Halo Spotlight: Safety Glassed

Caleb Harrison is haunted by the past as he readies himself for the missions to determine his future.

''Caleb rested in his father's arms, happy and sound. Joe looked down and smiled at his son. He was tired after the long day's work, but finally getting a bit of leave to relax with his family gave him the strength to stay awake just a little longer.''

''"Dad..." Caleb muttered, "Why d'you stay gone so-" Caleb's question was cut off by a long yawn, but his father understood well enough.''

''"I've told you, Caleb, I have to do my part to help humanity fight the bad people. You remember what I told you about them, right?" Caleb nodded groggily. "They'll come and think they're helping, but they'll only make it worse. Things are good the way they are now: the UEG keeps all the colonies running well and works out issues without a problem. Why, I’d say they-"''

''A little snore cut Joe short. He looked back down and saw his son had dozed off during his speech. He smiled and kissed his son’s forehead. "I love you, little one," he whispered. Slowly standing, he picked his son up and walked upstairs to Caleb’s bedroom to tuck him in. But as he opened the bedroom door, he saw it through the window: a city on fire as a massive beam of plasma cut straight toward their house.''

''"Shit!" he yelled. Caleb awoke in confusion, saw the beam and screamed, but it was all too late already. The beam cut through the bedroom, vaporizing everything, as the pair cried out in pain-''

Caleb woke with a sudden jerk, yelling out loud. ''It was just the dream. Only the dream,'' he kept telling himself. He took several minutes to calm himself and remember where he was. Soon Caleb realized he must have dozed off doing maintenance checks on his Volsung Mechanized Armor. He cursed himself for being so lax, still trying to shake the awful feelings of his recurring nightmare.

He could still remember the real night that spawned that dream: awakening to his father's screams as Eridanus II burned around them. Caleb and his mother had gotten to the evacuation shuttle; his father had not.

The young man punched the side of his mech suit as he climbed into the cockpit. Seating himself, he began powering up systems and running diagnostics, trying to calm his nerves. This was all he had left now: his mech, his team, and his missions.

His family was gone, and it was the UNSC's fault for that. I’ll make this right, Caleb swore to himself again. He could finally feel his heartbeat returning to normal, causing him to relax in the mech’s pilot seat a little. After all, this was the only surety he had left in this galaxy.