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Sea of Steel by Omniscient
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Sea of Steel: Prologue
Date: 22 July 2001, 3:54 am
Location: United Earth Defense headquarters, Roswell, New Mexico.
The faces of the gathered men were barely visible in the low light of the small room. Where the sun found its way through the cracks in the ceiling, thin beams of light were visible in the smoke that filled the room. The smoke was the result of a horrible habit that, despite the many years that had passed, some humans still possessed. An old, gray-haired man in military dress leaned back in his chair as he puffed away on his cuban cigar. He rocked forward again, the rickety legs of the chair squeaking under his weight, and rested his elbows down on the table. Seated around the table in front of him were five other men who looked as if they were eagerly awaiting an important speech. Surprisingly, none of them were smoking, and the gray haze that filled the room was entirely from the man sitting at the head of the table.
"Gentlemen," said the smoking man, between puffs. "We are all quite aware now that the Covenant threat to Earth can no longer be ignored. They have pushed us too far, tormented us for too long." Another puff on the cigar. Having reached the butt, he threw it down behind him where it smoldered on the cold, metal floor. "But I am no longer able to command a defensive effort. I have gathered you here today to seek candidates for my replacement." A short pause, heavy breathing. "Gentlemen, I'm dying. Cancer." The gathered crowd did not act surprised. The man at the head of the table relaxed back in his chair again and crossed his arms in front of him. "Since our futile attempt to stop the Covenant hoard on Halo failed, we need to focus all of our energy on the defense of Earth; and the human species."
"Sir," said the man at the opposite side of the table. "We have no confirmation that our forces on Halo were defeated."
"The whole murderin' fleet followed them there, Patrick. And now that whole murderin' fleet is heading toward Earth. What do you think happened?" It was a rhetorical question, of course, but Patrick did not give up.
"Sir, the last transmission we received from the marines on Halo did not indicate that they were-"
"Patrick! The last transmission was cut off before it finished. What does that tell us?"
"Excuse me, Sir. I just don't see how you can completely give up hope."
"I haven't. But I'm an old, dying man, Patrick. And either way, that covvie fleet is headed for Earth, and if we don't stop them....we're toast. Even if we still have marines fighting on Halo, their attempt to distract the Covenant failed. The fleet is returning too soon for us to build up adequate defenses. The human race needs a new leader. One with a young, open mind that can think of never-before imagined ways to defeat an overwhelming enemy." There were some small, barely audible sounds made from many of the men around the table. A minute later, one of the other men spoke up.
"Sir, the only candidate present at this table for such a job is Patrick."
"We know he's the youngest," said another, "but he has climbed the ranks faster than anyone in history."
"Ah yes, I figured this would turn out this way," said the aged man. "Do you except, Patrick? If so, then the men you see here-other than myself, of course-will serve under you as the commanders of your forces."
Somehow, in times of great need, the military had a very informal way of conducting business. Patrick knew that he had to accept, even though the shear responsibility of it made him shutter.
"Sir," said Patrick, after calming himself. "Of course I accept. It is an honor to be chosen for such a position."
And that was it. Earth had a new leader. The old smoking man broke out a new, unopened box of the finest cuban cigars and passed one around to each of the men gathered at the table. Of course none of the others smoked, but there was something about it this occasion that said it was all right to dive into the ancient bad habits of man.
"Hey," said one of the men after receiving the cigar. "I can't possibly die of cancer from smoking before the Covenant kill me. Unless we win." Then he looked at Patrick. "Here's to you, stud. May you keep the human race striding forward." With that, and a few murmurs of agreement, they lit their cigars and sat back in their chairs, slowly puffing away the time.
Sea of Steel: Part One
Date: 25 July 2001, 1:17 am
Section One: The Arrival
Location: Aircraft Carrier Alcatraz, New Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.
Patrick Hall, now the five star General in command of the joint United Earth Defenses, walked briskly from the landing deck through the open doors of the tower and up the shiny metal stairs to the bridge. Two body guards walked in V position behind him, no emotion on their faces, as guards should be. Upon reaching the bridge, the captain of the aircraft carrier greeted him with a perfect salute.
"Atten-TION!" yelled the captain. Immediately all the sailors on the bridge lined up and stood at attention. The captain turned and joined Patrick as he continued to walk with his guards, down the line of sailors as they saluted him in unison. He did not return the gesture. Too much was on his mind.
When they came to the front of the bridge, with many huge windows overlooking a vast sea of deep purple, Patrick stopped. With a wave of his hand, he ordered his body guards to leave him. Seeing this would be a private matter, the captain of the ship dismissed his own crew; with a verbal command. His dogs weren't as well trained as Patrick's.
After the room was secure, the captain spoke. "General Hall, your presence is an honor, though unexpected. What brings you to the Alcatraz?"
"Business, captain. A top secret matter. How secure is this bridge?"
"Very secure, sir. No one can hear or see what is going on in here."
"That's right. Including you."
"Sorry, sir?"
"You are not authorized to know what we are talking about. Which means that I never met with you and never told you anything. Understood?"
"Yes sir!"
"Good. Now, captain, here's the scoop: for the past fifty years, we have run experiments in the Persian Golf that I am sure you are aware of. Are you?"
"Yes sir, I most definitely am. Nuclear engine tests, I was told."
"Well, you were lied to. They were engine tests, yes. Nuclear, though? Well, that part is true enough. There is something more, though. We were testing an IT device. And just last week, we got it to finally work."
"You mean, Instantaneous Transportation?" The captain was astounded. To him, this had only been a theory, and a very sketchy theory, at that.
"Correct. And do you know the reason that you were called into New Pearl Harbor?"
"Of course. Routine engine check up. It was right on schedule, nothing out of the ordinary."
"That's how we planned it. But your engine is not just undergoing routine repairs. You are getting an entirely new engine. And IT engine, captain."
"What? How? I thought you said that just last week you had developed a working model..."
"We did. But we don't have anytime to lose. We need it installed now. At an unknown time, your ship is going to disappear and reappear somewhere else. If all goes well, that is. You will not know where until you arrive. You will not tell your crew. I will be aboard to make sure everything stays under control. After the departure of this ship, a newly built ship will assume the past duties of the Alcatraz in order to keep the Covenant scanners happy. Their fleet is less than one week away, you know. And we already lost the space battle." It was true. A month before the IT had been successfully demonstrated, UED launched a counter attack fleet against the Covenant. Their ships were just to outnumbered to even put up a fight. The old-school, cigar smoking EUD general had been aboard the flagship of the human fleet. He was killed in action, obviously, but he did not die without honor. He was old and close to death anyway, and had requested to be aboard. "Rather die in a fight with an enemy I can see, than perish to this invisable desease inside of me," he had said. Anyway, the destruction of Earth now seemed imminent. It also made it clear why they would choose an ocean carrier, rather than a space carrier, to use this new device: all available star ships had been used in the counter attack. However, the captain did not see how IT would have any hope of winning the final land battle against the Covenant when they arrived. But there was a twinkle in General Patrick Hall's eyes.
"That transmission from our marines on Halo," Patrick continued, "has finally come in completely. It's a little scratchy, but at least it tells us that the marines are still alive. It says something about a "secret" on Halo that is of incredible value to the war effort. It will aid us in the war if we find it, but if the covenant find it first, despite it's immense value, they will surely destroy it before letting it fall into human hands. Exactly what this secret device is, no one is sure. According to the transmission, the Covenant aren't even sure. Either way, we need it."
Confused, the captain could only think of one question to ask, "So Alcatraz is going IT to Halo?"
"I didn't tell you that."
"Yes sir."
Sea of Steel: Part Two
Date: 28 July 2001, 3:22 am
Location: Aircraft Carrier Alcatraz, somewhere in the Pacific Ocean.
The massive nuclear-powered, jet-propelled Alcatraz stormed its way through the rough waters of the Pacific, leaving behind it a wake of mystery. Though there had been no mention of the IT device, many of the crew were aware that something out of the ordinary was going on. First, they had taken on two full extra compliments of highly trained seals from other ships in the area. Second, all the ships weapons had undergone repairs and massive upgrades, and the flight deck was stocked full of fighters and drop ships. Most people just figured they were preparing for the Covenant invasion, but only a few people on board knew of what was really going on. Of course, two were General Patrick Hall and the captain, but the commanders of each seal team had also been informed and ordered to prepare their men for battle, without giving any specifics.
The sailors were right about one thing: they were preparing to conduct battle against the Covenant. But their battle would not be fought on Earth, and that is what they had no clue of. And something only Patrick knew, was that in about one hour, Alcatraz would IT out, and be instantly replaced by the Allison, which would IT in to Alcatraz' original position straight from the assembly line. There was no crew on board the Allison, however. This was done to reduce the amount of human casualties should the IT device fail. The Allison was merely a preprogrammed robot to fool the long-range Covenant scanners.
It was five in the morning, time to wake up. Patrick rubbed his palm against his cheek and felt the unwelcome scratch of a night's worth of new stubble. Yawning, he pushed himself up, and then let himself down again, slowly. And then up again. Soon he did fifty pushups, and then finally rolled out of bed.
The bedroom and the bathroom were one-in-the-same, as all quarters were in this "space-efficient" ship, and Patrick stood up to find himself face to face with his reflection in the dingy mirror. He grabbed the washcloth from the rack and sprayed some water on it from the squeaky faucet. Likewise, after he had thoroughly soaked the washcloth, the water would not turn off completely, and it was left dripping, much to Patrick's annoyance.
After dressing into his uniform, he exited his quarters into the narrow, metal hallway. On his way to the bridge, he squeezed past several sailors who were rushing to get back to their quarters. He stopped one of them, and asked him, "Where are you going, sailor?"
"To my quarters, sir. We've been ordered to dress for battle. Ha, it must be a drill. They think we're stupid. No offense, Sir, but the Covenant fleet is still a week away."
"Yeah, must be. Go get dressed." The sailor ran off and skidded around the corner. I remember those days, Patrick thought. If only they knew what was coming. Patrick continued up to the bridge, where he met the captain who greeted him with a salute.
"How you doing this morning, captain?"
"Very well, sir. A good day for a cruise. How are you, sir?"
"Very well indeed. Mind if I have a seat?"
"No, go right ahead." After a pause, he continued. "Is IT soon?"
"I don't know what you are talking about captain. Does this thing have seat belts?" Patrick smiled a little. The captain knew the time was near, and he had ordered his men to dress in battle gear not a minute too soon. Of course, the captain figured that the reason they were dressing for battle was because they were going to have to fight upon arrival. The real reason was that Patrick wanted all men below decks. He had not told the captain this, but if anyone was left on deck, they may suffer from excessive shock when they made the IT jump. Patrick looked liked he was comfortable enough, sitting in one of control seats looking out the windows in the direction the ship was facing. "Close the windows," he ordered. The captained flipped a switch, and the windows slid closed. They had already stopped moving, an order Patrick had told the captain to give earlier. They weren't sure if IT would work while the ship was in motion, and if it did, they weren't even sure that the ship would land in water once on Halo. So it was a good idea to have the main engines off.
The Alcatraz continued to rock slowly side to side in the great ocean, very casually. So casually, in fact, that the Covenant fleet had no idea that the ship in the position of the Alcatraz on their scanner grid was now actually the unmanned Allison. After another hour of sitting still in the water, she started up her engines and drove off on a pre-plotted course. The Alcatraz had successfully left Earth via Instantaneous Transportation. But had it arrived on Halo?
A message flashed across the computer screen in the EUD Roswell headquarters: IT IS SUCCESSFUL. NO FURTHER COM.
The officer on duty, one of the men who had been seated around the table when Patrick was originally chosen EUD leader, jumped out of his seat. His coffee sloshed over his lap, but he did not notice.
"Hot damn!" he exclaimed. "I didn't even know it was time yet!" He couldn't help but chuckle to himself a little. It was rather amazing. He wished he could see the look on the sailor's faces when, all of a sudden, they appeared somewhere else. Although, they were probably all below deck when it happened, if they timed it right, he thought. Hot damn! We actually did it. Now go kick some Covenant ass!
Alcatraz had made it. The men would be briefed. They would join up with the human marines already present there, and the search for Halo's secret would begin.
Sea of Steel: Part Three
Date: 02 August 2001, 5:23 am
Location: Aircraft carrier Alcatraz, somewhere on Halo.
The loud speaker sounded, "All crew to your respective briefing rooms. Repeat, all crew to your respective briefing rooms." A group of seals who had been transferred to the Alcatraz looked up from cleaning their weapons, puzzled.
"What do you suppose is going on?" said one of them. Apparently, no one had noticed the IT engine transport them from Earth to Halo. Everything seemed normal.
"Must be a drill," said another. "Hell, it's not like we need one. We've been getting three to four drills a week. Their over-drilling us. We'll be so used to drills, that we won't be ready for the real invasion when it comes! Oh hell, let's get it over with." He stood up and holstered his weapon at his thigh. Soon the others stood up and they jogged off to the briefing room together.
The ship felt like a circus on the inside, with people running every direction to get to the right room. The outside was still and quiet, however. No one had gone on deck yet. Patrick was waiting in the briefing room that had been designated for the seals, while the captain of the ship had gone to one of the larger rooms to instruct the main crew. There were exactly one hundred seals, from four different ships. They showed up in the briefing room in full stealth battle gear with pistols at their sides. Patrick greeted them as they entered the room and sat down in the arranged seats.
After everyone was seated, Patrick began his speech.
"As you probably all know, I am General Patrick Hall, in command of the United Earth Defenses against the Covenant. Gentlemen, what I am about the tell you, the reason you were called here, is going to seem unbelievable. Until you step outside, that is. Anyway, here is the story so far. A while back, we received the remainder of a human message from Halo. That message told of some secret device that Halo was housing. We assume it is of Covenant technology, however the Covenant show no sign of knowing where or what it is. In fact, they seem as clueless as we are. In the past month, both human and Covenant forces have scoured the surface of Halo in search for this device, both groups under the impression that acquiring this device will ensure their victory in the war. This is a race that the human marines were hopelessly losing." Several of the seals laughed at the slight emphasis Patrick put on "marines". "Gentlemen, this is a race we can not afford to lose. That is why we sent aid to the marines on Halo. That is why you are seated here today. No, this is not a drill. This is the real thing." He paused for a moment, some of seals seemed like they almost understood, but most were still lost. Then the four seal leaders, who had been informed of the IT engine and the mission to Halo, stood up and walked to the front of the room. Lieutenant Commander Ray Louis, leader of Alcatraz' seals was the first to speak. He introduced himself to the seals who had transferred from other ships, and then began where Patrick left off.
"When you step outside in a few minutes, you will see a new feature has been added to the horizon: a ring. On a clear day, you can follow that ring with your eyes until it vanishes behind the gas giant that it orbits. Welcome to Halo. You are the aid we sent to Halo, to help the marines in their search for this "secret". It wasn't easy for me, or any of the commanders you see before you, to keep this secret from you." He talked faster and louder, to drown out the comments and murmuring of the seals. "We know we directly disobeyed standard protocol: a mission like this should have been voluntary. But, it's too late now. We're here. Commander Griffith has some more details. Commander?"
"Thank you, Lieutenant," said Commander Griffith, in thick southern drawl. He cleared his throat and stared out at the gathered seals. They were impatient, anxious to know what was really going on. "Folks, I don't know what to tell ya to convince ya that yer on Halo. You'll just have to see for yerself. But before ya do, I have some orders. We are still fighting a war, remember. My group, all seals from the Barracuda, are to grab yerselves some flame throwers from the armory.... Nocturne, yer on rockets...." he checked the list that he held out in front of him. ".... Alcatraz and Alaska, you'll find some upgraded assault rifles in armory number two. Any, uh, questions?"
The room was silent. Maybe this was the real thing.
"Excellent," he continued. "Once yer armed and ready, mission details and coordinates will be transmitted to yer HUD. Yer first mission is to rendezvous with the remaining marine forces. So, grab yerselves some weapons, and head on up to the deck."
Meanwhile, the captain had changed his mind and decided to take the easy course and call all regular crew men to the deck, instead of meeting in the briefing rooms. He proved right away that they were, indeed, on Halo. The men were amazed by the magnificent view, the curve of the ring world stretching upward from the horizon on both sides of the carrier. They blinked for a long time. After half an hour of just standing around and slowly beginning to talk amongst each other, the captain got down to business. He sorted out the fighter pilots, the drop ship pilots, the gun crews, the missile crews, the radar and radio operators, and gave them all their respective orders. An hour later, when he had finished and the men had completely come out of shock and were able to move again, the seal teams emerged from below decks, fully armed. The first few to reach the deck stopped dead in their tracks, jamming up everyone behind them. Louis, Griffith, and the other leaders made their way through to the outside. Even though they had been prepared for the arrival on Halo, there was no way that they could have been ready to comprehend the full magnitude of it.
"Wow," said Ray Louis. "That is beautiful." They had been lucky enough to land in water, though not a very large mass of it, and the waves slowly undulated beneath them, more freely then on Earth. Perhaps there was less gravity? Louis thought of this, and he jumped. Nothing unusual. Felt the same as Earth. Griffith looked oddly at Louis, wondering why he just jumped into the air, but before he could ask, he saw that Louis was staring at something. Something in the air, slowly coming closer. They both turned and looked wide-eyed at each other. They were thinking the same thing.
Then a yell from a crewmen some ways off confirmed their suspicions, "Covenant inbound!"
Sea of Steel: Part Four
Date: 02 August 2001, 10:53 pm
Location: Covenant drop ship unit 7, sector 3, Halo.
"Your honor, sensors indicate unidentified structure 1,000 grids ahead."
"Ping it."
"Ping out." The Covenant elite operating the sensors stared down at the square screen below him, displaying a map of the sector. He waited patiently for the return. "Ping in. Signal negative, Sir. It is not of Covenant origin."
"Then what in the order of the gods is it?" demanded the leader of the drop ship, a muscular elite.
"A human building, honor."
"What?"
Before the sensor officer could reply, a third elite called out from his station, "We're under heavy fire!"
"Evasive action!" called the leader, he took his seat and pressed a button on the arm of the chair that turned on a holographic display in front of him. It was the view from a camera that could look outside from any angle. He panned the camera down and zoomed in on the Alcatraz. He had never seen an aircraft carrier before, and thought it was some kind of structure built up in the middle of the water. Orange tracers were flying up at the ship. "Get us out of here!" he called again. But the pilot did not respond.
The leader stood up and ran to the pilot's station. There were holes through the bottom of the cockpit. The pilot sat dead in his chair. "He's dead!" yelled the captain as more bullets shot through the floor and exited through the ceiling. "I'm taking over, signal the base!"
"Affirmative!" called the sensor officer. Just then shells ripped through the floor in front of him and he watched with open eyes as the line of holes grew rapidly closer to his position. He tried to dive out of the way, but the bullets were flying to fast. The controls in front of him exploded as the shells sliced their way through it like butter.
"What's happening?" yelled the leader. He looked behind him, to see the limp body of his sensor officer lying lifeless against the back wall. The ship was on fire, alarms were going off, lights were flashing. The captain turned back to the controls. "Die, humans." He tried to angle the drop ship down toward the carrier, but the controls did not respond. The holograph display shorted out, and he stood up and stepped back to the center of the ship, where he could look down through the floor and see the water below.
"Oh gods, forgive me."
Another volley of anti-armor bullets pierced through the drop ship, which was now starting to spin down toward the ground. Before it reached the surface of the water, the ship exploded into flames, sending debris of blue and purple alloy everywhere.
Location: Aircraft Carrier Alcatraz, somewhere on Halo.
"That got 'im!" yelled Griffith, who was still standing on the deck of the ship. He watched the flaming wreckage plummet into the water. All around him, the seals and crewmen were whooping. The speakers came on again, "Target destroyed. Way to look alive."
That little encounter helped bring everyone into the present. No one was shocked about being on Halo any more. In fact, the crew was quite happy after downing the drop ship that they forgot how far away from home they actually were.
"Let's just hope they didn't radio for backup," said the captain in a meeting that evening with Patrick, Ray Louis, Griffith, and the other commanders. The seal commanders reported that their squads were ready to go land-side and had all received the coordinates to meet the human marines, who still did not know that the carrier was here.
"Do we have any idea of what to expect from the enemy?" asked Captain Renault, from the Nocturne.
"No idea at all," said Patrick. "We won't know until you're men go in. We could launch a satellite, but the Covenant would undoubtedly notice that and use it to locate us. You just have to be careful. If that drop ship managed to radio for backup, it may already be too late."
"When do we move out?" said Lieutenant Rawlins, of the Alaska.
"At night fall," said the captain. "You will navigate by your head-up displays and night vision."
"What did your men think of the new rifles, Lieutenant Louis?" asked Patrick.
"Those new assault rifles? They're beauties. Twice the firing rate and ammo capacity of the old ones, plus the built-in grenade launcher. We are definitely thankful for those."
"Just don't get too trigger happy. When you meet up with the marines, we'll arrange for a transport to bring them in some new hardware and medical gear. Do we need to discuss anything else here?" No one responded. "Good. Go load up; and good luck."
The commanders stood and left the meeting room, all just a little bit nervous about their mission.
Sea of Steel: Part 5
Date: 04 August 2001, 2:55 PM
Part 5Location: Land-side, vicinity of aircraft carrier Alcatraz, somewhere on Halo.
"Well mistuh Renault," said Griffith after he hopped down from the rear gate of the drop ship, "since you be the captain an' all, what be our plan?"
"You boys know what to do. We are looking for a large clearing in the forest. About one hundred meters wide and three times as long, according to ship's scanners. The human marines are supposedly camped in the tress on the other side of the clearing. Louis, take your assaulters to the front. Rawlins, take yours to the rear. We have to take this in waves, we can't exactly maneuver one hundred troops easily in the forest at night."
"I don't mind scouting, sir, but can we get a couple flames up there, too?"
"Good plan. Griffith, send two flamers with the forward assaulters. Have the rest stay back with Rawlins' guys. I'll send five rocketmen with the rear assaulters and I'll stay with the rest behind on the beach. We probably won't have much need for them, but they'll be able to use radar for a beyond visual range attack if we do need them. It also gives us less men to worry about."
"Bah! Coward..." said Griffith, smiling. "Stayin' back on the beach. You'll git yer turn, though, I guess."
"We all will, we all will," replied Renault.
"Right," said Louis. "Let's get organized and move out." Then he keyed his radio, "Louis to Alcatraz seals, arrange in rough line and scout forward 300 hundred meters through the forest. If you come upon a clearing, let the rear know and wait up. I'll be right with ya in a minute." Griffith then radioed his men, and Rawlins his. Rawlins also ordered five of his men to stay on the beach with the rocketmen. Just in case, he told Renault.
Five minutes later, Louis and his team had covered the 300 meters. The clearing must still be a ways off, thought Louis. He radioed rear, "All clear 300, move up."
Then one of his assaulter's voices came through his helmet radio, "I've got something on HUD. I think it could be the clearing, possible 500 meters. Confirm."
"Negative, I don't have it. Anyone have any readings?"
"Hang on, sir, I'm moving a little closer," said another voice. Louis heard the rustle of leaves and sticks cracking on the radio. Thirty seconds later, the voice returned. "Affirmative. Repeat, affirmative contact. I think it is the clearing, sir."
"Roger that. Scout group, move forward 400. Rear, Louis-we have located the clearing, 500 from our position. Go 300 and wait for signal."
"Gotcha," Griffith replied. "How's the view up there?"
"Crowded with trees and bushes. Shut up."
"Gothca."
Ten more minutes, and both waves were in position, with Griffith's and Rawlins' men roughly 400 meters back of Louis'. Now the clearing was visible just one hundred meters ahead of the scouts. Louis stepped behind a tree and keyed his radio. "Front, Louis-situation report."
"Sit-rep negative," everyone replied.
"Four assaults and one flame cross the clearing. You know who's first," said Louis. The seals always had a wave order that was the same for just about everything, so that they never needed to plan one. The only difference now was the flame thrower. The crossing group just grabbed the nearest one and one of the assaulters told him, "We're going in a single file, tight line. Along with our stealth suits, that helps confuse personnel radar."
"I know!" shouted the flamer right back at him.
"Good. Just checking. Let's move!" The five navy seals grabbed their weapons securely and dashed the one hundred meters into the clearing, all the time keeping a close watch on their HUD's for any sign of their marine comrades. Or any Covenant, for that matter. They were about midway across the open clearing when a message came in from Rawlins.
"Front, Rawlins-urgent. We have two air contacts on intercept course for the clearing coming from the northwest. Confirm."
"Rear, Louis-that's a negative. No readings."
"Well, I'd be careful. Ya might git some unwanted comp'ny pretty soon," said Griffith. His men had the contacts on HUD, as well.
"Rear, Louis-I think . . . wait . . .yes, contacts confirmed! Repeat, contacts confirmed. Front, Louis-check for two air contacts coming from northwest. The assaulters confirmed the contacts as they came onto their HUD's. "They must be Covenant drop ships!" called one of the men.
"Front scouts, Louis-hit the deck! Two enemy drop ships on intercept for your position! Stand by for orders! Repeat, hit the deck! They may pass us by, but backup is ready if they don't. Confirm." -silence- "Repeat confirm. Front scouts, Louis-confirm contacts. Come in!"
Sea of Steel: Part 6
Date: 11 August 2001, 7:12 PM
Part 6
Location: Covenant drop ship unit 3, sector W, Halo.
Commander Tsheac, the Red elite, was prowling casually throughout the command deck of his drop ship. A devious grin slipped across his face as he thought of the final destruction of the human resistance. Finally, he though, I will sleep in peace, without the constant thought of a human ambush in my brain. Perhaps I will even get promoted to Fleet Commander for my military brilliance on Halo.
"Commander, drop zone is near. I humbly suggest that you prepare to drop," said the sensor operator. Tsheac walked over to him and peered over his shoulder at the screen.
"That is the forest where the humans are hiding?" asked Tsheac, indicating a patch of green on the screen.
"Correct."
"Set us down in that field. I will lead the elites through the forest to the humans. It will be a fast, deadly strike. I expect minimal casualties, if any. Alert unit 2 of the plan." The sensor officer nodded and Tsheac climbed the ladder down the drop deck, where his group of ten elites were waiting for him. They stood up as soon as Tsheac's feet hit the floor, holding their heavy battle rifles across their chests in a salute.
"At peace," said Tsheac. The elites sat back down. A minute later, the ship shook and the elites all stood up again and looked at the lights above each of their individual drop doors. The light was purple. No go. Then it started flashing, as the ship came closer to the ground. When the drop ship was just a few feet from the ground, the light turned blue, a bright, blinding blue. The doors flew open, and the elites tumbled out. Tsheac was right with them.
Unit 2 had also unloaded its ten elites, and the two drop ships took to the skies again. The edge of the forest was about fifty meters in front of the drop group, and Tsheac immediately started the charge. The other elites quickly followed suit, running as fast as they could into the woods. They knew the forest by instinct, something the humans lacked. The Covenant would not hesitate to use this to their advantage. Suddenly, Tsheac halted the charge with a wave of his arm. He called the elites forward slowly, and told them to take cover behind a tree.
"Humans are near," said Tsheac, "I can feel it. I can smell their blood, that boiling, warm, red blood of theirs. Brothers, that blood runs full of fear. We will be victorious. Now, advance in a wide sweep. We will encircle them and dispense with them before they even wake up." Tsheac stepped out from behind the tree and slowly crept forward. The other elites did as they were told, forming a long line to close in around the human camp. The humans outnumbered them almost two to one, but the elites were confident. The humans had never seen a Red elite in battle before, let alone such a prestigious one as Commander Tsheac, and would not be ready for it.
Location: Human marine encampment, sector W, Halo.
"You hear that?"
"Hear what?"
"Shh! Listen . . . Never mind, it's nothing."
"Why you gotta scare me like that, Ornales?"
"Hey man, I don't do it to scare you. I be scared too, no? Bein' out here on watch duty in the pitch black. Damn this planet, or whatever it is. I want to be at home, con mi familia. SÌ, con me espousa en mi cama . . . Ahh. Y t™, Richards?"
"No comprendo, compadre," said Richards, stretching his back out against the tree that they were leaning against. He quickly sat up again and cocked his head, trying to peer through the forest. "Ornales, wait . . . I did hear something. Just now. You hear it?"
"Ya man, yo le oyo."
"What do you suppose it was?"
"Solimente Dios sabe . . ."
"What? Cut that spanish, man."
"It means, Only God knows."
"Whatever. Shut up now," said Richards as he raised his assault rifle. They both heard it again. Foot steps, undoubtedly. Ornales saw them on his HUD first. He cursed something in spanish that Richards understood as soon as he saw the elites on his own HUD.
"Shit," said Richards. He looked at Ornales, "Go now. Run! Wake everybody, I'll try to stall 'em!"
"Rich, those be elites man. About twelve. Come with me! You know you can't win!"
"GO!" yelled Richards. His HUD indicated the Covenant were in range, though there were too many trees in the way to be sure of a hit. Nevertheless, he opened fire. Ornales took this as a good queue that Richards wasn't coming, so he took off running as fast as he could. Richards' rifle continued to blast metal into the forest as he let out a yell at the top of his lungs that seemed to last indefinately. Ornales listened to it as he ran farther. Then he heard the all too familiar sound of Covenant battle rifles. Richards' yelling stopped.
"Madre de Dios . . ."
Sea of Steel: Part 7
Date: 14 August 2001, 3:02 AM
Part 7
Location: Alcatraz away team, some forest near some open field, somewhere on Halo.
"Contacts c-c-confirmed, s-sir," said a voice in Louis' helmet. It was the front scouts. Thank God they're alive, Louis thought.
"Report," asked Louis.
The reply took a few seconds to come in. Apparently the front scouts were a little shaken up, as they should be after witnessing two Covenant drop ships fly right over them. "Well, I don't think we were noticed, must be the stealth suits. The bloody bastards flew right over us. Looked like about twenty elites dropped off and ran into the forest-" He was cut off by one of the other front scouts, the flamer from Griffith's squad.
"There were twenty-one elites, not twenty. The twenty-first dropped off last. And it was not just an elite. He was a Red, sir. I'd never seen one before, but - damn - I'm sure of it."
"Damn is right!" cursed Louis. "They're after the marines. We need to get in there, to hell with being sneaky and quiet. Try to track them, and let me know if you get any readings. I'm bring my group across all at once. Go!"
"Roger that!" yelled the flamer through the radio as he picked up his gear and stumbled into a run. The other front scouts were right behind him, though seemed less enthusiastic about tearing off blindly toward twenty Covenant elites and one Red.
"Forward assaulters, Louis-The marines are in trouble, we're crossing the field all at once and heading directly into the woods on the other side. Head toward the coordinates on your HUDs. Move out!"
The seals had heard the conversation between Louis and the front scouts, so they were ready to move when he said move. They sprung out from behind the bushes and trees and easily maneuvered their way out of the forest and into the field. It was like the old days of WW1, where you dig in, and then you charge: run like hell toward the enemy. By the time the team had reached the other side of the field, the front scouts were within visual range. No report of the location of the elites had been given, but the front scouts had stopped and were all standing around looking at something. Louis waved the rest of the men on and then jogged over to the front scouts.
"Score one for the bad guys," said the flamer, as he stared down into the gaping eyes of Richard's dead body. His armor had melted and re-hardened in crator-shaped holes where the energy blasts had hit him.
"Nothing we can do about it now. Let's keep moving," said Louis. The front scouts ran on to rejoin the main assault group. Then someone called in a report. The elites had been spotted, and the marine encampment was located, as well. This report was confirmed by the sound of assault rifles echoing off into the night. Even through the trees, Louis could make out the flashes of grenades, and then the blinding light made from Covenant plasma bombs. He had never seen one before. In fact, none of them had ever even fought the Covenant man to man before, but Louis had read plenty of information to know how deadly their weapons were. There plasma bombs, unlike the human grenades, would explode on impact. There was no time delay. No chance to pick it up and throw it back. The energy field around it carried too much stress. When that much tension meets with solid matter, it can not hold together. And even if you don't get blown up by the blast, you still get temporarily blinded by the light. Nasty weapons.
Another grenade blast. Louis refocussed his brain and ran off toward the battle.
The marines were putting up a good fight when the seals arrived, but they hopelessly confused, despite Ornales' warning. Luckily, the elites had not been able to fully surround the marines, and were advancing on them in an arched line instead. The two flame throwers had conveniently come in on opposite sides of the assault group, providing good close range cover for the assaulters. The problem was, with so many trees, it was impossible to hit an elite without setting the whole damned forest on fire. Furthermore, the elites were forcing the marines farther back into the woods. When Louis caught up, he realized this and decided to take the initiative.
"Flamers, Louis- Rendezvous at these coordinates, I'll meet you there, I have a plan. Move fast!" The coordinates Louis had given them would put them all the way behind the the human marines. The flamers tried their best to make the sprint, but they were burdened by the fuel tanks and it was a tremendous struggle to move quickly through all of the underbrush. They were attempting to go around Covenant line completely, while Louis decided it was time for some heroics. He grasped his weapon securely in both hands and tore off toward the center of the attacking elites. The element of surprise, he hoped, would be enough to keep him from getting killed.
The rest of the assaulters continued to move forward, though none of them had let off any shots yet. One man reported seeing the red elite on HUD - they give off an energy signal about twice that of the normal elites - but it had vanished before he could get a visual. Louis, on the other hand, wasn't even paying attention to his HUD. He had no idea that the elite in front of him had turned around and raised his weapon when Louis plowed him down to ground, completely by accident. Louis rolled over the elite and took off running again. The human marines saw him coming, and a couple of soldiers ran out and provided cover for him to get to the marine commander, who had also came forward a little way to see who the hell this was charging through the enemy line.
"Sir, Lieutenant Commander Ray Louis of the carrier Alcatraz, reporting!" He had to yell to be heard over all the explosions and gun shots and plasma bolts and all the other familiarities of combat.
"What the hell? So the Space Force finally sent in some help!" the commander yelled back.
"No, sir. I'm from the Navy!"
"What the hell?"
"I'll explain later, we have to get you out of here. I've got two flamers moving around to the back. When their in position, I want your men to pick up their heels and run like bats out of hell deeper into the woods, past the flamers. They're going to set fire to the forest, and I've got assaulters on the other side to finish off the elites as they retreat! Understand?"
"What the hell kind of a plan is that?"
"One that will work, sir! Trust me! The covvies don't know that my men are here!"
"What the hell, it's better then this! You give me the signal!" Just then, the Red elite burst through the foliage a few meters from Louis. There was a flash as the Red ignited his energy ax and grabbed the nearest marine. It was a fast death. The Red leaped high into the air and came down behind a small group of three marines. He spun around and dispatched them all. The marine commander turned and shot at the elite, as did Louis. The Red had such speed and grace, that few of the bullets hit, and those that did were deflected harmlessly by his energy shield. However, instead of charging toward Louis and the commander, the Red stopped and listened. Louis continued to shoot. Then the Red bounded up into the air and disappeared. He was on HUD for a while, but not long.
"They brought a Red! He must have realized there was some kind of trap when he saw you! They have excellent hearing, I wouldn't be surprised if he was listening for your guys. Oh yeah, what band are your guys on?"
"We have entirely new radio units, sir! Higher encryption levels, we can not communicate via radio until we outfit your men with the new hardware. If we could have, do you think I would have risked my life to get to you?" Louis keyed his radio on and asked the flamers for a report. They were close to the coordinates. "That's close enough!" said Louis. "Be prepared for a whole load of marines to charge past you. When you see me come through, I'll give the word, and then you boys give the covvies hell!"
"Sir yes sir!" said the flame throwers, mocking the common affirmative said by marines.
"Commander, tell your men it's time to get out of here!" Louis said to the marine commander.
"Whatever the hell you say, Lieutenant!" Then he keyed his own radio, and yelled for his men to fall back past the flamers and wait for additional orders. Louis mounted a grenade to his rifle and launched it off in the direction of the Covenant line.
"I want one of those!" yelled the marine commander.
"You'll get one! Now move!" The commander emptied the remainder of his clip and then ran off with the rest of his marines. The flame throwers were only about twenty meters back, and Louis was the last man to reach them.
"Do it!" he yelled. The flamers pulled back on the gas release and let it sit for a while before triggering the flame. When they did, two huge balls of fire roared out into the forest, lighting up their faces clear as day and setting a blaze to the trees and bushes. The Covenant found themselves caught in the middle of it, as they had tried to pursue the marines. Some of them yelled some orders in whatever language it was that they spoke, and they turned around and ran the other way. Louis was satisfied to see the distant barrel flashes as his men took care of the retreating elites. Using the new, silenced assault rifles, it was an almost completely quiet task.
"One problem, sir" said a voice in Louis' radio after the rifles had stopped.
"What is it?"
"I'm detecting a strong energy signal moving quickly away. I'm afraid that this is not the last that we've seen of this Red elite."
Sea of Steel: Part 8
Date: 15 August 2001, 9:32 PM
Location: Aircraft carrier Alcatraz, somewhere on Halo.
The Captain was sitting in the bridge with General Patrick Hall. They had not spoken very much since the seals had departed. They both had solemn looks on their faces, like something had happened that was unbelievable.
"Coffee?" the Captain asked, not even looking over to Patrick.
"Sure," said Patrick. The Captain stood up and walked over to the coffee machine in the back of the bridge. While he was pouring two cups, a message came through from Griffith.
"Go ahead, Griffith," said Patrick.
"Ar, hey thar matey. Mission successful. We met up with our marine comrades. We took zero casualties, but I'm afeared I can't say the same for the marines. We're returning to the ship. These boys need some new hardware bad."
"Roger. We'll send the drop ships to pick you up. But Griffith-"
"Yeah?"
"The Captain and I need to meet with you and the other commanders as soon as you get on board. And bring whoever the marine leader is, too. This is serious. Hall out." Patrick hung up the line and sat back in his chair with a long sigh. "I'll take that coffee now," he said to the Captain. The Captain brought it over and sat down in the chair next to him.
"I don't quite know how to break it to everyone, Patrick. I'm not sure that I even believe it myself," said the Captain.
"Neither am I, neither am I."
Location: Beach near aircraft carrier Alcatraz, somewhere on Halo.
The drop ships launched from the Alcatraz as Louis' men stepped out of the forest and onto the beach. No one even noticed the noise of the massive engines, as all the men were talking enthusiastically with the marines, asking all kinds of questions about Halo and how long they had been fighting. The marines were also asking about how the hell that big ass ship got here. Everyone was happy to see new faces, and willingly told of all their great adventures. The marines had also picked up some things from the Covenant. One thing, was how the Covenant told direction on this ring-world. It was divided into four sectors - North, South, East, and West - and each sector was divided into one hundred sections, and each section divided into one thousand grids. From the marines, the seals learned that they were near the center of sector W. Louis was talking with the marine commander as they walked up to the water. "Well, I guess I oughta thank you for helping me out back there," said the marine. Then he looked out and noticed the ship. "Holy crap-that thing can fly?"
"Ha, not exactly. Don't worry, everything will be explained once we get you and your men on board. Oh, and you're welcome. I'm sorry about the casualties you took. Your men were brave to tough it out this long. It's going to be a pleasure to work with your team." Louis knelt down and splashed some water from the lake onto his face. It tingled. The drop ships had reached the beach and were slowly lowering to the beach. It took five minutes for everyone to load up, and then the drop ships lifted off and soared low over the water back to the Alcatraz.
Location: Aircraft carrier Alcatraz, sector W, Halo.
General Hall was on the deck to personally meet the marine commander, who introduced himself as Sergeant Gale, Bruce Gale. He was actually from the Army, but his airborne platoon had been transferred to the Pillar of Autumn early in the war. No one ever actually told him why. Whatever the reason, he soon found himself in command of the Marines as well, and it had nothing to do with rank, but he adopted the name. Now all the men that served under him were known as marines. It didn't matter where they came from, they were the Halo marines.
"Well, that is a interesting bit of history," said Patrick. "But I am afraid that we do not have time for all the formalities. Sergeant Gale, I need to talk with you and the other commanders in briefing room one. Louis, round up Griffith, Renault, and Rawlins and meet me there ASAP."
"Yes sir," said Louis. He waved to Rawlins who was within site, and radioed Griffith and Renault, who still had their helmets on. They jogged over, and together with Seargend gale they followed Hall to the briefing room. When they arrived, the Captain was waiting for them.
"Gentlemen," said Patrick, "please, have a seat." The five commanders pulled up chairs and sat down. Patrick continued, "I don't know how to say this, exactly. The captain and I have thought this over, but have not discussed it with anyone else yet. We received a message from Earth." He paused. "The Covenant fleet arrived, and Earth could only wait for them to transport to the surface because the fleet had taken out all of the defense satellites and, as you know, our fleet failed in an attempt early on to destroy theirs. Anyway, gentlemen, the Covenant never transported down to the surface. All of the ships in their fleet turned right back around and headed for Halo after making sure that Earth could no longer put up a fight. Except for one. That one carried a new weapon."
It was the Captain's turn to speak. "What the General is getting at, is that Earth was destroyed approximately ten hours ago. Completely destroyed, by one ship. And the rest of the Covenant fleet is intending to destroy every last human being alive."
Sea of Steel: Part 9
Date: 19 August 2001, 7:09 am
Location: Covenant God ship, en route to Halo.
The God ship, the flag ship of the Covenant fleet, was leading the rest of the strike force away from Earth and toward Halo. The fleet moved smoothly and precisely, yet faster then any human vessels could travel, save for IT. The Covenant, as of yet, had no idea of the humans' success with IT. Never the less, they had received reports from the Covenant officers fighting on Halo. However unlikely it may seem, they were, according the reports, out manned and out gunned. Human reinforcements seemed to have arrived from nowhere.
And, coincidentally, the commander of the God ship was Tsheac's brother, Klesk. Klesk was older than Tsheac by about twenty human years, though for Reds, that really is not very long. Klesk and Tsheac had gone different ways when they decided to join the Covenant. Klesk was older, and he obviously chose the relatively clean life of a fleet officer. Tsheac, on the other hand, despised his brother and joined the infantry just to avoid being under Klesk's command. The two brothers had not spoken to each other since they had joined the Covenant. But that was about to change.
"Captain Klesk, incoming message on priority frequency. Shall I put it through?" asked a grunt seated in the communications seat near the rear of the bridge.
"Of course!"
"Sir, I think it is of private matters."
"Augh! You incompetent-" He paused. "I will take in my quarters, now." The grunt nodded as Klesk paced out through a doorway that lead directly into his personal quarters. His brother's face awaited him on the view screen inside.
"Tsheac! How dare you disgrace me by showing your face!"
"Brother, please," began Tsheac in his classic, sarcastic tone of trying to sound soothing and relaxed. "I know I have not talked with you for a long time, brother. Everything is fine." Of course Klesk knew that everything was not fine, because if it was, Tsheac would have been content to have not contacted him at all. Tsheac went on, "Oh, and how is Tyshea? Any little Klesk Juniors running around that star ship penthouse of yours?"
"Your sarcasm gets you no where, swine. What do you want? And don't you ever mention my wife again."
"Brother, please, don't sound so upset. Really, everything is fine. Except, well . . ."
"Go on! Fast! I have not got all day!"
"Fine!" Tsheac removed his mask of calmness fully now. "You want to know what my problem is? Well good, because you can just sit up there in your petty little Godess-ship, sipping the best field wine and relaxing on your pillow bed while numerous grunts hurry about to do your every bidding! You have no idea! No, no idea at all, brother! What it is like for me, stuck here on this measly, barren ring-world! Oh, you get all the glory for blowing up one pitiful planet that didn't even rate on the industrial scale! And you know what's more? It wasn't even you! You just ordered one of your slave ships to sacrifice its entire crew for 'the good of the fleet, and the Covenant Cause,'" said Tsheac, imitating Klesk's voice. He began again, after taking in much needed air. "Oh, brother, you have no idea what is it like to be surrounded by dirty elites and half-witted grunts who eat too much and do too little. Oh yes, and then their are the Humans. Have you ever seen one, face to face, I mean? They're actually quite hairy. Yes, much as our own people were back in our stone age. I thought we had them for good! Damn the gods, Klesk! Damn this planet I'm on, damn the humans! Damn their cursing!" He paused to breathe again. "Brother, excuse me. It would seem that I have picked up on a few human customs. As you know, before I could eliminate them, human reinforcements arrived. We have no idea from where. And just today, brother, three human aircraft, the likes of which we have never before seen, destroyed all of our land-based air monitoring stations! These humans have evolved! I need your assistance now. I need more troops. And, most of all, honorable brother, I need to know where the 'secret' is."
"You're mad," said Klesk. "There is no 'secret'. That is all folk lore."
"It must be here. The humans know it, too. We must find it first, brother. I know you know."
"Tsheac, you are completely out of your mind. And you are losing. Losing to that scum of a species that we have both vowed to eliminate. And I've done my part! You failed in yours! And that's why I have direct orders to completely destroy Halo!"
"What?"
"You see, Tsheac, brother, friend; Halo is now only a threat. And we can not allow that. But I will let you on something, since you have been so stubborn. Yes, their is a secret! And I don't know what it is! It is rumored that one of the founding races of the Covenant installed it on Halo shortly after that world was constructed. That race is now extinct, and we don't know where or what the secret is! But what we do know, is that it can not be allowed to fall into human hands. The Covenant would sooner destroy it, and all of your soldiers left on that world."
"Now you are mad! You can not destroy this world! And if you did, you would have to evacuate the Covenant that are here! That is law!"
"Sorry, Tsheac, good brother, but it appears that High Command thinks time is running short. We will not be able to get within shuttle range. We will merely bombard Halo with long range plasma rockets until it is - DESTROYED!" Klesk yelled into the screen in front of him. "So, dear brother, say your last good byes to the humans and your comrades in arms. Farewell."
"Damn you to-" Before Tsheac could fully reply, Klesk casually reached over and terminated the connection. He leaned back and drummed his claws on his desk for a minute, smiling a little. Tsheac would have made a good ship's officer, he thought. "But what in the order of the gods to I care about him now! He is a failure! Disgracing the entire Covenant and the Cause!" He was yelling now, yelling at Tsheac even though the connection was long since lost. Yelling across space, yelling to the gods. "You tried to cleanse the human infection, brother, but it seems that they have only soiled you! And now you must pay for your mistakes with your own life life. No, I am not sorry." He collapsed forward, holding his face in his hands. If he had had tear ducts, he might have cried. But not for Tsheac. No, definitely not for his brother. He would have cried for everything. For the war, for Halo, for the secret, for the Covenant Cause, and for his wife.
Just then, the side door to his room opened almost silently. Klesk turned and looked up. It was Tyshea, his wife.
"Klesk," she started.
"Go away."
"Klesk," she repeated.
"Go away."
"Klesk," third time's the charm.
"What?"
"I have some important news."
"Oh yeah? Well, me too. And I just had a lovely conversation with my brother, so I am not really in the mood for talking."
"Klesk, you don't have to say anything. Just listen."
"What is it, then?"
Tyshea spoke, timidly, "It's a 'who'." Klesk didn't reply. "A . . . 'Klesk Junior'. Klesk, I am pregnant." She smiled, hoping he would lighten up. He definitely did not.
"DAMN YOU TSHEAC!"
Sea of Steel: Part 10
Date: 25 August 2001, 6:00 am
Location: Aircraft carrier Alcatraz, Sector W, Halo.
The commanders were all engaged in a meeting to discuss a plan of how to locate the "secret", when a crewman on deck noticed something on the far shore. He pulled his one-eye HUD down over his left eye and zoomed in on the subject. It was a Covenant elite, but it gave out a massive energy signal. There was no one else with him. The crewman threw back his HUD and ran to the nearest radio, where he signaled the tower.
"Crewman Davis to tower, I have an unidentified humanoid form that appears as Covenant, Elite class on HUD. It appears to be traveling solo. Please confirm." Davis tried to sound professional as he gave his report.
"Tower to Davis, we have the elite in our scopes. Thanks for the heads-up. We do not see any other activity in the area. Will signal captain. Tower out." Davis listened to the radio click off, and then he hung up his end and lowered his HUD once more to take a look at the elite. It's huge, he thought, at least a head taller than a human.
The Captain was seated around yet another conference table with General Patrick Hall and the seal and marine commanders. The marine commander, Bruce Gail, had provided some detailed information and maps on the territories that his men had already explored. Ray Louis and the other seal team leaders were looking over this information on the computer when they were interrupted by the message from the tower.
"Tower to Captain, we have unidentified Covenant elite on west shore. Advise." The seal commanders slowly stared up from the computer screen they shared and looked at the Captain, who held an equally confused look on his face.
"Just one unit?" asked the Captain.
"Affirmative, sir. One personnel, moving slowly. No other activity. Air and ground radars are clean."
"I recommend we send a delegate," said Patrick, very matter of factly. He looked at the Captain and waited for a response. The Captain seemed to acknowledge the suggestion, and soon he agreed to it. Two minutes later, Louis found himself gathering together three of his best men and leading them to the shuttle-boat bay. General Hall was also going along; he was the delegate.
"General," said Louis when he arrived at the launch bay with his three men, "I have to advise you not to go. The risk is too high, your life will be at stake."
"My life does not matter anymore than any other life on this ship, Lieutenant. I want to meet this elite. I know you think it may be a trap, but I have my reasons to think differently." With that, Patrick hopped over the side of the waiting shuttle-boat and buckled his seat belt, a definite signal that he had made up his mind. Louis and his seals jumped in after them, Louis taking the wheel and another manning the front turret. The third sat along the side with his assault rifle rested on the railing, ready to shoot at the first sign of trouble. Louis waved his hand to a crewman standing behind a control panel, who manipulated some controls as a red light began to flash. A moment later, the launch bay began to fill with water as the main door opened. Once the water was deep enough to float the boat, Louis started the engines and taxied out of the bay. After clearing the huge door, he opened up the throttle and tore off toward the shore where the elite was waiting. The force of the acceleration made the passengers of the boat glad for their seat belts, and the seal manning the turret took an extra strong grasp on the handles.
It took less than a minute for the shuttle-boat the reach the shore. They did not take it right up to where the elite had stopped at the water line, but instead parked it a ways to the left. The seal kept the turret aimed tight on the elite as Louis disembarked with Patrick. There was no denying it now, the elite was definitely a Red, and it watched Louis and Patrick approach, but did not move on its own.
"Wait," said Louis, holding out his arm in front of Patrick. "Let's signal him." Louis lowered his assault rifle and used his other hand to wave to the Red. He was not exactly sure of the response he was looking for. The Red stared blankly at Louis. So he tried a verbal command:
"What the hell do you want!" Louis was not trying to sound diplomatic, and he raised his weapon toward the Red again, who put his arms behind his head. Louis looked at Patrick, who said "Let's go," and started walking toward the elite. Louis walked alongside him, but kept his gun zeroed in on the Red's head. They got to within ten feet of him before the General finally stopped and looked the Red in the eyes.
"I am General Patrick Hall of the United Earth Defenses. If you can understand me, then identify yourself."
"Jeneril, there iss no need for your United Earth Defensess any longer. That planit wass disstroyed. Now it would sseem that you are the offensess, and I am the defensess."
"Identify yourself and be prepared to be taken into custody. I do not care what you think. We could of killed you a long time ago without taking the trouble to come out here, so I suggest you hurry up and talk before we change our mind about not killing you."
"Jeneril, I come in piecess . . . no, peace, I mean . . ."
"Cut that 'I don't speak English' accent crap! I know you can talk faster then that. Louis?" Patrick turned his head to Louis, who pointed his weapon even more poignantly at the Red.
"Fine," said the Red. "I have come to help you find the secret. My survival depends on it, too."
Sea of Steel: Part 11
Date: 27 August 2001, 12:53 am
Section Two: The Discovery
Location: Aircraft carrier Alcatraz, Sector W, Halo.
Tsheac was seated at the head of the table in the debriefing room. Sitting around the other chairs were the Captain, Patrick, Louis, and the other commanders, including Bruce Gail who jumped for the Red's throat when he first saw him. It took him a few minutes to be contained after Tsheac had easily tossed him aside. Bruce now sat at the other end of the table, his knuckles white as he gripped the arms of the chair tighter and tighter. He recognized Tsheac as the Red that killed most of his men back in the woods, and he wasn't about to feel any forgiveness for this defector. Nevertheless, he followed protocol and controlled himself.
The two seals guarding the door periodically glanced down at Tsheac, who would scowl at them and they would immediately look up straight again, and hold their assault rifles a little tighter. Patrick started off, by explaining how they found Tsheac, and then he let Tsheac tell his own story. Tsheac spoke about the fleet, but did not mention that Klesk was his brother.
"You expect me to believe this red bastard?" Bruce commented after Tsheac had finished. This soiled marine commander had seen his share of Covenant trickery throughout his time on Halo, and he wasn't about to give into something.
Tsheac hissed at him. Louis couldn't take it, and he was edging more toward the marine commander's side. He unholstered his pistol and pointed it directly at Tsheac's head. Tsheac stared Louis directly in the eyes for a seemingly eternal period of silence. Finally Patrick said, "That's enough, Lieutenant. Lower your weapon."
"Make him take off his armor," said Louis. Tsheac was still wearing the normal Covenant armor, and Louis realized that he could activate it and kill everyone in the room before the guards at the door could slam enough rounds into it to destroy it.
"Tsheac," said Patrick. "Take it off. You understand the risk we are taking." Tsheac stared at him a moment, not wanting to lose his pride and give in to the wishes of human scum. But he knew at the same time that he would have to help them for them to help him. He slowly stood up and unfastened the different metal plates. One thing about Covenant armor, is that they don't wear anything underneath it. It was an interesting lesson in anatomy, seeing a fully grown Covenant elite standing naked before them. Restored to his natural state, he seamed nothing more than a wild animal that somehow evolved to walk on two legs. But now the awesome power of his muscular structure was fully realized, as well, and Tsheac did not seem any less intimidating. The guards removed the armor plates from the floor and set them up on the table, so that the humans could get a good look at its composure.
"Take it to the lab to be tested," ordered the Captain. "See if we can find out what this is made of." Bruce picked up a thigh pad, it was surprisingly light and thin, yet he knew from experience that it could deflect bullets. "How does this protect you?" he asked.
"Strong metal. Better than human alloys" Tsheac replied. The commander continued, "Oh, really? With your permission, General, I'd like to run a little test here." The General looked at him, confused, but nodded. He had an idea of what Bruce was up to. Bruce stood up and held the armor thigh plate out to his left. "Louis," he said, "take your pistol out again and see if you can't put a hole right through the center."
"Yer crazy!" said Griffith. "We already know that thing can deflect bullets! Why risk someone getting killed by a ricochet just to try to prove a point?"
"Fine," said Gale, "Leave the room if you want. I think this purple-blooded bastard has something else up his sleeve."
"I don't have any sleevesss," said Tsheac, hissing again.
"Shut up you!" Bruce demanded, and turned back to Louis. "Lieutenant? Any day now." It was now apparent that no one was leaving the room, as they seemed to have some kind of hidden confidence in Bruce's surety. Louis didn't even stand up; all of a sudden his gun flashed out and BAM! The armor piece flew from Gale's hand and clattered on the metal floor. Louis looked perfectly normal again, his pistol already holstered. Tsheac hated to admit it, but he was impressed by this demonstration. But now scared that the humans would learn how this armor really worked.
Gale stooped down and lifted up the thigh plate and chuckled a little. "Nice shot, Louis! Look at that!" He held the plate up for all to see. There was a hole right through the middle. Griffith was shocked, as were the rest of the officers present. The guards were still amazed by Louis' skill with a sidearm. They were glad to have him as their leader.
Bruce walked back to his seat, but he did not sit down. Instead he leaned forward with his arms straight against the table and stared down at Tsheac. "Now, Tsheac good boy, what is it that really makes this armor work? Eh? Fork it over, buddy!" Tsheac looked from right to left to right again until he finally realized that none of these people would help him. They were still all his enemies.
"Energy," he muttered. "It is useless without energy."
"And where does that energy come from?"
"No!" Tsheac could not give in to this, as if it was some all-important Covenant secret. He just couldn't bring himself to cooperate.
"Tsheac," said Patrick. "We brought you here peacefully because you agreed to comply with us. Now, we can turn you into a prisoner of war and torture you for information, or you can continue to go along with us peacefully." Tsheac looked at the General, then to Bruce who finally took his seat. He waved his hand in front of his chest, "Here," he said.
"Bullsh-"
"Hold it, Gale!" Patrick said before Bruce could get it out. "Tsheac, you mean that the armor gets energy from your body?"
"No. From inside me. But it is not of me. Technology inside me."
"Can you . . . get it out?" asked the General, hesitating.
"Was put in through a capsule. It grows inside blood. Electrical current in my veins." There wasn't anything that Tsheac was holding back on now. "It is activated by adrenaline, but it drains out of the armor when the armor is hit."
"Jesus," said Rawlins, who until now had remained quiet the entire meeting. "No wonder we never figured it out. This is the craziest thing I've ever heard."
"No crazier than how you got here. Please, do not do test on me," Tsheac pleaded.
"Don't worry. We wouldn't know how," said Patrick, leaning back in his chair. "Gentlemen, this meeting is over. Louis, have your men escort our guest to his quarters and lock the door. We'll meet again at 0600 tomorrow to discuss the plans for finding this "secret". I'm sure you can be of some help to that, Tsheac."
"I will give you access to all Covenant data. I do not know where or what it is, but I have maps of the entire ring from when we searched for it."
"Good. Do you need anything for the night?"
"No."
"Good. Let's go, people." The officers stood up and and left through the door where the guards were, who came forward to escort Tsheac to his quarters. Griffith ran over to Louis in the hall after the Captain and General Hall had gone their way.
"Hey, Louis. You up for a game o' poker tonight with me'n the boys?"
Louis shook his head, but then he looked up and said, "Hey, why the hell not?" Griffith patted him on the back and the two walked off to join the other seal commanders.
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