Contingency

Cain-131 steadied herself in her seat as the Pelican dropship shuttered and rocked in its descent.

“Sorry for the bumpy ride. Covenant’s all over the place; have to keep a low profile.” The ONI pilot called from the cockpit.

“It’s alright, we’ve dealt with a lot worse.” A semi-mechanical male voice replied over Cain’s speakers, coming from her AI, Klayton.

“Coming up on Rat’s Nest now.”

Cain could hear the landing gears of the Pelican lower, prompting her to get up from her seat and move to the back of the troop bay. The bay doors opened seconds before the craft hit the ground. The orange hue of the morning sun shined into the Pelican, and Cain got her first glimpse of part of the UNSC’s major base in Kenya, “Rat’s Nest”. Built into the side of a mountain stood an almost ancient concrete structure, one of its main features being a road that seemed to run inside and out of the base. Ramshackle concrete jersey barriers and warning signs lined the side of the road that faced the edge of the mountain. Cain disembarked the Pelican, realizing the landing pad was some distance away from the actual base. A few metal steps dropped down to a short concrete catwalk that led straight into a part of the mountain. She walked past a small contingent of Navy aircraft refuelers and maintenance personnel, who gave her curious glares as she strode into the interior hallway.

Cain gave a passing glance to a number of severely faded symbols on the walls, but one in particular caught her eye; a white compass rose. She had a feeling she had seen that symbol somewhere before. “How old do you think this base is, Klay?”

“Around half a millenia old. It was built for a conflict in the later 21st century. What conflict, I couldn’t tell you. There is not much data on it.”

“I’m surprised it’s lasted this long.” Cain mused as the hallway came to an end. The hallway opened up into a large room, where Marines and other service members were walking about and organizing messy munitions crates. On the other side of the room was a large green armored bulkhead that was opened, leading people to the large interior of the base. A pair of Warthogs passed, being guided to the motor pool across the narrow road by two soldiers.

The motor pool was right in front a tiny base, lined with red stripes and a red UNSC logo. A Mongoose and several Warthogs were being corralled outside, while mechanics waited to check and clear the vehicles. The red stripes had caught Cain’s attention. “You know, that reminds me of the team games they had us run through in training - red base, blue base, all that. You think this place was a training facility?”

“It is possible; It was never breached by any type of armies during its use. I would actually have more data on it to share with you if that were the case.” The AI paused, “I never really viewed you as the history type, more like the ‘shoot first, ask questions later’.”

Cain snickered. “I’m surprised you didn’t know, since you’re stuck in my head all the time. I’m glad to know you _aren’t_ intruding on my personal thoughts 24/7. Makes me feel a bit more comfortable.”

Cain had followed alongside the main road, which led her back outside. She looked out, over the cliff. In the morning sky, a far distance away, she could make out the manta ray- like shapes of Covenant ships hovering low in the atmosphere. There was at least a dozen she could spot alone. Down below, on the ground, was a dense jungle, which painted the landscape in various hues of green. It was an excellent place to stage troops without gathering much attention from up above. In actuality, Cain realized the whole base was perfect for this type of scenario, despite the fact that it was built so long ago for a completely different reason.

She turned back to the concrete structure. She found it most interesting that some old, decrepit training base could hold so much importance hundreds of years later. “I never thought a place like this would be our vital command center for when the Covenant decides to invade Earth. Kinda funny, actually.” Cain mused.

“How so?” The AI replied.

“Not humorous, more like interesting. Not sure how to describe it - it’s just amusing to me.” She had made her way to the opening of an empty garage, where a bunch of decorated personnel huddled together, talking lowly. The sight of her armored frame had caught the group’s attention, and an officer from the group came forward to shake her hand and introduced himself as Colonel Reyes.

“I’m glad to see so many SPARTANs here on Earth. We’re going to need every last one of you for this fight. If you follow me, Petty Officer, we’re going to brief you on your next mission.”