Chapter 7: And The Horse You Rode In On
A spectacular wreck of metal, flames and smoke lay in front of John, filling the air with the stench of burning chemicals. The Dawn had crashed into the planet, engines-first, making a large impact crater around her crumpled aft section. Bits and pieces of metal shrapnel lay scattered in the sand, accompanied by the odd chunk of circuitry or even a door.
John eased the unicorn to the ground, who simply gawked at the Dawn’s crumpled heap. “I-is this...?” She started.
“Stay here.” John cut her off. “I’m going to see if there’s anything I can use to get off of this planet.” He explained, vaulting over the side of the impact crater and sliding down to the side of the ship. Walking alongside the hull until he found a hole, John eased himself into the ship’s battered interior, taking a quick glance around.
Since the ship had initially impacted vertically, but had fallen down to lean against the side of the impact crater (right-side up), the only thing that seemed distorted was the slight incline of the deck, which wasn’t too much of a bother to John. Flicking on his headlamps, John forced a door open, making his way further inside the ship.
--
“C'mon, Fluttershy! Fly faster!” Rainbow Dash yelled over the wind.
As the yellow Pegasus flew as fast as her wings would carry her, two earth ponies and a unicorn sped over the grassy hills below.
“How do we even know where they went?! We could be running in the wrong direction, for all we know!” Rarity cried.
Applejack scowled at the unicorn. “Where else would he be goin’?! He’s gotta be goin’ to whatever fell out of the sky! And he’s taken Twi with ‘im!” She turned to face forward again. I can’t believe I let myself trust him! I even gave him a place to sleep! she thought, fuming.
“Maybe Twilight bugged him to take her to whatever fell out of the sky!” Pinkie suggested, somehow able to keep pace with them despite bouncing in oppose to running.
“Ah don’t think he’d be inclined tah do that for her! Remember how hush-hush he was with us when we were askin’ questions?! He didn’t even give us his name!” Applejack said dismissively.
“Then again, we didn’t really ask any questions, Applejack!” Rarity retorted. “Although, we did search Ponyville prior to leaving and never found her, she could have followed him! Who knows?”
Applejack shook her head. “Still! She shouldn’t be followin’ that feller on her own! It’s dangerous, him bein’ a soldier an’ all!”
Pinkie bounced up next to Applejack. “I wouldn’t worry about it that much. Twilight’s pretty good at taking care of herself. She’s a pretty capable pony, period.” She said.
Applejack frowned. “Ah know… Still, I jus’ can’t shake this feelin’ that she’s in trouble!”
Rainbow Dash banked to the right, now flying within audible range of Applejack. “Well, the faster we get there, the faster we’ll find out who’s right! Can’t you three run any faster?”
After receiving fierce glares from two of the three grounded ponies, Rainbow Dash flashed a sheepish smile before returning to fly alongside Fluttershy.
--
John tumbled through the now-open doorway, landing with a heavy thud on the deck. He slowly stood up, brushing himself off. He took a moment to thank whoever had painted the “cryo” arrows on the ground before moving on with renewed vigor.
A strange feeling assaulted his stomach, giving him the impression that he had swallowed a large, frozen stone. He recognized it as an emotion that he had to recognize and set aside daily. Except now, this fear was no longer for his life. Combining itself with waves of doubt, the fear coursed through John’s veins. The fear of losing her again.
He barreled through the charred corridor, searching for any arrows marking “cryo”. The hall dead-ended in a T-intersection, although another cryo arrow sent John skidding around the corner, taking a sharp right. His pace quickened as the fear grew, threatening to burst out of his abdomen.
However, John’s resolve quickly returned, forcing the fear down into an almost imperceptible level. He knew he would find her. He would keep his unspoken promise, just like the last one.
--
Rainbow couldn’t help a grin as the wind beat gently at her face, the tailwind allowing her to enjoy a relaxing glide rather than a frantic race against the ponies on the ground. Unfortunately, this caught the attention of a particular farmpony that was running beneath her.
“Rainbow! How can you be so calm at a time like this?!” Applejack cried.
Rainbow left the comforting jet stream, banking right and landing to run next to Applejack. “Well, I can’t help flying! I mean, what Pegasus in the right mind would choose to run rather than fly?” She replied.
Applejack blew her mane out of her face, which was starting to stick from the sweat. “Well, if you’d be so kind, I’d ‘preciate it if you’d use those wings an’ fly ahead! Mayhaps ya can scout it out?” She suggested, struggling to talk as she vaulted over a fallen cactus.
Rainbow Dash snorted. “Heh. I’ll be there and back before you can say ‘go’!” She jumped up, pumping her wings as she ascended. Without another word, she sped off, leaving clouds of dust and a polychromatic trail in her wake. Her relaxed mood melted as a cacophony of roaring wind and the occasional hissing of dry brush parting filled her ears, adrenaline now coursing through her veins. She squinted at the pillar of smoke in the distance. It wouldn’t be long now…
--
John eased himself under the half-closed blast door, taking care not to bump his helmet on the scorched metal. Slowly standing up, John noticed another arrow next to the “cryo” arrow as he pressed his hand to the floor to support himself. It read, “Hangar”. John’s eyes followed the arrow, which pointed to a door on the right. He gazed into the door, which was ajar. Guess it wouldn’t hurt to check it out. See if there’s anything salvageable to start with.
Hoping to get this over with quickly, John quickened his pace, stepping through the door into some sort of mechanic’s bay. A pile of assorted tools and spare parts was collected at the bottom of the sloped floor. Avoiding the haphazard jumble, John edged into the main hangar.
His eyes swept the ruined bay, his hopes quickly sinking as he noticed parts of the once-numerous Pelican dropships that once populated the bay. None of them in a single piece. As he continued to sweep the hangar, he almost gasped at seeing an intact Pelican resting on its side. Avoiding the fires that were somehow still burning in the bay, John maneuvered his way over to the dropship.
He ran his gloved hand over the rugged hull, brushing off some ash off of the ‘MARINES’ logo emblazoned on the side. He stepped to the back of the ship, where a frown made its way back onto his face again.
Both of the rear thrusters had been smashed upon impact against the Dawn’s hull, practically pancaked by the force of the landing. John recalled the pile of spare parts and tools in the mechanic’s bay. He could still fix this. It wouldn’t exactly be a cake walk, even with Cortana, but she would at least point him in the right direction.
John turned around to face the loading bay of the Pelican. He quickly made his way to the cabin, not surprised to find the windshield shattered. This certainly complicated things, as he had no idea if the ship’s mechanics would keep a spare windshield around.
Something else caught his eye, however. Laying on the ship’s console was a pristine M6D Personal Defense System, its silver slide gleaming brightly in the cockpit’s dull interior. John instinctively reached forward, plucking the handgun off of the controls. He turned it over in his hand, smiling.
These things were practically antiques; he hadn’t seen one since he had escaped from the first Halo ring. As he continued to inspect the weapon, his armor’s weapon detection system quickly pulled up the weapon’s schematics, and a small blue reticule appeared in his HUD. A familiar face flashed behind John's eyes. I don't keep it loaded, so you'll have to find ammo as you go.
Shaking his head to disperse the memory, he tapped the weapon’s magazine release, pulling out the slender container. His smile quickly faded when he noticed the magazine didn’t contain any rounds. He sighed unconsciously. Well, it wasn’t like he would be needing it, since it was obvious that this planet’s occupants were nowhere near discovering the technology of projectile or energy weapons. And there was still magic to count for; they’d probably stop the bullets as it left the barrel.
He pulled the slide back, his eyebrow raising slightly when a single bullet was ejected from the chamber. It clattered to the Pelican’s deck, rolling on the sloped surface. Bending over awkwardly, John picked it up, gingerly pressing it back into the magazine, which he returned to the pistol’s handle. Maybe Cortana was right. Maybe he really was lucky.
Pressing the weapon to his magnetic holster, he made his way back to the exit, not wasting any time as he returned to his search for the cryo bay.
--
Although she held her flying skills in high respects, she didn’t expect to arrive so quickly. The cerulean Pegasus circled the enormous wreck, her eyes scrutinizing the strange exterior of the craft. Large letters were printed on its side. It read, ‘FORWARD UNTO DAWN’.
Rainbow cocked her head at the strange name. This is definitely that space soldier’s ship. Upon her third lap around the smoke pillar, she noticed a familiar lavender unicorn sitting at the ship’s base.
“Twilight!” She yelled instinctively, pulling her wings in for a tight dive. She flared them at the last second, pulling up and landing relatively close to Twilight.
The unicorn whirled around. “Rainbow D—Agh!”
The Pegasus chuckled. “It’s only been a day and you’re already butchering my…” She trailed off at the sight of the splint on Twilight’s foreleg. “T-Twilight?! What happened?!”
Twilight smiled sheepishly. “Well, you see—”
“It was that soldier jerkface, wasn’t it?!”
“Actually—”
“Don’t worry, Twi. Applejack and the others are already on their way.”
“Well, that’s good because—”
“In the meantime, I’m gonna have a heartfelt chat with this guy! So—whoa!”
Rainbow Dash felt herself being lifted, tail-first. She glanced back at Twilight, whose face bore an angry expression. “WILL YOU LET ME TALK?!” Twilight cried.
Rainbow scowled. “But that thing kidnapped you and broke your leg! What else—”
Rainbow was silenced under Twilight’s icy glare. “S-sorry… Go ahead.” She muttered.
Twilight set her down gently, still giving her a fierce glare. “If you had let me speak, I would’ve told you that he didn’t kidnap me!”
Rainbow scrunched up her face. “He didn’t?”
“No!” Twilight cried out exasperatedly.
“Then what happened, if you’re so informed?!” Rainbow shot back, now frustrated at Twilight.
“I… Well… After you left, we decided that he should sleep at Sweet Apple Acres, since the barn was probably the only thing that would be even close to accommodating him. After that was sorted out, we all went home, Applejack walking him to Sweet Apple Acres."
Rainbow let out a low whistle. "Man. That must've sucked for Applejack."
Ignoring her, Twilight continued. "That night, I was feeling restless. I really wanted to ask him some questions that had been bugging me about his home planet, or wherever he’s from. So I snuck to Sweet Apple Acres hoping to catch him before he went to sleep.” Twilight frowned. “That’s when I noticed him sprinting away from the barn.”
Rainbow raised an eyebrow. “So you followed him?”
“Well, I couldn’t just let my promise to the Princess go down the drain, now could I?” Twilight replied. “So I followed him, and saw that he had stopped to rest in copse of trees near a forest. Feeling tired from a sleepless night myself, I decided to rest…”
Rainbow lay down near Twilight, nodding at certain intervals as the story progressed. Twilight went on about how she had ‘caught him’, and then pursued him further into the forest, only to get attacked by a pack of Timberwolves. She sped through the rescue and the walk to the wreck, and then recounted the human’s instructions for her to stay outside.
Rainbow Dash eyed the wreck suspiciously. “What do you suppose he’s hiding in there? I mean, maybe there’s some sort of device that’ll… um…”
Twilight stared blankly at her friend. “Go ahead. Let’s see what irrational fears you’ve thought up.” She said, wearing a deep frown.
Rainbow Dash shrugged her wings. “Oh, I don’t know any more. All these unknowns just make me nervous, is all.” She confessed.
Twilight looked back at the wreck. “But that’s just it, Rainbow. I’m pretty sure he’s not here to harm us. He could’ve done so long ago, when you first tried to take him out.”
Rainbow flinched, recalling how quickly he had taken out Big Macintosh.
“I asked him why he didn’t retaliate when you tried to hit him. And he told me that he could recognize when someone was fighting because they desired harm to him, and when they were fighting out of fear.” Twilight explained.
Rainbow Dash’s mouth opened to defend herself, but she thought better of it, closing it immediately.
“That’s why I think he really does mean no harm. To us ponies, anyway. It’s just that he keeps so many secrets, it’s hard to prove this unless you talk to him. Which, in truth, is another challenge.” Twilight said, turning back to Rainbow Dash.
They both turned to look at the ship’s wreck, their eyes resting longingly on a single opening in the side.
Rainbow Dash scratched her head. “I know he did kinda give you an ultimatum and all, but maybe if we investigate and don’t run into him inside…”
Twilight held a hoof up to debate, but slowly nodded. “I’d say I have a bad feeling about this, but for some reason, I don’t think he’ll be able to go through with it.”
With Rainbow’s help, the two of them made their way to the ship, entering it through the very same opening they had seen earlier.
--
John’s knees buckled, the control of his body relinquished as his mind struggled to control all of the emotions pouring through.
He cradled Cortana’s empty chip, his shoulders sagging from the gravity of the situation.
Now, he was truly alone.
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Dat Tittle Dat Death Dat Hate Towards Author
Dat ending
Ohshitson
Hm, Cortana is missing. Hopefully he'll find her later, guy could use a familiar face to help him through this
Great chapter! but...
well shit
:'( Please don't tell me Cortana is completely gone!
896557
Dat unintentional continuation.
Also, why hate the author?
"...And The Horse You Rode In On" is the name of the part in Halo where Chief checks out the crashed Autumn
She leaves the chip when she enters a computer, there still hope shes "alive" if that what you would call it for an AI. Could be in any number of places: the ship systems, a pelican, or any other vehicle. However she could also be gone
... not Cortana! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
NOOOOO CORTANA. great story cant wait 4 more
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! CORTANA! SHE WAS THE BEST PONY!
Dat cliffhanger.
Well, either Cortana's hiding in the ship's circuits, or John just lost the only person he ever considered like a mother to him.
Jeez
well, I hope the next chapter comes out soon, I really like this series, but I'm a very impatient person by nature, and am now reading almost a dozen fics at once to keep occupied
TL;DR : I hope the next chapter is out soon, I wanna read it because this chapter was great, but potentially very sad.
Cortana can't die....i hope
such a shame about cortana ...... o well jk NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO T.T i was really looking forward to there reactions
NOOOOO!!!! DAMN CLIFFHANGERS!
- Brought to you by Max Headroom who is still stuck in TV land with nothing but corroded metal in the background.
It would have happened eventually. Smart AIs think themselves to death over seven years. Cortana was eight. Even if she was an improved AI copy of Halsey herself, it was probably hastened by her experience with the Gravemind.
That or she's craftier than you'd think.
Other than that, nice chapter.
Cortana, you're hot cybernetic ass shall be missed...
wow, featured every time a new chapter comes out, and you definitely deserve it ;3
DUN DUN DUN... Where could Cortana have gone?
Cortana is missing? ASSEMBLE THE MACINTOSH MAURAUDERS!
shit. Balefire's gonna hit.
As they were talking they are interupted by john's roar "WHERE IS SHE!!!!!!!". flies into a fit of rage. Oh so many possibilities. I hope cortana is ok and that he finds her soon.
No! Not Cortana! Please tell me someone has her and John is just going to beat the shit out of them... PLEASE!!!
Gawd, i will so hate the moment when Cortana dies in Halo 4. Or worse when we have to destroy her cause she went insane.
I.....I really can't connect with this story, I've tried more than once
So....yeah 1/5 did not enjoy
896661
They go rampant. Under rampancy they believe they are gods. If an AI experinces rampancy the UNSC disposes of them.
CORTANA'S DEAD!?!?!
[img] http://i.chzbgr.com/completestore/2009/3/24/128824042135171963.jpg [/img]
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO NOT CORTANA!
Or she could be in his suit, that has been badly damage mind you, and can't talk because the device that allows her to talk, you see what I am saying?
I was really looking forward to Cortana being in this fic...
FUCK YEAH, HALO AND PONIES! And I'm the goddamn Auditor.
Cortana? Cortana!? NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
You? I hope Tricky gets to you. Then you die, Auditor.
I would make some comment about Cortana being gone, but that has already been done. Serousily though, what the hell?
Okay, so everyone is fussing over the whole 'Cortana is gone?!' thing.
But am I the only one who thought it was strange how Pinkie was being one of the voices of reason against Applejack?
I mean really, the whole point of Pinkie is to avoid reason.
Oh well, at least Rainbow Dash didn't go back to tell the others about John not being a threat. Because then the misunderstanding wouldn't happen.
That, and it would make too much sense.
Am I the only one who remember how frustrating she was during the entire halo 3 campaign? Good riddance with that one.
896806>>896791
Not possible. Cortana is a "smart" AI, and they can't go rampant. Regular AI's start to risk going rampant after seven years. "Smart" AIs literally think themselves to death after seven years, or at least in most cases. Cortana is probably the only exception due to plot reasons.
Joor Pohn
Cortana is gone, Chief is alone. He has a single bullet in the chamber...
897002
No, AIs in general go rampant. The rampancy itself just takes on different forms for each AI. For some, they literally think themselves to death; for others, they start making miscalculations that threaten to destroy whatever they're in charge of, possibly even killing others in the process. But the constant remains: both "dumb" and "smart" AIs go rampant.
Anyway, this is certainly an interesting cliffhanger. Where Cortana went is a good question, I'd have to say. Perhaps the crash broke some circuits? Well, can't wait for you to tell us.
897054
I just checked the wiki, and your right, Smart AIs do go rampant, but they always tend to think themselves to death as their variation of rampancy. So no crazy Cortana anyway.
Smart AI Lifespan
897077
It's fine, I just know it from the books. They featured a "dumb" rampant-ready AI in one. It's also why Halo 4 with Cortana will be interesting. I wonder what missions she's going to send you on that'll wind up killin' ya.
Need moar plox, Cortana was annoying to me at best XD
Cortana always was sort of a bitch... GOOD BYE! GOOD RIDDANCE!
You're all crying because Cortana's gone.
Suuuuuuuuuuure... She's ''gone''....
897017 LOL
Cortana's gone?.....WHAT BLACK MAGIC FUCKEREY IS THIS!
896621NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!
i245.photobucket.com/albums/gg50/NimixBecky/Lost/Miles-WUT.gif
Words cannot describe how I feel about author right now. :|
897089
Dem books. :D
897077
i highly doubt that cortana would think herself to death considering she's a forefunner AI