to the point. It might have been the thoughts that the Seeker program had programmed into his brain, but it made common sense; the Flood were on Earth, and they were somewhere near the Covenant's main excavation site.

The lances' surroundings were within a canyon, baked by the heavy sun overhead. Jungle growth could be seen hanging from the cliffs, looking as if the trees on the edge would fall at the slightest touch. The plasma rifle clipped onto his waist stayed still, clamped in place by magnetic force. The many grooves and the perfectly smooth surface calmed him; the bright blue-purple color that showed in the sun always had for some reason.

"A word of caution, 'Nerom. Up ahead you will find a Brute pack; its Chieftain has already killed some of our men" the advice had come over his communications line; it was Councillor 'Evrolom, easily one of 'Nerom's superiors among the Separatists, as well as one of the only remaining Sangheili Councillors left alive after the Brutes' betrayal.

"Confirmed, Councillor. My lances will be cautious" 'Nerom answered, reassuring the old Elite; many things worried him. He cared for his race too much. "Very well. Good luck" the Councillor answered back a moment after, and clicked his mandibles twice. 'Nerom clicked his mandibles as well, and the channel broke.

"'Poron, you take the beam rifle and set up ten paces west of this position. See if you may have a chance to kill the Chieftain's guards. 'Bevden, you go with the grunts. Scout ahead, and if you encounter difficulty, call in support. The rest of you, follow 'Bevden" the Sangheili was almost out of breath, and the scorching heat did not help at all. "What about you, Fleet Master?" one of the other Elites asked, "I will be on my own. I have something to take care of."

With that, 'Nerom ran through another path in the canyon's many passages, and unclipped his plasma rifle. A vague silhouette appeared in front of him, hunched by the looks of it, with a large circle beside it.

The Elite Zealot aimed the plasma rifle, and pulled the trigger, the burning cyan substance flying in masses toward the unsuspecting jackal.

--Project: Nemesis

10
Luna (in orbit)

The Brute Brachshaw, Ship Master and Chieftain, gazed in satisfaction as the Covenant and Human fleets collided and tore each other apart. In his mind, Brachshaw believed those Human weaklings would fall before the might of the Covenant, but the resistance they put up was rather strong. Too strong, this fight might last long, but no doubt end with the Covenant victorious.

He turned to the bridge crew and shouted, "Status!?" "Ship Master, all systems are go!" A Brute reported back, Brachshaw consulted his tactical layout of the battle on his holoscreen, scratched his chin for a while, then said, "very well, hold position here, I will go with the ground forces and destroy the Humans on this piece of rock, if anything comes your way, destroy it."

The Brutes saluted and marched to their stations. Brachshaw exited, fingering the head of his Gravity Hammer.

Earth (in orbit)

Another blast led Zeta Leader, Kain Furrey, to the floor of the hangar. He quickly got back up, unhappy to see no one else had fell. "What are our orders again?" An ODST called out, "We're suppose to be reinforcements for the UNSC garrison in Chicago!" A Marine called back, "Chicago?" Zeta 3, Michael Higgins, said in wonder, "I've always wanted to go there...of course, not during the war, maybe on leave."

"So do they need help?" Kain asked a nearby man with the rank of First. Lt, "Not so much as help, rather...bulking up their forces, they lost an awful lot of men in the Covenant attack." "So we're going down to rebuild them?" Kain said, "Correct." The First Lt. said, "Ohhhhh, here comes the Colonel." The "Colonel" was the man who would probaly be accompanying them down and ordering them about, provided their wasn't a higher ranker in the city.

Still, the whole crowd of soldiers turned, lowered their weapons, and saluted. "At ease!" The Colonel shouted out, then, "board your ships, we're departing in 5 minutes, move out!!"

Second Lt. Linda Farr looked out from atop the tower she manned. It was located at Delta Base, a UNSC military base outside the Luna OCS Academy. The top of the tower was basically a glass dome with a machine gun sticking out that could be swiveled, still, it gave her a good view of everything around her. She looked over towards Earth, surrounded by explosions and flame due to the battle. Linda felt that she needed to intervene with the Battle of Earth, but she couldn't, her post was on Luna.

She looked to the "sky", wait, a Covenant ship was there? Linda couldn't identify the class, maybe destroyer or cruiser. A swarm of purple aircraft raced towards the surface, She grabbed her COM and clicked it once, it was on an all-base broadcast, "This is Second Lt. Linda Farr, lookout on Tower 2, we've got Covenant Phantoms inbound!" She clicked the COM off and swiveled the mounted machine gun into position, she took aim, she fired.

SPARTAN-077, Edward, sat on his cot, his helmet beside him, pondering. He usually had a list of things he wondered about: the War, his Spartan brothers and sisters, his life, his Spartan brothers and sisters lives', today he was pondering all of those.

The door to his room slid open, a man stepped in, the markings of a Master Sergeant were on his arm. Edward saluted. "At ease, Spartan, You've been summoned by the Captain." Edward put his hand down, "of course sir," He walked out the door.

-- The State(Our Decrees and Law)(The State Alchemists we've enlisted) 12:38, 28 November 2007 (UTC)

11
LUNA

The searing, blindingly hot molten plasma boiled it's way through the Unggoy's methane tank. It also lit the Methane on fire. The creature shot forward before slamming into the ground and dieing. ''This low-gravity combat is.... disorienting. I wonder how the Rangers handle it...'' He thought. Behind him, 'Zenor expertly twirled the energy sword and beheaded another Unggoy. Up ahead, several Brutes busied themselves with slaughtering the humans. "Vera, I trust you can handle these Unggoy?" 'Rhcul said. 'Zenor replied "When have you ever known me to give up?" 'Rhcul nodded and charged ahead. When he neared the first Brute, it seemed not to notice him until he brought both Plamsa rifles down on it's shoulders. Then it noticed him. It spun, and 'Rhcul found himself smacked away by the creature. In the low gravity, he righted himself and began firing on the ape-like creature. It bellowed and unholstered a Spiker. Prepared this time, 'Rhcul dodged a swing from the creature. In the momentary confusion, he activated Active Camo. The Brute rose up, and looked around. It knew that the Sangheili had used Camoflage. But it did not know where it was... 'Rhcul quietly stuck a Plasma Grenade to the back of the Brute's head, then dove for cover. Seconds later, as the Brute turned, it bellowed in suprise as the explosion engulfed it's body in Blue flame, ripping it's head to pieces. The scorched and headless corpse fell, then drifted a few feet above the ground. 'Zenor walked slowly up behind 'Rhcul, and they both turned and ran towards then other Brutes. Several Kig'Yar barred their way, swing up energy sheilds to block all progress. This gave time for the Brutes to finish slaughtering the human squad, and turn to face them. 'Rhcul had crushed a Jackal with it's own Energy shield. 'Zenor had stabbed another. The Brutes bellowed, and charged the two SpecOps officers, who looked up from the dead Kig'Yar, and stood ready for battle.-Anno &#39;Rhculee(Recieve Commands from me)(My lance)

12
LUNA

''0725 hours, December, 2552 (Military Calendar)\ Luna Station Gamma, Luna.''

Jane Parkinson checked her HUD once again. All her 120 ODSTs was alive and spread out all across the station. They were ready for a fight against a bunch of alien bastards, although Jane would have preferred that all her men was alive. Originally, Third Company had consisted of 300 fresh ODSTs, but now, after years of fighting 180 men were MIA or KIA.

Jane prayed silently for the dead in this war. Billions of humans had died by the hands of the Covenant. She just couldn't stand this. She finished her pray, and turned to her Company Sergeant. "Sergeant, what's our status?" "The first Covenant Dropships and Boarding Craft have attached to the station. So far, we beleive the Covenant have lost around thirty soldiers, and we have lost two. Short to say, we have taken heavy losses." "Not to worry Sergeant, I've got a plan!"

Earth

''14 cycles 10 units, December, Ninth Age of Reclamation (Covenant Calendar)\ France, Sol System, Paris.''

Taurus laughed as he watched his Brutes slaughter the inhabitants of this pitty city. He picked a civilian that tried to run with his hand. The human cried and tried to free himself. Taurus threw him up into the air, and swinged his hammer. The human flew thirty meters into a brick wall.

Elsewhere, files of Jackals tried to herd together the human survivors to a sport arena. What a waste, Taurus thought. They were going to die anyway. Taurus laughed again. Victory was his and the Covenant's.

Mars

''0612 hours, December, 2552 (Military Calendar)\ Sol System, Mars, Sector Delta.''

Dean rose from his cover. The scouts were gone. Good. He waved forward his squad of eleven Marines. They had a task: To destroy the Covenant AA-Gun in this sector. If they didn't, the UNSC wouldn't be able to launch an aerial counterattack. Dean drew and readied his Assault Rifle. He recognized it was the new model, the MA5C. He didn't complain. To win this war, the UNSC would need new weapons.

Chief Petty Officer SPARTAN-039T COM Link Mission Log 16:51, 28 November 2007 (UTC)

13
Now it was time to spring the trap. Lewis signaled the snipers to take their shots. Two 14.5mm Sabot rounds tore through the Brute Bodyguards. Lewis screamed into his microphone, the feedback making his head ache. He unslung the BR-55HB SR from his shoulder, and fired a three round burst into the head of a Brute Captain Ultra. The snipers took their second shots, sending grunts screaming. Lewis took out his M7 and fired on the fleeing unggoy. He hit one of their methane tanks, sending the body of the beast into his comrades before the tank exploded. Lewis looked and he saw the squad firing on the chieftain. The eleven foot tall beast took out his hammer, and he struck a blow on the Private he had talked to earlier. Lewis, in anger, took out his M6D and unloaded a full clip into the Beasts shields. His rounds took out the shield generator and the snipers fired their rounds into the Brutes' head. It exploded sending brains and skin flying everywhere. Lewis saw a Brute Regular charging at him. Lewis jumped out the way, took out his M6D, and fired. The explosive round impacted right in between the eyes of the Brute. They had one this however small battle. But Humanity didn't have much time left. Each dead covie was a victory. Lewis reloaded his weapons and reported back to base. The UNSC Regional Headquarters was in Tanzania, and they were coordinating a space and ground campaign. Lewis ordered his squad to destory all evidence of their attack and they began to move out to the next area that they had to clear. This time, although it wasn't a Brute pack, it would still cause havok among his men. -- AJ

14
Cairo Suite, Halo 2 Original Soundtrack Volume 2

EARTH, in orbit, near Houston Station, onboard the UNSC Annihilator

"Angela, load Archer launchers 12-30 and fire on those fighters. Warm up the MAC gun and punch through the nearest Covenant ship. Prioritize targets and fire at will!" Immediately, the AI began to work double-time, calculating the necessary angles, speeds and ammo counts to destroy the incoming Covenant forces. Captain Jim Wilson worriedly, wishing for a moment that he could do something to help, but then turned his attention back to the battle. "Are all fighters launched?", he asked Angela "Not yet", she replied "Well make it so. I want every single pilot on this ship into those fighters! If we can't fight off their Seraphs and Boarding Craft, we're as good as dead." "Understood sir", she replied as she sent out the message through the ship. It was a call to arms for all the pilots. She hoped they would be enough

Second section of the Cairo Suite, Halo 2 Original Soundtrack Volume 2

EARTH, in orbit, near Houston Station

Dragon Squadron rushed to their ships, eager for battle. But as they launched, they realized that this was more than a mere battle. This was the largest battle they had ever fought in. They could tell it would be tough, but they launched anyways, heading straight into the swarm of Seraphs. "Well everyone", said Joe Harrison, their leader, "I'll just say that, if we don't make it out of here alive, it was nice to have known all of you. I couldn't have had better squadmates" "Ditto", said Randall Cragin "I couldn't have said it better myself", said June Della Similar responses came from Michelle Walters and Donald Summers, while David Davis grunted in agreement. "What's with you people?", said Sherri Black, startling the rest, "Why the doom and gloom all the sudden? Dragons never say die! You remember that? We'll make it through this, in one piece, just probably not unscathed" Joe laughed. "Sherri, I got to hand it to you, only you could put it like that" "You know that's right", she laughed back. But then the Dragons entered the battle, and got serious. There would be few jokes, or even words passed between them. They were in a war, and they would not have time for laughing. This would be the battle of a lifetime. The battle for Human life.

Second section of the Cairo Suite, Halo 2 Original Soundtrack Volume 2

EARTH, in orbit, on Houston Station

Onboard Houston Station, a group of seven pilots stopped their training as a higher ranking officer came in. They saluted to him, and he returned it. Then he said simply, "Come with me" They quickly followed him down the halls of the station, until they came to the Admiral of the station himself. "You seven", said the Admiral, "Have been training to become an elite squadron of fighters. You will be called Dragon Squadron. And while your training isn't complete, we need every man that we can get to fight. So, you're going to have to fight. Get your fighters and get out there. Protect this station at all costs. We must have it in order to defeat the Covenant fleet. "Sir, yes sir", they all replied, and then ran out to get things in order. The Admiral hoped they wouldn't meet the current Dragon Squadron out there, as they weren't supposed to know about them yet. As they grabbed their gear, they did so in the order of their squadron. They started with Andrew Peters, their leader, and then went down through Dragons 1 through 6, in the order of Luke Donaghy, Brittani Della, Justin Cragin, Erika Black, Brittany Black and ending with Cindle Della. They then jumped into their fighters and entered the fight.

High Charity Suite, Halo 2 Original Soundtrack Volume 2

EARTH, on the surface, in Austin, Texas, USA

Delta Team moved through the broken streets of Texas' capital. The buildings were falling apart, the ones standing were being bombarded. It was a pitiful sight. The Covenant had managed to slip past Houston station, so now it was up to the ground forces to fend them off. Delta Team had been sent in to destroy one of the Covenant's major camps. Looking over the top of a ruined building they were using as cover, Lead realized how major this camp was. Hundreds of Brutes, Drones and Jackals, along with dozens of Hunters and thousands of Grunts were there. As Sarge, Ratchet and Burns looked over, even Sarge looked grim. "There's no way we can kill all of them", he said, "We need reinforcements, maybe more than the UNSC can spare" "We have to try", said Lead, "It's our duty" "Our mission is to destroy the camp, not ourselves", said Burns, "We were never told to do it single-handedly" "Fine, call for reinforcements", said Lead, "We'll wait for them, and if they don't come, we'll hold them off as long as we can. Or die trying"

Mombassa Suite, Halo 2 Original Soundtrack Volume 2

LUNA

Team Alpha's ship, the UNSC Thermopylae touched down. They had tried to fight in orbit, but they weren't skilled enough to fight such a large force in space. Besides, the bases on the ground were already under attack, though likely not as bad as the forces on Earth. Edwin Davis looked at the nearest base. It was already under attack by Covenant forces, and they couldn't wait to get there, since more men might die before they reached it. And with their small amount of forces, they needed every man they could get. "Jerry", said Edwin, "fire the guns at the Covenant forces near the station! That aught to keep them confused until we can get there" "Lisa, Kymberli, get ready, you're in the Warthog with me. Roy, you and Marshall take the Mongoose. Jerry, you and Amy take another Mongoose. We're going loud people!" The guns fired in rapid succession, and once the ship landed, Team Alpha burst out on their vehicles. While they couldn't go quite as fast as normal due to the lower gravity, they still sped them into the battle quick enough. As they arrived, Edwin and Roy quickly looked over the situation. Several packs of Brutes, swarms of Drones, Jackals and Grunts, and a pair of Hunters. It wouldn't be easy. "Jerry, take your Mongoose to the right", said Edwin, "Roy, take yours to the left. We'll go down the center. Divide and conquer! And don't forget to run 'em over!"

Unyielding, Halo 2 Original Soundtrack Volume 2

LUNA

Inside one of Luna's orbital stations, a team of trainees held their own with some Marines and ODST's against packs of Brutes. Their leader, James Davis fired his Assault Rifle with skill and precision, and in conjunction with their sniper, Katelynn Wilson, and their demolitions men, Clayton Peters and Devyn Peters, they managed to drive them back. Then Nicholas Summers, Jake Donaghy and Samuel Tyler closed in on the Brutes, driving them into a corner, were a couple grenades killed all of them. "I think we did pretty good", said Nicholas "For once, I agree with you", said Clayton

Reclaimer, Halo 2 Original Soundtrack Volume 2

MARS

The Endless Justice landed on the surface of Mars, unloading the Squad of Unrelenting Reparation on it's fertile surface. They were an advance group of the Covenant Separatists, sent to try and save Mars, which couldn't be too hard now that most of the Covenant were at Earth and Luna. The ship touched down, and they exited the ship in their vehicles. "Wait", said their leader, Jemsal 'Emvadson All nodded agreement, but waited for their mentor. Jemsal led them, with his second-in-command and stealth expert Ketynic 'Ilwol by his side. Following them was Nibesa, who was, strangely, a very brave Grunt. There were two Hunter bond brothers, Cer Muso Coun and Den Muso Hico. But while these five were what you would expect from a Separatist squad, the rest were not. Two Jackals were with them, Jaig and Ank, along with a Drone, Luzzda. These had stayed with the Squad both out of respect of Jemsal, and loyalty to their two Brute leaders, Jarikus and Samorulan. Jarikus and Samorulan had seen the folly of their brothers, and had stayed with their friend Jemsal, who they admired. But while all of these held together due to a brotherly comradeship, they also stayed together because of their mentor: Ameigh Broley. Ameigh was old, having been around since before the Human-Covenant war, but she was wiser than she was old. She had been created by the Covenant using Forerunner technology, a mixture of Elite and Prophet she was. She would lead the team into battle at any time, and defeat any foe. Or so she thought. "Come", she said as she jumped into her Ghost. "We have a planet to save!" With that, she sped off, the others in tow in their vehicles.

--

15
'''LUNA (In Orbit)

The Prophet of Vigilances flagship erupted from slipspace, putting most of the fighting over Luna in shadow. The huge ship's guns whirred hurriedly firing upon the Brutes ships. The Prophet shouted orders from his gravity chair, his two Hunter gaurds at his side. "Aim at the Brutes, fire the rear guns to the side, side guns at the ships below!". The ship slowly worked it's way through the battle, taking down a few Brute Frigates, before they were boarded.

'''EARTH (ROTARUA, NEW ZEALAND)

Jeff Valea sat at his post in Rotarua, staring atthe sky as purple and orange explosions dotted the sky. He watched as a large shape, slowly got larger, before splitting into a large group of Covenant dropships. Jeff swore, before shouting at his troops to split up.

Qzech'Mere and his swarm, darted through the forests north of Jeff's position, as the dropships started landing around them. Brutes and grunts hopped off, and soon the small legion was assembled. A Brute chieftein barked orders, and the group slipt away into the forest.

Jeff turned to comm "This if D1 to all C's and D's requesting reinforcements, over" Just Another Grunt Converse 19:36, 28 November 2007 (UTC)

16
Lewis ordered the squad to halt. He saw the faint glow of a Covenant Beam Rifle. Lewis knew that it was carried by a Jackal, but he couldn't see the purple glow anymore. Lewis knew the chicken-like alien had already reported their presence. Now, it was just a matter of time before the fight began. "What is it Sergeant Major?" "I just saw one of their snipers" "What should we do sir?" "Wait here... and I'm not a sir. I work for a living." "Yes Sergeant Major... should I take third squad and scout?" "Go ahead, just don't get shot up. Keep your SQUADCOM lines open." "Yes Sergeant Major. Third Squad, lock and load, we are scouting for those bravo kilos!"

The squad moved out, and Lewis saw them drift into the jungle. He looked up and he saw the blue glow of a plasma mortar.

"PLATOON! GET DOWN!"

The plasma mortar hit, sending a heat wave over the Marines head. Lewis looked up from his prone posistion and saw a Bravo-Kilo in Gold Armor. But this one had a Plasma Cannon. His snipers, both of which were in fourth squad fired at the Chieftain. The armor failed, and the brute staggered back. A second later, the brutes' head had exploded and there was nothing left but the headress. Lewis turned and he saw a file of Grunts moving in for a better firing position.

"Get some fire on those little bastards!"

A few seconds later, the grunt file had fell, blue blood oozing from various places on their body. The next thing Lewis saw was a spiker round fly through the air and hit him firmly in his stomach. He screamed, and took out the M6D. He pointed it at the Brute Stalker, his active camouflage now failed. The explosive rounds impacted the beast's legs, sending it crumpling to the ground. Lewis looked up and saw a member of the platoon come and drag him to saftey. He vectored in Hornets on the forest, and they fired their guns. Screams of aliens in terror as their comrades were cut down permeated his senses. He checked his TACMAP, and he noticed that 3rd Squad was now off the screen. They were dead, ambushed by the enemy before they attacked the main group. Lewis looked up at the sky, and he felt his body being lifted onto the Hornet. -- AJ

17
Hitman Blood Money, Ave Maria

‘Jar Refos looked in the bridge of his Assault Carrier, soaked in the blood of his divine brethren and the heathen Brutes. A councilor had accompanied them on their last mission as Covenant soldiers. He was their holy guest and the elites on the ship had failed him. The councilor had been fighting on the bridge with ‘Jar Refos and they were slaying the massive brutes. Ten or so had laid face down black charred holes littering their brown furred bodies. Then a Chieftain had walked in holding his hammer high, leading on the rest of his pack. ‘Jar Refos and the councilor had killed the rest of the chieftain’s pack and only he, the chieftain was left, shields gone, hammer low. The chieftain had taken a great swing at ‘Jar Refose, which he nimbly dodged. Except the gravity field had caught him off guard and thrown he against the opposite wall. The brute had ran straight at the now defense less elite with his hammer held high. As he neared, sweat dripped off the ugly ape like face and towering over the elite on the ground raised his hammer.

Before he could bring it down, two blue glowing prongs stuck out of the brute’s chest, molten flesh evaporating on the blade. The councilor ripped the blade out of the side of the brute’s body and step back as the brute turned to face his murder. The chieftain brought his hammer up and took a final deathblow at the elite councilor. The councilor not expecting this tried to dodge the falling hammers, but to no avail. It connected with the elites head with a sickening crunch and continued down his spine, crushing his head into his stomach.

Out of sheer anger ‘Jar Refos jumped up and repeatedly stabbed the brute till the flesh was so cut and burned, even the brutes mother could not recognize the body.

‘Jar Refos came back to the present as the door opened and one of his Ultras walked in accompanied by his two elite bodyguards, ‘Fert and ‘Redonn two major domos both very skilled.

“Where are your Hunter guards?” asked the Ultra by the name of ‘Jutr.

“Killed by heathen brutes I guess,” said ‘Jar Refos, pulling a spike out of his leg.

“Fierce warriors those brutes are,” said ‘Jutr “Those spikes look dangerous,”

“They are how long till we get to the Sol System?” asked ‘Jar Refos looking over at one of the last elites still piloting the ship through slipspace.

“Not long sir, within the hour,” said the crewman as he touched the holopad.

“Good get me there as soon as possible,” said ‘Jar Refos as he turned back to the audio player and put on his favorite music from the home planet.

“Yes sir,” the elite replied.

“Please ‘Jutr come with me,” said ‘Jar Refos as he walked out.

“What is it sir?” asked the Ultra looking at his blood soaked brother.

“This war does anything make sense anymore?”

Kemgor looked across the desert of the planet ‘’Mars’’, its deserted atmosphere and the horrible lack of water. He loved the atmosphere, its dry air and of course the hanging smell of blood. He looked at the arm he was now devouring, picking up his sniper and throwing the bone away. He looked at the approaching separatists force and called his brethren. The brutes primed their weapons under the large crowd of jackal, grunt squealed and ran about picking up their weapons. Vehicles were loaded up with brutes and grunts and wraith mortar tanks began to aim their guns.

Kemgor signaled and hundreds of purple beams shot out across the barren wasteland. Several elites fell holes burned straight through their heads, some stumbled as the concentrated beams of energy impacted with their energy shielding. Another lance of beams shot killing most without shields and blowing up several grunts as there tanks set on fire. Then Kemgor gave the signal to fire at will as several beams were returned from the Separatists force, killing several jackal.

Kemgor grabbed the carbine off his back and slid down the hill followed by at least 300 other jackals as the giant ball of plasma crashed down on the hill killing several jackel. Kemgor shot at the army of Separatists hitting a couple of elites, but overall doing very little damage. Their own Wraith tanks fired back on the Separatists killing several elites. The hunters from both sides charged forward fuel rods held high charging. The two armies collided, sounds of rage and battle struck out, elites and brutes dueling, spiker and brute shot blades met with the undersides of Plasma rifles and carbines. Blue and red streaks crossed the sky, balls of blue light streaked over the two forces, the ground already heavy with the smell of burned flesh, methane and blood of both sides.

Ghost sweeps from the Loyalist’s side began wiping a good number of the Separatist side. Fuel Rod Shots defeated them and Hunters smashed down on the front of the small Covenant bikes. A massive banshee and phantom battle raged over head blue and green blasts flying everywhere. Blasts struck out blue and red as spike and plasma exploded causing many deaths on both sides. Jackals yelled from the back as elites burst their way through the many ranks of brutes to finally get to them. The jackals scrambled, but not Kemgor he was their leader, so he stayed firing his carbine till a huge elite sword drawn confronted him, running straight at him. Kemgor readied his arm shield and waited till the elite slashed. He activated the shield and the sword deactivated it, but stopped it from killing him.

Kemgor let loose a flurry from his carbine hitting 6 shots deactivating the elites shields, but that didn’t stop him. He grabbed the Kemgor’s neck and held him aloft in the air. The jackal tried to fire his carbine, but found that it was empty. He dropped it as the elite brought his sword up to strike. They jackal pulled the lone grenade on his belt, a spike grenade and used it as a club hitting the elite on the head. The elite surprised still swung his sword stabbing Kemgor right through the stomach. Then the greande exploded killing the elite. Both bodies fell to the ground dead as dead could be. The battle raged on though, the bodies of fallen soldiers trampled under feet, grunt corpses littered the ground, after seven hours of fighting the battle stopped. The Loyalist had called in air strikes, which had effectively wiped out most of the Separatists heavy vehicles. The only thing that kept them from falling back. After the heavy vehicles were destroyed the elites ordered a full retreat. The Loyalists were victorious, but sustained heavy losses.

-- Spartan-064 ,≈≈Ω≈≈<font color="#D3D3D3">De <font color="#A9A9A9">ma <font color="#808080">kh <font color="#000000">is http://www.wikia.com/skins/common/progress-wheel.gif <font color="#A9A9A9">Reporting  •  <font color="#A9A9A9">Contributions   20:26, 28 November 2007 (UTC)

18
LUNA

The Energy sword cleaved flesh with ease. The Brute Minor finally stumbled, and fell. The rest of the Brutes oozed blood and drifted inches above the ground. 'Rhcul and 'Zenor looked around. Both were breathing heavily, and 'Rhcul had a slash mark on his arm. A Kig'Yar walked up to him with an Overcharged Plasma Pistol. He kicked it in the head, then shot it in the throat. One of the Rhcul's Plasma Pistols had a depleted battery, so he cast it away. 'Zenor's Energy Sword was out of charge. She clipped the hilt to the outside of her right hip, and brought out the Carbine. At that moment, a small group of Unggoy attacked. 'Rhcul and 'Zenor opened fire.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

EARTH

The Longsword cruised above the wrekage of the Seraph. Senior Chief Petty Officer First Class CHRIS-087 swung the craft sideways, to avoid another wreck. The enormous orb of greens and blues that was earth loomed below him. Super MAC Rounds tore ships. Chris flew through the line. He already had his orders. He was to land in what New Cleveland in the Americas and stop the Covenant from destroying the city. Chris grinned. The prospect of battle was already causing him to grin beneath his helmet. He would enjoy making those bastards suffer. The Longsword now cruised through the atmosphere, avoiding more engagment until he landed. For one moment, a flicker of optemistic thought flitted through the Spartan's mind. He allowed himself to think that maybe, just maybe, everything would turn out okay.-Anno &#39;Rhculee(Recieve Commands from me)(My lance)

19
Penhalm Fields, 150 km East of York, Mars

James looked over the hill and saw a single Loyalist lance moving down the hill. “Fuck….” He said. He immediately activated his SPI armour and walked around the side. The Brute minor leading the lance stopped for a second to sniff the air. James threw the napalm grenade at the lance. The flames form the napalm connected with the methane tanks on the grunts and ignited them, sending the lance ablaze. The brute screamed as the flames took down it shields and it jumped out of the flames firing its spiker. James fired his MA5K in return and the rounds tore through the unshielded brute. As the brute fell down dead James reloaded the carbine and ran across the open field. As he began to near the objective indicated by the NAV marker, he began to hear the firing of the wraiths. He immediately ducked to the side behind a rack of weapons as a pair of brutes passed by. “I smell something.” Said the first one. “I smell it as well.” Replied the other. “A human.” A simultaneous hiss came. James, using instinct took a spike grenade from the rack and threw it at the first brute before sprinting to a safer area. He brutes screamed and fired their spikers in his general direction as he ran. A bang was heard as the brutes were torn to shreds and more covenant came running in. James, using the small distraction to his advantage ran to the wraith tanks and fired his rocket launcher. The 102mm HEAT rockets hit the weak, exposed back of the mortar tanks destroying them. He then sprinted towards the location of the marines as he told them over the comm. “Wraiths are destroyed, you are free to assault.” “Good job G023, creating a rendezvous point for you and your squad, patching through to your HUD now.” Said the ONI Lieutenant Commander monitoring his actions through the use of a Prowler in low orbit.

Lunar Surface

Havargus wiped the dark red human blood from the blades on his spiker. He was to continue to maintain full stealth if his mission was to be a success. He heard voices of marines coming from around the hall and pressed himself against the wall. “Woah, what happened here?” “Not sure, close off this section and prepare for some of those NavSpecWars to search for whatever was here.” “Got it sarge.” Havargus gave a sigh of relief. The humans hadn’t discovered him yet. He needed to find out one thing: what on this large rock floating in orbit held for the humans that was important enough for them to have a large enough security force that could stop an assault led by Kig-Yar rangers, Jet Pack Jiralhanae with equipment and training for Zero-Gee, and Yamne’e attacks? He would have to find out. Havargus ran through the human door before it slammed shut.

100 metres off the Pacific Coast, Earth

The cargo ship came to a halt as it began to go into shallow waters. “This is the farthest we can get the ship! You are going to have to walk the next little bit!” Yelled the ship’s captain. It was a good thing that they were on a costal shelf, but the water would slow their movement and there was no cover leaving the open to enemy fire until they got to the beach. “Sergeant! Order the frogmen to prepare the package while the rest of us go out on foot.” Ordered Lieutenant Lewis. The sergeant grunted as he ran down the deck. “Ok people! We gotta wade through this water before we can reach the beach! Move as fast as you can!” Ordered Lewis. The marines used the lines on the side of to get as far as they could until the water became too shallow. The 130 marines jumped out of the boats as an instinct and sprinted towards the beach. After fifty metres Lieutenant began to realize something was wrong. The covenant would have, ‘‘should‘‘ spotted them by now. Lieutenant Lewis saw what was wrong. Ahead, buried in the sand, were two shade shielded plasma turrets. They covenant had waited until they were close enough to take out the snipers. “Turrets ahead!” Yelled Lieutenant Lewis over the com. The turrets opened fire cutting down several marines. The M19 opened fire, but the SAM was very little use at hitting ground targets and missed. The marines opened fire, but the shields o the turrets absorbed most of the blast, before finally a marine using an add-on 15mm RPG destroyed one of them. Lieutenant Lewis sprinted towards the turret and opened fire, downing the gunner. The marines all rushed towards the sand banks and took cover as ball turrets that were on higher up positions began to open fire. “How many did we lose?” Asked Lewis. “Twenty sir.” Replied an NCO. “Ok then, I want you to take ten men and try to flank the enemy. Lieutenant Jackson will then take thirty men and try to flank them from another side. I will take the remainder and lead a frontal assault.” Ordered Lieutenant Lewis.

Lunar Surface

Maverick let loose the full clip from his MA5B Assault rifle into the oncoming grunts. The stocky alien cannon fodder fell down easily as he reloaded. A roar was heard as two brute minors and a brute captain charged down the hallway. Marines opened fire, but were smashed to the side. Maverick threw a grenade, which exploded and ignited a nearby methane tank killing the minors and eliminating the shields on the captain, but he was slammed into the wall. Maverick fumbled for his M6D Sidearm, but the captain slammed him a second time and his shields depleted to one-quarter. Maverick pulled up his M6D and delivered the full clip into the head of the oncoming brute, but the creature still had enough strength to smash him into a wall before it died. Alarms went off as Maverick felt blood trickle down the back of his head. Maverick pulled off his helmet and inserted biofoam into the cut. As it healed he picked up his MA5B. “Brigadier General, this is SPARTAN-060. Sector Z and its airlock have been secured, but I suggest sending marines down here ASAP. Moving to Sector F.” “Acknowledged SPARTAN-060. Get to that area fast.” Maverick ran down the hallway towards Sector F.

--<font color="#000000">Petty Officer First Class <font color="#000000">SPARTAN-G023 <font color="#006400"> Comm Channel<font color="#000000">Mission History 21:28, 28 November 2007 (UTC)

20
EARTH, in orbit, near Houston station

The UNSC Annihilator continued to fire at the Covenant ships, causing their shields to fail. But the Covenant fired back, causing heavy damage throughout the ship. "Status!", yelled Jim. "We have an engine down, some minor damage to the shield generators and major damage to the port side of decks 4 and 5", said Angela. "Get to work fixing it!", he returned "Yes sir"

EARTH, in orbit, near Houston station

Outside, the squadrons of fighters engaged the Covenant fighters. Longswords, Shortswords, Broadswords, and various other fighters engaged the Seraphs, intrigately doing the dance of death. Dragon Squadron weaved their dance with the best of them, and dived in to assist the lesser squadrons from time to time. They were especially impressed by a small group of fighters that, while they didn't ever say a word, or give their names, or their squadron's name, were of excellent skill.

---

EARTH, in orbit, near Houston station

The trainees of next Dragon Squadron fought valiantly, though they had to be assisted from time to time. They were helped repeatedly by a very skilled squadron that they held in awe and reverence. They were one of the best out there, skilled beyond what Dragon Squadron had hoped for. They just hoped they could survive the battle to get instructions from them.

EARTH, on the surface, in Austin, Texas, USA

Lead waited for fifteen minutes, then no more. He snuck over behind some wreckage on the edge of their camp and threw several frags and flash-bang grenades into the camp. While a dozen died some of the grenades, the rest were aware of his presence, and started looking. But as several Brutes neared Lead's position, Ratchet fired his sniper rifle, taking the Brutes down, and Burns fired several rockets into the camp, killing two dozen more. Then Sarge rushed in, and Lead got up, both attacking. With the Covenant fully aware, it was do or die. They intended to do till they died.

LUNA

Team Alpha rushed in as fast as their vehicles would allow. The Warthog plowed down the middle, with the two Mongooses taking out any Covenant that tried to flee. Covenant were splattered all over the place by the vehicles, while bullets and rockets flew as well, taking out their fair share also. But one of the Brutes had a Gravity Hammer and, whether compelled by fear or bravery it didn't matter, he swung at the two Mongoose as their paths crossed. Both of the Mongoose were thrown over, one erupting into flame, destroyed and useless. The second was thrown high and far, due to the low gravity. As for the actual riders, Amy and Jerry's Mongoose was destroyed, with Amy's shields being completely taken offline by the flames. Jerry landed with a hard thud, knocked unconscious by the impact. Amy tried to get up, but the Chieftain was already upon her. He raised his Gravity Hammer, held it there for what seemed like forever, and then brought it down. Amy tried to roll out of the way, and while she partially did, the hammer landed on her arm with a sickening thud. She screamed in pain and agony, but then Marshall and Roy got up and shot several rounds into the Brute, who fell down dead. Marshall grabbed Amy and pulled her out of the fight, setting her behind some rubble. From there, she injected the biofoam, and peppered her foes with both grenades and a spray of bullets. Edwin, Lisa and Kymberli's Warthog had not shared the fate of the Mongooses, for the Chieftain had concentrated solely on the Mongooses. They had continued to shoot, grenade, and run over the Covenant. When Jerry, Roy and Marshall reentered the battle, they were almost all dead. Within 15 minutes, the Covenant attacking the station were all lying dead, with help from the Marines in the station.

LUNA

"Warning, borders inbound. They're latching on the Pelican launch bays", came the announcement across the station. The Team Alpha trainees grabbed some ammo and moved through the hallway to the Pelican launch bays. There, they found the Covenant already out and attacking. The squadmates attacked with whatever weapon they had in their hands. "Clayton, Devyn!", yelled James, "Get to far side! I want rockets on those Boarding Craft and anything that crawls out of them!" The two ran to the far side and opened fire. The rockets reigned down on the Covenant, taking them down, though the explosions felled some marines also. "Watch those explosions!", yelled Katelynn, "We need everyone we can get" Katelynn opened fire with her BR 55, while James let lose sprays from his MA5C. Nicholas, Jake and Samuel fired their weapons on ground level, taking out more. The room was soon cleared, and they moved to the next one.

--

21
1430 Hours | December 24th, 2552 (MILITARY CALENDAR) Sol System | Earth | Berlin, Germany Chancellor Lucas Reinhardt's residence

"Incoming!!!"

I felt the ground shake and tremble. Marines to my left and to my right were being slaughtered and torn up. My Spartan training told me to move on and fight 'til the last man, fight until nothing was left. Though my instinct told me to get my men out of this hell hole...and fast.

"Can anyone hear me, over?" said the stressed infantry Major over the COMM system.

"This is Lieutenant Reyes, what is your situation Major? Over."

"Brute infantry is closing in on our positions. We need immediate air support, over"

"What's your current location, over" replied the Lieutenant

"Grid Kilo Niner Six Two...drop ordnance...on my position, over" the Major announced

"Yes sir, ETA to target, 3 minutes and counting, over"

"Godspeed Lieutenant, over and out"

As I fired some of my last rounds, my Marines looked for guidance and orders. They waited for less than a second for those orders. Above me, the ground shook, whines could be heard from the distance...lots of whines. But, there was no Plasma mortars in the air. We feared the worst...more Phantoms and Seraphs.

Then, five dozen Longswords, Shortswords and Raptors screamed over the field. All of them were armed with napalm and HE weapons. We popped smoke and IR sticks for easy identification for the zumies.

"Marines! Retreat, back to the outskirts...carry out all of our wounded and dead comrades" the Major ordered.

"Aye, Aye, sir" replied the thousands of Marines under his command.

22
"Give us flank speed to Berlin. Drop our 2 of our 3 ODST groups and tell the other ships to do the same. And have some of the other ships pelicans drop some troops, Tanks and Warthogs as well. Tell the company commander that Berlin HQ is in charge. STRESS THAT TO THE ODST GROUPS!!!" the Vice-Admiral added. "Sir, all ships ready to fire MACs," the communications officer reported. "Tell the other ships to privide covering fire if nessisary. We are going to see if we can stop Berlin from falling."

A group of Pelicans, with Warthogs slug underneath them, flew down to the surface in a tight formation. As soon as the the Pelicans were 100 miles away from Berlin, the Pelicans performed a bomb-burst and headed for predeiganted linding spots. In side the lead Peliacan, it was rather peaceful, all things considered. "Any idea where we are going, Sarge?" a young marine asked. "Son, we are heading to a city that has existed for almost 1000 years and live through Would War Two. We get to see the sights, and kill Alian freaks at the same time. Ahhh...the life." the Sarge answered. "Will there be old wine?" a marine piped in. "No, you moron. Its not Paris. Its Berlin. The fin..." The Sarge was interupted by the pilot. "Berlin in sight. Its crawling with Covenant. We'll provide covering fire while you get in the Warthog. Don't be afraid to call us in as an airsrike. We can do damage too." The Warthog wat the type without the big minigun. "Lets go reinforce those Marines. Lets lock n' load." the Sarge commented with a grim grin. SPARTAN-118

23
//December 12th, 2552, 1700 Hours// //Sol System, Lunar Surface, // //Letronne Crater, Perimeter of Luna Garrison F/A/72//

It was happening. Hundreds of Covenant troops were advancing around the Southeast flank, and contact had just been lost with Node Echo, after a short clipped transmission had been broadcasted by it proclaiming that they were under attack and were being overrun. Echo had reported Covenant heavy armor, and troops attacking from both the East and West flanks. They were doomed. As soon as the word filtered through the chain of command, everyone began to brace for combat. Squads of EABTs moved silently to their rally points, trenches and battlements set up to defend against the oncoming onslaught.

A team of snipers and spotters was placed on the high hilltops, which was giving minutely reports to the control center. The news was not good. An estimated 5,000 covenant infantry were advancing, with dozens of wraith tanks, and even a trio of Scarabs. The humans knew this may very well be their last stand. A group of anti air wraiths lumbered along behind the main group, watching the skies for any fighters trying to break and leave.

Teams of EABTs lay over in the trenches, weapons leveled at the distance, where a cloud of lunar dust could be seen, the wake of the advancing force. The EABTs had lost a near 2,000 troops during the battles for the different distant outposts, and there were only around 3,000 troops left in the division. It was a grossly lopsided fight; the covenant outnumbered them greatly, and though the EABTs would have to give much better than they got to succeed. Jack climbed into his own trench, sitting down next to a weary looking man (Jack couldn’t see his face, but his body language was clear, even in the bulky VCMK5 Boarding Suit.

Sighting through his BR55-M45 Battle Rifle, practical on Luna because of the Satellite’s gravity, he saw the figures in the distance slowly take shape. The scarab walkers towered above everything else; probably a good ninety meters in the air, the monstrosities moved ponderously forward, large insect like legs swinging forward and back. For a moment, Jack had a flashback to his childhood; sitting around the holo broadcaster, watching a holovid remake of an old Earth based fantasy epic. All he really remembered was when the giant walkers trundled forward, and slaughtered the good guys. Jack hoped the same thing wouldn’t happen now.

The scarabs continued moving, but now Jack could see other things; Covenant infantry, grunts first, swarming towards the garrison. Wraith mortar tanks in the back, cannons already exposed. Jack held his rifle with a death-grip, and he fingered tightened around the trigger. All around him, he heard a symphony of clicks and clacks of rifle bolts being pulled back. The Mythos behind him readied, and its colossal main cannon became streaked with energy running up and down on the barrel. Jack dared a look to his side, and saw the weary EABT now standing ready, prepared to fight and die to protect what little hope remained for the human race. Jack quietly realized that he was to.

“OPEN FIRE!” came the order from command, and Jack presses down the stud of his BR55-M45, releasing a single grenade.

The Scarabs let loose a volley of searing green plasma, raking it across the defenders, incinerating dozens in moments. White wispy trails cut into the charging covenant hordes from the snipers on the hill, breaching their suits and killing them instantly. The mythos open fired, a single bright blue blast, which blinded Jack for a moment. Then the powerful beam of energy crashed into the number one Scarab, destroying it. Pieces of wreckage and Covenant troops rained from the sky.

The infantry charged, cursing in their own language. Jack and 3,000 other men and woman laid down a withering crossfire, cutting their enemy to blood ribbons. Wraiths surged forward, their main cannons spewing bright cyan spheres of heat, which arced into the human trenches, detonating and killing many. There was no cover for the Covenant troops; only open ground, which meant that Jack could pick and pop targets at his leisure. He opened holes in dozens of suits, switching to semi automatic to conserve ammo.

But the Covenant were not without weapons of their own. Superheated spikes and plasma bolts, and even some fire from Brute RPGs rained down on the EABTs. Beside Jack, a dozen spikes hit the weary EABT in the helmet, slicing into his head and sticking there. Blood froze and vented in the cold, and Jack tried not to notice. Hundreds died every second, and it was chaos. The Mythos fired again, it’s main blast smacking another Scarab, downing it, and raining down pieces of metal onto the Jackal marksman unlucky enough to be underfoot.

The remaining Scarab refocused its attack, and sent a searing stream straight into the Mythos’s cockpit. The crew inside were burned away instantaneously, and the vehicle was split in half. Jack watched as the Scarab vented fire on the human forces with not only its main gun, but also its side turrets, and even its top mounted anti-aircraft gun.

The Covenant infantry continued to surge forward and now where getting close to the trenches. Jack saw a Wraith blast come flaming towards him, and he ducked down into his trench. Heat boiled and burned the thin atmosphere around him, and plasma washed over the trench. He looked up to see a sparkling crater in front of his trench, but more importantly, the face of a Brute in vacuum armor. Jack dropped his BR55-M45 and let loose a full auto spray with his MA5C/VC Assault Rifle.

The recoil was less pronounced than with the BR, in fact, there was none at all. However, it could be clearly seen that mircothrusters in the gun’s frame were firing tiny bursts of thrust to alleviate any recoil. At any rate, in vacuum, the brute didn’t stand a chance; dozens of vacuum enhanced bullets cut into its armor, panged off of it, and then broke its seal; the alien toppled over, dead from decompression. More enemies poured into the trenches, slaughtering the humans in them. Brutes sprayed spiker shots over the marines, and dozens fell. A spiker shot clipped Jack side, but he kept firing, even as yellow colored foam sealed around the spiker, embedding it firmly in place. Jack gritted his teeth but didn’t let up.

Over, the comm, Jack could clearly hear the garrison’s cry for help.

“This is Luna Garrison F/A/72, we are under covenant attack! Please send immediate help; we’re being overrun!”

//December 12th, 2552, 1700 Hours// //Sol System, Terra, // // Australia, Sydney, Wildlife Reserve 012/T/7 “Outback” //

In the bright sunlight, three shadowy figures moved swiftly through the jungle. Their armor was half camouflaged; part liquid shadow, part assault armor. If one looked beneath of Photo-Reactive Panels, one would see scorch marks and pieces chipped off from constant combat. One of the SPARTAN-IIIs carried a MA5C Assault Rifle, and had a large rocket launcher over his back. Another carried two sniper rifles, one in hand, and another across her back. Yet another had a brute RPG slung over his back armor plates, and had two spike rifles strapped to his thighs.

Overhead, a pair of Banshee fliers streaked southward, engine pods screaming. The group of Spartans stopped, leveled their weapons for a moment, and then lowered them when they discovered the Banshees had not noticed them. Inside his helmet, SPARTAN-G145, or Scott, as he was known to most people who knew of him, chinned the environment filter, turning the air conditioning inside his armor up. The air inside his SPI armor cooled with a slight stuttering sound, and he sighed contentedly as he moved.

The MA5C in his hands was chipped and dented, and even a little scorched from the constant fighting, and he and his fellow members of Fireteam Romeo had their weapons similarly damaged. Romeo had been caught in-between missions when the Covenant struck Sydney, obliterating HIGHCOM Facility Bravo-6 in a matter of hours, essentially cutting off the head of the main UNSC leadership. Several high ranking UNSC officers and Admirals had been hit, leaving a large gap.

The Spartans of Romeo were now just trying to get away; they needed pickup, but the EMP blast from their little nuke had fried their radios and masers, and with banshees patrolling the skies, they couldn’t well signal visually. Across his back, Scott felt the weight of the M19-D AA Missile Launcher, their only effective weapon against a banshee. They only had a couple of rockets though, currently magnetically attached to Scott’s thigh. High above, distant explosions could be seen from the space battle, but Scott was currently focused on the tactical situation, not the strategic one. And he was focusing real hard.

Up ahead, seventeen klicks out, the bulk of a Covenant CCS battle cruiser could be seen clearly. This was the ship that had launched the assault on Sydney, and Scott knew an opportunity when he saw one. The ship was hovering five hundred meters off the ground, its gravity lift deployed, and it was acting like a sort of command post for the forces. Dozens of Wraith tanks, ghosts, and even a row of banshees stood in neat orderly rows, but more importantly, a line of Phantoms were hovering just in front of the cruiser. Scott knew that any evac he would get would not be allied; he and his team would have to fight their way out.

A single Scarab patrolled the covenant encampment, its huge legs throwing up explosions of dirt as it passed. This was the biggest worry Scott had; if they did manage to hijack one of the phantoms that Scarab could shoot them out of the sky before they could escape. They would have to take it out, which could spark a panic, especially if the Covenant found out that there were three Spartans operating within their ranks. The trick was not to get spotted, and still destroy that monster. But S-IIIs of Romeo were Spartans, and they had an oath to the UNSC. They would live up to the age old tradition of Spartans doing the impossible. Or die trying.

Spartan 501 03:43, 29 November 2007 (UTC)

24
LUNA

Help arrived. Not a large amount, and not the official help, but by the longest stretch, it was help. 'Rhcul and 'Zenor arrived, leaving a trail of destruction in their wake. 'Rhcul now had a larger hole in his arm, but it did not halt the limb's function. He gripped a Mauler in one hand, and the Plasma Rifle in the other. 'Zenor, on the other hand gripped a recharged energy sword. Blood stained her legs. 'Rhcul looked around the battlefield, despratly searching for something that would help in taking down the Scarab. 'Zenor impaled a wayward Unggoy. One of the Human's 'Scorpion' Tanks, miraculously undamged, stood out in the chaos. Though far weaker then the massive Scarabs, 'Rhcul considered it better then nothing. He and 'Zenor ran, as best as the low gravity would allow, to the Scorpion, and 'Rhcul got in the driver's seat. 'Zenor snatched a discarded Rocket Launcher, and got on the front right side. "Bastard apes. Let the fires consume you." The rocket tore the air, albeit slower then it normally would have. But luckily, the Scarab was slower too. The rocket crashed into the Scarab's left rear 'leg, and a few bits of purple cowling scattered. "It's a start." Said 'Zenor.-Anno &#39;Rhculee(Recieve Commands from me)(My lance)