The Mountain Among the Stars

by Johnjohns

IV: Contact Equestria

The ship was menacingly beautiful. Crafted from great plasma furnaces, the metal alloy hull was shaped to create an elegant vessel that demanded attention, yet also struck fear in those it was meant to destroy. Its streamlined curves gave it a graceful appearance as it would fly through the darkness of space. A symbol of the Covenant’s power, and true holiness.

Tihar watched as his new ship grew larger and larger on the viewscreen, as his shuttle grew closer to the vessel. Tihar had never felt prouder in his entire life. The Bane of Defiance had just been commissioned into service, and he had received the honor of taking command of it. Never before had he been issued a vessel nearly as large as it, and its size gave him a sense of increased power, and righteousness.

Along with the ship, Tihar had been given the privilege to hand-pick his bridge crew. Those who he knew he could count on and trust, he had chosen right away. Others, those who he didn’t know as well, or didn’t know at all, would have to establish themselves as worthy allies to him. A solo mission, without the aid of other ships was a perfect way to weed out the weak and the disloyal from his crew. Young warriors would have the chance to prove themselves to him, and veteran warriors who may have made previous mistakes, would have the chance to redeem themselves. Whether they would be successful or not, everyone would have their chances to serve the Covenant in one of the most honorable ways possible. Destroying the humans. Tihar hoped that he could count on everyone onboard his ship, however he also prayed that he would not let them down when they need him to look up to. As their leader, and their shipmaster, he would have to lead them fearlessly into battle, and govern the vessel with utmost policy. A ship is like a small city, there are hundreds of beings onboard at all times, and it only takes one to start spreading distrust, and uncertainty into the masses. This kind of problem was especially common on board ships with mixed species. The small Unggoy were especially prone to doubt, and generally were not the bravest in battle. It only takes one negative utterance, and the entire lot of Unggoy could end up panicking, and even revolting against their leaders. As a general rule, it was never good to depend on them for handling anything more than remedial tasks. There was a reason that they were at the bottom of the Covenant caste. The Kig-Yar, while being a higher rank in the Covenant caste system, were sometimes no more dependable than grunts. They occasionally disobey orders, and often fall back on their natural habits. In fact, they weren’t much different from humans. They were merchants, traders, pirates, and thieves, obsessed over materialistic things. There had even been reported cases of rouge Kig-Yar merchant ships doing business with the humans. The thought that such a race, even after being taken into the Covenant, could have the nerve to work with, and sometimes ally with humans, disgusted Tihar. In a way, he disliked them more than the Unggoy. At least the behaviors of the grunts could easily anticipated. The Kig-Yar on the other hand were far less predictable in the way of their actions. The Unggoy and Kig-Yar are the ones in which a shipmaster must constantly be concerned about. Most of the other races onboard could typically be relied upon to accomplish the tasks given to them. The gargantuan brutes were entirely absent from the vessel. The Jiralhanae hated the Sangheili, and the Sangheili hated them, so in most cases the two were not mixed together in the same ship, as there would inevitably be problems. If a conflict can be avoided, then it is best to avoid it. Tihar could only hope that by succeeding in his task he could become a trustworthy leader, and that in return, he could trust his crew. Those who were disloyal would face serious consequences.

The Phantom passed through the energy barrier into one of the cruiser’s fighter bays, and came to a hovering position just above the deck. Tihar felt the dropship come to a halt, and almost immediately, the side doors opened up, and bluish light came flooding into the troop bay. Inside the hangar, groups of Unggoy were moving crates, and several other Sangheili strode amongst them. Tihar assumed that they were making sure that the grunts did as instructed. When he stepped out of the dropship, one of the warriors barked out an order, and suddenly every living thing stopped what they were doing, and stood to attention. Tihar studied those around him, looking for signs of weakness in the other Sangheili, and thankfully he noticed none. Meanwhile two young warriors walked up to Tihar, both placing one arm across their chest.

“Welcome Shipmaster,” said one of them. “We are honored to have you aboard your new vessel, for the first time.” Tihar simply looked at him and said nothing. The young Sangheili spoke again. “We have been instructed by your brother to escort you to the bridge.”

Tihar nodded his head. “Let’s,” he said, starting to walk across the hangar floor to the nearest corridor. The other two followed him, walking a generous distance behind Tihar. Tihar understood. They didn't want to annoy their new shipmaster by leading the way, or getting to close within in his personal space. Tihar was perfectly okay with it, as he already knew his way around ships like his, however he didn't want to make them uncomfortable. Compared to some shipmasters whom Tihar had served under, he was far more forgiving, and wouldn't become enraged at two young Sangheili who only wished to have his approval. He decided to give them some dignity when they reached the first intersection.

“Where to from here?” he asked.

The other warrior who hadn’t spoken yet immediately jumped upon the opportunity. “Right this way, Shipmaster,” he said, gesturing to proceed down their current path. However, neither of them moved.

Tihar turned around to look at them. “Lead the way,” he said. This would allow the two to get more comfortable with him, and also let Tihar keep an eye on them. He didn’t like letting those who he didn’t know, walk behind him.

The trio walked in silence all the way to the bridge. When Tihar approached the large door, it opened up revealing a large, circular command center. In the center, was an elevated platform with a ramp leading up to it. On top of this platform was the shipmaster’s levitating chair, surrounded by holographic control panels and view screens. Standing up on the platform was a familiar face. Down in the main area of the bridge, various control stations were set up around the room, and underneath the platform. A Sangheili technician was stationed at each of the stations. On the walls were massive view screens, each showing a different angle of the surrounding area. Half of the screens showed the surface of Sanghelios, and the other half showed the expanses of the galaxy.

Somewhere within the galaxy was the place where the Covenant was destined to ascend to the utmost state of heavenly power. Even though the humans were successfully slowing the Covenant down, they were powerless to hinder the will of the gods. The Covenant would reach a divine state of existence, and with each human world destroyed, the ultimate goal grew steadily closer. Although he was well aware that he probably would not live long enough to experience the Covenant's transition to that of godly power, he was extremely devout in his beliefs. The prophets said that all who remained steadfast in their loyalty to the Covenant would walk the path, even in death, and arise during the Great Journey. Tihar was proud to be doing his part to achieve that goal.

The first to see Tihar stood up and shouted, "Shipmaster on the Bridge!"

Everyone else in the room stood and turned to face their new leader. The Sangheili standing up on the platform hastily strode down the ramp, and strode across the room to Tihar. Joy and anticipation was evident on his face. He was clad in dark red armor with an elaborately crafted helmet. While not as outstanding as Tihar's golden armor, it demanded a great deal of respect. The religious armor of a Zealot was a symbol of the Sangheili devotion, and the true might, and loyalty that its warriors provided to the Covenant.

"Welcome, Brother," he said. "It is good to have you aboard. Thank you for selecting me as your second in command."

Tihar reached his right arm out and placed it on the Zealot's shoulder. "Likewise, Folve. It is good to have you as part of the crew again. It has been far too long since we have last spoken, and even longer since we have last seen each other." Tihar patted Folve on the shoulder, and was silent.

"Indeed it has," said Folve, turning around to look out into space. "How many seasons?" he asked, but quickly turned back to Tihar. "Bah! It matters not, now. What matters is the fact that we finally have the chance to fight the humans, side by side. After what happened to Hephar, it would be safe to say that I am looking for some payback. It’s the least I can do for him."

"I look forward to it," said the Shipmaster. "The way things are looking, we may have our opportunity very soon." Tihar sighed. "Just remember not to let your pursuit of vengeance blind you to the events which happen around you. We all honor him in different ways, but proving ourselves to the Prophet... That will do him the greatest of respect."

“I know,” said Folve, sighing. “But Cole has to pay for what he did. To the Covenant, to us, and to him.”

“He will pay,” said Tihar. “I promise you that. He will die by our own hands, and we will paint a mural to honor Hephar, using Cole’s very own blood. The humans will tremble in fear at the loss of their great shipmaster, but for now, we must be patient. We will get our chance soon enough, and when our opportunity comes, I will be right beside you.”

Folve stood up tall. “Then let us waste no time,” he said, turning to face the rest of the bridge crew. “Listen up, my brothers,” he said. “The time has come for us to embark on the most important mission any of us have ever taken part in. It is time for us to avenge our fallen comrades, and our new shipmaster will lead us into glorious battle. Hail, Shipmaster, Tihar Med Kacumee!”

“Hail!” roared the entire bridge. For a short moment, the room became so loud that the universe itself seemed to quake. Tihar felt honored, yet he made no sign of it. Instead he stood tall, as the thunder of voices reverberated throughout the ship around him.

A massive, rocky planet flew by at a incomprehensible speed, and as soon as it was close, one nanosecond later it was lost among the millions of sparkling white stars. At her current speed, the stars themselves also appeared to be moving, some of them speeding by like arrows, while far distant ones moved at only a walking pace. The universe seemed to separate for her as she cut the black fabric of space in half. Her massive, dark wings flapped slowly and powerfully, propelling her closer to her destination. Her domain. Her home. Her place of ultimate tranquility. It was a land barren, deemed unlivable for anypony. But for her, it was her life. Ponies thought of it as nothing more than a cold rock, but it was the fire that gave warmth to her heart, and strength to her body. Like any other place, the moon carried its share of bad memories; dark pasts which she wished had never existed.

The nightmarish images of a world consumed by darkness still filled her mind with dread. She saw the great capital of Equestria, barely clinging onto the rock face as great, menacing tendrils of shadow coursed throughout its streets, snatching up helpless equines, and turning their hearts as cold as she who brought forth the unimaginable terror to the world. She then watched as the sun rose for the first time after a seemingly endless lifetime of darkness. The light cut through the shadow, illuminating a massive army, clad in white armor encroaching upon a force of pure darkness, and corrupted ponies. The resulting battle scarred the great earth for generations, but on that day there was a great victory. The eternal night fled from the golden dawn, and was banished to the moon for a millennia. It was a great day for ponies all around the world, and they celebrated, for the goddess of the sun had returned to restore balance to Equestria, and its neighboring countries. Luna smiled, but her expression was quickly overcome with a lingering sense of guilt. Being defeated by Celestia should have been enough to make her realize that it was impossible for the sun and moon to exist without the other. She should have simply given up on her petty, personal vendetta against her sister, and gone back to living her normal life. She should have apologised to Celestia right then and there, but instead she spent one thousand years loathing her sister, and plotting to overthrow her again. It was only after her second defeat that she realized the true foolishness of her actions. Lives had been lost in her pursuit of ultimate power, and she had never felt one bit of remorse. Now it was impossible to escape the feeling. Her actions were set in stone, and there was nothing she could do about it. Even now, years after returning to her normal self, Luna knew that all the good which she could possibly do for the world, could never make up for the atrocities which she committed. She could never forgive herself, even if all the ponies around her did. She did not want to forgive herself. Doing so would insult all of the souls who had fallen victim to her selfish actions of vengeance. She would rather cease to exist, than live without guilt.

Her destination was rapidly approaching. Previously invisible, the earth was now a tiny pinprick of light in the distance. She had traveled across the galaxy and back in a few hours, and as she grew close to the earth, and moon, she slowed herself down rapidly. Traveling such distances in such a short time would seem impossible under normal circumstances, but these were not normal circumstances.

The planet grew larger and larger in her vision, quickly pushing the vacuum of space back, as it filled up her view with its immense beauty and size. She could see it very clearly now. The continents, the oceans, the ice caps at either pole. She could see the moon, her dwelling place for such a long time, as it orbited about the planet. The white face was dotted with meteorite craters. Everything that she knew and loved about the world in which she lived upon was right where it should be. There was absolutely nothing out of the ordinary. Or was there?

At first all she thought was that it was merely a trick of the light, an illusion. Upon doubling back, she saw something was most definitely out of the ordinary. In orbit around the earth was what appeared to be a...

Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the sound of many rushed hoof-steps. The space around her rippled from the noise. The shapes, colors and light, rapidly became indistinguishable from one another, until her surroundings were nothing more than a blurry haze.

Princess Luna opened her eyes to find herself sitting on the carpet, in a meditative position. She was within her personal chamber. The black drapes which hung over the balcony door swayed calmly as a cool evening breeze filtered through the door and into the room. She sighed, slightly disappointed that her meditation session had been interrupted. She got up on her hooves, stretching out her wings, before calmly walking over to her door. She opened it, looking out into the wide hallway, only to find it empty. The only other pony in sight was her own face, reflected in the polished white marble flooring. She glanced to the right and to the left. Even at the distant ends of each direction, the only visible object was a small table, on which sat a potted, leafy plant. The sudden vacancy of the eastern wing of the palace was quite unusual. Normally, the halls were singing with life, as maids cleaned the rooms, and guards trotted to and fro. Something wasn't right.

She stepped out of her bedroom, her midnight-colored hooves leaving the carpeted floor, and coming in contact with the marble, making a distinctive clopping sound, which fled from her hooves only to hit the distant wall, and return to her with less emphasis.

Judging by the way she heard the sound of rushed hoof-steps fade in and fade out, she assumed that whoever the ponies were, that they had passed by her room, heading to the left. Celestia's chamber was to the left. Since that her sister's room would be the most logical place in which somepony would be running to, she turned to the left, and trotted briskly down the corridor. She passed by fields and orchards and oceans on her right side, all framed in ornately crafted mahogany. Massively tall glass windows covered almost the entire left side of the hallway between Celestia's and her own room, overlooking the main courtyard, many stories below. The windows let the moonlight mix with the artificial glow, that the chandeliers produced from above.

Luna stepped up to her sister's door and placed one ear up against the solid-wood surface. Inside, she could hear less-than hushed voices, speaking in an almost panicked tone. Luna stepped back from the door, and reached for the handle. Suddenly the door opened on its own, from the inside. Luna was met with a surprised gasp as one of Celestia's councilors responsible for opening the door jumped at the sight of Luna.

"Oh!" said the pony, her hooves landing back on the floor. "Excuse me, Princess Luna." she said, blushing. "I did not mean to frighten you."

"Not at all," replied Princess Luna, looking past the counsellor and into the room. Celestia was facing away from her, talking to a guard. "Is everything alright, Sister?"

Celestia turned around and smiled. "Oh, Luna, you're here. Perfect!" she said. "I was just about to send Blueblossom to summon you."

Luna stepped into the bedroom, brushing past Blueblossom, who stood in the doorway awkwardly. "Why?" she asked, frowning. "What's going on?"

"I'll explain while we walk," said the Princess of the Sun, starting towards the door, with the guard pony following. "Come. We're going to the listening station."

"Listening station?" asked Luna with a puzzled voice as she turned to follow her sister. "You mean that that silly new long-range mana transmitter actually works?"

"Well, yes," said Celestia. "But that's not what's important. What's important is that fact that we just received a... remarkable transmission."

"Do tell," said Luna, as the pair traversed the long corridor, with several other ponies in tail.

"Well," began Celestia. "You may be surprised to find out that the transmission was intercepted by complete accident. The operator, Sergeant Greystone was running the transmitter on an unused frequency instead of the frequency that we use for regular communications." she paused as the two arrived outside the communications room. "The intercepted signal is as unusual as it is foreign. If Greystone had not been in the room, or if he had been listening on a different frequency, then chances are we would have missed it."

"You said foreign," stated Luna. "As in another country?"

"Impossible," replied Celestia. "No. The curvature of the planet does not allow for direct communication to the other countries, and as far as I know, the Crystal Kingdom does not use mana transmitters. It is a new technology after all." Celestia sighed. "No. The signal came from beyond this realm."

"Beyond?" asked Luna. "As in outer space?"

"Indeed," replied Celestia. "Just within our planet's orbit to be precise."

Luna stared at Celestia, digesting her older sister's words. "Now it makes sense," she mumbled.

"How so?" asked Celestia.

"When I was meditating, I thought that I saw..." her speech drifted off. "I saw something... odd in our gravitational field. I wasn't able to get a better look at it, as I was suddenly distracted by the sound of a couple of ponies running down the hall."

Out of her peripheral vision, Luna noticed Blueblossom blush, and turn to face away from the conversation.

"I'm not surprised that you did," said the Princess of the Sun. "I too, deep down, felt a disturbance many hours ago when I assumed the ship arrived-"

"Wait," Luna interrupted. "What do you mean, ship?"

"The transmission was not an anomaly," said Celestia. "We have officially made first contact with an extraterrestrial race."

There was a brief silence. The two sisters both stared at one another.

“Well, was it successful?” asked Luna. “Were we able to communicate in any way?”

“Indeed,” said Celestia with a smirk. “But you will never guess how.”

“How,” asked Luna.

“They speak our language.” replied Celestia. Luna stared at her.

“But,” began Luna. “That’s impossible! How could they possibly-”

“Apparently the universe is a lot smaller than we thought,” interrupted Celestia. “Well, at least in the language aspect.” she paused. “I for one, don’t mind at all. Although strange, it will certainly make establishing relationships with them a whole lot easier.”

There was another pause.

“How will we go about notifying our citizens?” asked Luna. “It’s not like we can just spring this upon them all at once.”

“We shall deal with that in the near future,” said Celestia. “But for now, we must get to know our visitors. I will try to arrange a meeting with their leader. Perhaps there is even more in common between our two species that we don’t even realize yet.”

“Perhaps,” said Luna. “I wish that everything will turn out well.”

“Well, there is nothing else left to do but find out,” said Celestia, pushing the large double doors open with one hoof. “They wish to speak with us immediately.”

Luna followed her sister into the dimly-lit room which was illuminated by a single light bulb. On the near wall on the left, were a pair of bookcases. Inside were various almanacs, geographical binders organized from A to Z, maps of Equestria, her territories, the surrounding countries, and various large texts about military strategy. It was an entire wall filled with tactical knowledge. The other three walls were practically covered in bulletin and chalk boards. Situated at the other end of the room, was a wooden desk, upon which sat several books, a star chart, and the control boxes for the transmitter. The faces of the metal-shelled components were covered with buttons and knobs. A microphone, which sat on top of the star chart was plugged into the transmitter. Several thick cables ran from the hardware, across the floor, into the wall, and up to the antenna, on the roof of the palace.

The stallion sitting behind the desk stood up immediately and bowed before the two princesses.

Princess Celestia spoke before he could. “What’s the situation?” she asked. “Are they still on the line?”

“Indeed they are,” he replied. “It's a good thing that you showed up so quickly, too. I was worried that they might get impatient.”

“Well, let’s not keep them waiting any longer,” she said. “Let me speak to them.”

"Of course, Princess," he replied while flipping several switches. Suddenly, the speaker turned on and crackled with loud static as it did so. Sergeant Greystone winced and turned a large dial, causing the interference to subside. After a few more seconds if adjustments, he looked up at Celestia and nodded.

The Solar Princess took a deep breath, and glanced to her sister. Luna nodded in approval. "Greetings. My name is Princess Celestia, ruler over the land of Equestria,” she paused, glancing across to Sergeant Greystone, who stood nervously behind his desk. “I wish to speak with your leader if he or she is present.”

There was a long moment of near silence in the room. The transmitter crackled and hissed quietly, but no reply came through. After several minutes had passed, Luna spoke up.

“Perhaps we are broadcasting on the wrong channel?” she asked with a shrug.

Greystone shook his head. "It can't be," he said, fiddling with one of the knobs. "I have not interfered with equipment at all since I first-"

A masculine voice suddenly crackled in through the speaker. "This is Admiral Cole, commanding the UNSC Everest," said the voice. "We read you loud and clear, Princess Celestia of Equestria. On behalf of my crew, myself, and the rest of humanity, I would like to assure you that we come in peace, and that we humbly request a meeting in your presence, so that we may better learn about each other."

The various guard ponies and royal advisors who had followed the royal sisters into the room stood with mouths agape. Celestia wasn't sure whether or not their shock was caused by their presence in witnessing the very first contact with another race, or by the simple fact that the aliens spoke the same language that ponies did.

"Greetings Admiral Cole," said Celestia. "I will gladly accept your request for a-"

"Wait!" Greystone burst out, quickly flipping several switches. "Sorry. Okay, now go." he blushed softly.

Celestia let out a sigh. "Greetings, Admiral Cole," she said. "I look forward to meeting you face to face. I can assure you that anypo... anybody seeking peace and harmony is welcome here, no matter who you are or where you may have come from. There will be plenty of time to converse on these topics, but for now I would like to arrange the meeting which you have requested." she said. "Would it be possible for you to arrive at the palace in Canterlot right after dawn, this morning? I assume that you have transport capable of bringing you here, yes?"

There was another pause. "I look forward to it," said the alien admiral. "I will be there at dawn, and I will be accompanied with a military escort just as a precaution. I hope that that is not an issue."

"Not at all," said the princess. "One would be foolish to venture into an unknown land without protection. Not that this is a hostile place. I can assure you that you will be in no danger whatsoever." she said. "I will see you at sunrise."

"Acknowledged," he said. "Cole out."

A single Pop projected out from the speaker and then all was silent as the signal died.

"Well," said Luna. "I would say that that went rather smoothly."

"So far," replied Princess Celestia. "I suggest that you put that statement on hold until we actually meet this Cole.”

"Do you have doubts that an attempt to establish relationships with these beings will be unsuccessful?" asked Luna, cocking her head to the side.

"I feel that we shouldn't get too far ahead of ourselves," said Celestia. "It is far too early to predict the outcome of this meeting. If Cole is truthful about their intentions of peace, then I have high hopes that this meeting will be a success. However, things can always go wrong, and until we know for sure, I do not wish to make any predictions."

Luna nodded her head. "How will we go about informing the ponies of Equestria?" she asked. "We will not be able to keep this a secret for long. Word spreads fast, sister, and if they are going to travel here with no concern that everypony will see them arrive... We may have a lot of frightened ponies on our hooves."

Celestia sighed, and spoke, "We will make a formal public address at a later time. I am aware of the risks, but I have confidence that my little ponies will behave in an orderly way. The ponies of this city, and of Equestria have witnessed far more shocking and horrifying events in the past. They can certainly handle something like this. They are strong. Their spirits are strong. They will not panic."

"I pray that you are right," said Luna.

"I hope so too," said Celestia with a smile. "Until then, however. There is much work to be done." she turned to face the small group of ponies who stood close to one another, seemingly unsure of what to do. “Blueblossom!”

“Yes- yes, Princess?” she asked, while stepping forward.

“Blueblossom, alert the palace staff immediately,” commanded Celestia. “The sun will be up in a few hours, and we need to have everything ready in time for our guests. The more comfortable they feel during their visit, the better.”

“Yes, Princess,” she said before scurrying out the double doors, followed by the other advisors.

As soon as she left, a parchment scroll suddenly materialized itself before the Princess in a puff of green smoke, startling everypony in the room including Celestia. Attempting to cover up her brief moment of weakness, she wasted no time in unraveling the paper within her telekinetic grasp. She read the letter to herself, before rolling it up again and making it disappear.

“What is it?” asked Luna.

“My student, Twilight Sparkle,” replied Celestia. “She knows.”

“What?” asked Luna. “How?”

“It matters not,” said Celestia. “She claims that she is aware of the object orbiting the planet, but knows nor of what it truly is. If that is true, then that is one less situation that I have to deal with at the moment. She will be informed of the truth, along with everypony else when the time comes.”

“I agree,” said Luna.

“I will send her a letter to relieve her of her worries, but then I must get to work,” said Celestia. “Axel, Lightning.” she nodded her head towards the two guards who had accompanied her into the room. “Go fetch Captain Shining Armor for me. I need to speak to him right away.”

“Yes, Princess!” they both said in unison, however neither of them moved. Instead, they merely shot nervous glances at one another. “But... umm... what about y-”

“I’ll be fine for two minutes while you go and get him,” she said with a sigh. “Now please go. We have no time to waste.”

They both bowed their heads, turned, and galloped out of the room. Celestia turned her head to face her sister.

“Why is it that you don’t have guards following you wherever you go?” she asked.

Luna shrugged. “I simply don’t ask for them,” she said. “Plus, I think that most of them are a little afraid of me. I suppose being an evil goddess of shadow for over a thousand years isn’t all a bad thing.”

Celestia tried to suppress a giggle, but ultimately failed. “Not really,” she said. “Your logic frightens me sometimes, sister. However, that might be a good thing.” she said, closing her eyes. “Who knows, if things end up going badly, we might need a sudden display of powerful magic.” she paused, and started to speak softly. “I... I don’t know if I have it in me to- to... It has been far too long”

Luna walked over and nuzzled her sister. “Everything will be fine, sister,” she said in a comforting voice. “You mustn't stress yourself over this. Besides...” she said, stepping back. “I’ve your flank.”

Celestia looked up at her sister. “Thanks.” she smiled.

“Anyway,” said Luna, walking to the door. “I suppose I should get ready, as well. I shall leave you to your thoughts.” she winked at her sister. Celestia smiled back.

Luna walked out of the room, leaving Celestia to stare at the double wooden doors as they silently closed. Greystone sat behind his desk, his headset firmly clamped around his ears, as he fiddled with the communicator. It was going to be a long few hours until morning.

"Not at all," said the princess, her voice crackling through the nearby speakers. "One would be foolish to venture into an unknown land without protection. Not that this is a hostile place. I can assure you that you will be in no danger whatsoever." she said. "I will see you at sunrise."

"Acknowledged," said the admiral. "Cole out."

Immediately after saying the last two words, he tapped a touch-key on the mapping table to end the transmission. He let out a deep exhale, resting his head on his arms as he leaned on the glass.

“Are you going to go?” asked Fosco.

The group looked across to their admiral.

“I would seem that I have to,” he said. “I need to keep my word because if I don’t, there will only be more distrust between us.”

Ramirez shook his head. “The fact that they speak is English still seems very sketchy to me,” he said. “For all we know, we could be walking right into an insurrectionist trap.”

“It’s a risk that we have to take,” said McMahon. “This could be humanity’s one and only chance of forging an alliance with an alien race.”

“Besides,” said Cole. “What would the innies want with me? They have helped us out in the past when we desperately needed it. My wife-”

“Your wife was an exception,” said Ramirez. “Not all terrorists have soft spots for their enemies.” he softened his voice. “Look, sir, I don’t mean to show any disrespect, but if I am right and these aliens are allied with the insurrectionists, then chances are they aren’t as peaceful as they claim to be.”

“I know,” said Cole with a nod. “And I understand. You have a right to be concerned. You have been a good friend, and a good soldier, and I know that you would put the safety of our crew above your own at a moment’s notice.” he said. “It’s just that sometimes you have to take a semi-blind leap, and hope for the best.”

Ramirez looked at Cole for a moment. “I understand, sir,” he said.

“Alright,” said Cole. “Well, I suppose I should gather up a team to escort me down to the planet. They will need to be briefed on what’s going on right away, because we don't have long until the sun comes up on this side of the planet.” he looked over at McMahon. “Lieutenant, I am leaving you in charge of the ship while I am away. I expect to be notified right away if any issues come up.”

“Yes, sir,” said McMahon with a big smile. “Thank you, sir.” Cole nodded to him, and then turned back to Joseph Ramirez.

“May I recommend First Sergeant Scott Jeffries, and his squad?” asked Ramirez. “I have worked with him for a long time before I got this post. We are still very close friends, and he is highly efficient in battle. He won’t let you down. I can promise you that.”

“I don’t need him to fight, I just need him to remain cautious,” replied Cole, pulling up Scott’s Bio in front of him. “Are you sure that he is the man for the job?”

“Absolutely, sir,” replied Ramirez with a smirk. “You won’t regret this.”

“Yo Jeffries!” came a voice when suddenly an empty beer can connected with the left side of his head, causing him to look up. “Quit dicking around with your datapad and pay attention.” said Jeffries’s best friend, John Freeman. “Now, let me ask you again. Hit or stay?”

“Hit me again and I will walk out on your ass right now,” replied Jeffries with a smirk. The other three men sitting around the card table chuckled. He looked up from his datapad, which he held underneath the table, away from the view of the others. He cautiously peeled up the corners of his cards. “You know what, John.” he said, setting his cards back down. “I think that I will stay for now.”

“Stay for now?” asked Freeman with a puzzled look. “What does that even me- you know what, nevermind.” he said, turning to the man sitting to Scott’s left. “Ray, hit or stick?”

“Hit,” said Ray. John slapped a card down for him.

Scott looked back down at his tablet, and opened up his personal messages. Among those inside of his inbox, was the Everest’s recreational schedule for the upcoming week, the play-by-play for today’s soccer game between the New Mombassa Courant-Bandaris, and the Sydney Wanderers. New Mombassa had won two to zero. An update on his battle performance ratio, a refusal notice for his “Bagel Friday Every Day Petition,” and plenty of nonsense spam. None of these messages interested Scott in the slightest. There was only one message that concerned him. A reply that was non-existent.

“Whatcha doing on that thing anyway, Scott?” asked his squadmate, Henry.

“He’s busy checking to see if his girlfriend has sent him anymore of those special pictures,” said Brian, the sitting at the far end of the table. Everyone tried to suppress their slightly intoxicated laughter. “Come on man, don’t hog them all to yourself. Lemme see.” he tried to reach across the table, but Scott slapped his hand away.

“Yo back off, man,” said Scott defensively. “At least I actually have a girlfriend, and no she didn’t send me any ‘special pictures.” he made air quotes with his fingers. “Besides, even if she did you probably wouldn’t be interested anyway, seeing as though you have absolutely no standards when it comes to women.”

“Ohhhhhhhhhh!” howled Henry, and Ray in unison.

“That was two got em’s in one!” exclaimed John. “What are you going to say to that, Brian?”

“Two words,” began Brian, throwing down his cards, face-up. They consisted of a seven of hearts, a ten of hearts, and a four of clubs. “Twenty-One.”

“Oh snap,” said Ray.

“Technically, my friend,” said John. “Twenty-One is just one word, but I will let it slide.”

“Yeah, how about that, Scott?” asked Brian, boastfully.

“Well,” said Scott Jeffries. “I guess you have me beat.” he threw down a king of spades and an eight of diamonds.

“Well, at least you know when you’ve lost,” said Brian. He looked around at the others. “What about you guys?”

Ray threw down a twenty and Henry revealed another eighteen, further strengthening the look on Brian’s smug face.

“Well it looks like I win,” he said. “How about it boss?”

“Well, I suppose that this is the time that I should congratulate you,” said John Freeman. Brian smiled at him. “However, that time will have to wait until another game.” he said, throwing down his two cards. “Blackjack.”

The other three immediately burst out into laughter. Brian simply stared at the cards for a good ten seconds before looking up. “That ain’t cool, man,” he said.

“Pffft.” John shrugged. “Doesn’t have to be. That’s just the way the the universe works, my friend. It let’s you get up to a high point, and then just bitch-slaps you back down.” he said, clearly impressed with himself. “Now, gentlemen, there will be plenty of opportunities for you all to earn some of your credits back, but for now I need to go drop a log.”

“Good luck with that man,” said Scott.

“Oh no,” said Ray. “He needs a better send-off then that. Everyone, hold hands now. Scott, you too.” he said, holding onto Scott and Henry’s hands so that the four created a circle around the table. He closed his eyes. “Dear Lord,” he began. The other three immediately lost their straight faces and started to laugh quietly. “Please protect our dear friend, John while he endures this perilous journey to the bathroom. Please prevent the anger of the other facility users from being brought down upon him while he causes a stink. Allow him to to take a shit, and give him the strength to take care of it. Amen.”

“Amen,” said the other three before bursting out with laughter. Brian fell out of his chair.

“You guys are stupid.” chuckled John. “Anyway, I will be back in a few minutes. Peace!” he held up two fingers as he walked through the automatic door, and out into the hallway. The door closed behind him with a hiss.

Henry lit up a Sweet Williams cigar. Scott looked at him.

“Henry,” he said. “When are you going to stop smoking?”

“I dunno,” replied Henry, taking it out of his mouth and looking at it. “When are you going to start?”

“That’s not a legitimate answer,” said Scott with an intense stare. “Seriously, those things aren’t good for you at all.”

“I know, I know,” he said, waving his hand. “Our line of work can get quite stressful sometimes. These just help to dull the edge a little bit.” he sucked in another puff of smoke. “Tell you what. The next time we all get to go home for some R&R, I'll quit.”

“We probably won’t be going home for a while,” said Scott. “Seeing as though the admiral has been acting kinda funny lately.”

“Acting funny?” asked Henry. “How so?”

“Not sure,” said Ray. “Although rumor has it that it has something to do with this planet that we are chilling over. Also, there is a slight chance that he might possibly be emotionally unstable. Fifty-some years of service can do a lot to a man.”

“Has he really been in the military for that long?” asked Brian. Scott nodded. “Damn.”

“Anyway,” said Henry. “What’s so special about this planet?” he asked. “I mean, I know that it has earth-like conditions and all, but what I’m wondering is why we haven’t reported the find back to command yet.”

“I don’t think that he wants to yet,” said Ray. “However, I don’t know of his reasons for sure. Some people say that he may have found something, but I try not to pay attention to rumors. We are bound to find out the truth eventually. You all know how the command system works; they keep us in the dark twenty-four seven, and then once they need our help they spring everything upon us at once.”

“And then they all act shocked when agree without any questions or looks of surprise,” said Brian.

“And that is why we are ODST,” said Henry. “Because we don’t give a f-”

His last word was drowned out when the PA speakers in the ceiling above suddenly came to life.

“Cobra team, please report to briefing room five immediately,” said the female voice.

“Right on que!” exclaimed Ray. “Oh yeah! Tell me I’m awesome!”

“You suck,” said Henry, getting out of his chair, and extinguishing his cigar.

“You smell bad,” said Brian, getting up with the rest of them.

“You know what?” asked Ray, standing up. “Forget you guys.”

“You can forget about us after the briefing,” said Scott. “But for now, we have work to do. Let’s get going, soldier.”

Ray sighed. “Yes sir, First-Sergeant Jeffries,” he said in a joking manner. Scott simply glared at him as he followed his men out into the hallway.

The corridor was bustling with life. Marines and crew members walked back and forth, some carrying weapons, others, tools. The five shock troopers headed down the corridor, to the right. Suddenly, Henry stopped.

“Oh crap,” he said, causing the others to turn around. “We forgot John.” this caused the group to let out a sigh. “Ah, crud. You guys go on ahead. I’ll go get him.” he turned around and ran down the hallway in the opposite direction. Scott and the others resumed their fast-jog down to the briefing room. Along the way, crewmembers quickly hugged themselves to the walls, in order to get out of their path. Only once did the four of them run into a higher-ranking officer. They quickly moved to the sides of the corridor, and let the man pass by, before continuing the rest of the way to the situation room.

When they arrived at the door, Scott punched his identification number into the wall-mounted keypad. A green indicator light above the threshold illuminated, and the door slid open with a hiss, allowing the men to enter. The room was empty and dimly lit, with the only significant light source being the holographic planning table on the one end of the room. On the other side, there were many rows of seats, each elevated slightly higher than the previous, to allow for an optimized field of view. The light from the table hit the seats, casting large, bulbous shadows against the far ceiling.

The four immediately sat down in the center of the first row, and waited. Almost as soon as they had gotten comfortable, a door on the far side of the room opened, and a man walked in. A man who happened to be the one in charge of the ship. The soldiers stood up, and saluted. Cole walked over to the table, eyes focused on the datapad that he held in his left hand. He fiddled with the device for a minute, before speaking.

“At ease, soldiers,” he said. The three sat down. Cole looked up at them. “First Sergeant Scott Jeffries?” he asked.

Scott stood up. “Yes sir?” he asked.

“Sergeant, I received a recommendation to choose your team, from my weapons expert, Joseph Ramirez,” said Admiral Cole. “I believe that you two know each other?”

“We have worked with one another for some time in the past,” said Scott.

“Well,” said Cole, nodding to his datapad. “This clearly states that you lead a team of five ODSTs, including yourself.” he looked around the room, visibly annoyed. “That is correct, yes?”

“Yes sir,” said Scott, quickly becoming embarrassed.

“Yet it fails to explain why Cobra is now down to only three soldiers,” said the Admiral. “Perhaps you can enlighten me.”

“Yes sir,” began Scott. “Actually-”

He was interrupted when the briefing room door suddenly opened, revealing a disheveled John and Henry, both out of breath. Upon seeing Cole, the two immediately attempted to collect themselves.

“Care to join us, gentlemen?” Cole asked, motioning towards the seats.

John cleared his throat. “Yes, sir.” Henry just nodded. They both did their best to stride over to the rest of their squad in an organized manner, in a vain attempt to maintain a partial image of dignity in front of the commanding officer.

“Now that we are all present, let’s get started,” said Admiral Cole. He briefly scrolled through the information on his datapad before continuing to speak. “To begin with, I’m sure you would all like to know the events that have taken place within the last several hours.”

The shock troopers stared at the admiral with blank expressions. If they had any concern about what Cole was talking about, they certainly didn’t show it. Whether they cared or not, Jeffries had somewhat of an interest. After all, everything that was going on lately was completely unconventional, and he had no idea what was going on. As far as he knew, the ship was floating out in the middle of nowhere, next to a planet, doing absolutely nothing.

“Well, as you all know, about five hours ago we arrived in this system, which had been previously unexplored by the UNSC until now,” he said, glancing across the group. “Four hours ago we determined that the planet was very similar to Earth. In two, we discovered that the planet is inhabited by an alien race, and about forty-five minutes ago we made first contact with them.”

Scott widened his eyes as soon as Cole finished speaking. The others showed their disbelief in very discrete ways, attempting to not show any emotion. Brian shifted in his seat, Henry nodded slightly, Ray wrinkled his nose, and John simply stared at Cole, not moving in the slightest.

“We don’t know very much about them,” he said. “Besides their physical appearance, and knowing that they speak our language, they are still very much a mystery to us.”

Several large images of the aliens appeared in the air above the holotable, slowly revolving around a holographic planet. Intermixed with these photographs, were images of several primitive-looking cities and villages. Colorful figures flashed before Scott’s eyes every second. He could have never guessed that this would be what the briefing was about. He never would have assumed that their ship would happen to stumble upon a world filled with vibrantly-colored pony-ish creatures.

“They can speak English?” asked John. “How? How is that possible?”

“We are not yet sure,” replied Cole. “That is a major fraction of the amount of information that we intend to learn from them. By far, that is the strangest thing about them, even though it will dramatically increase of chances of forging strong bonds with them.” he slowly shifted his gaze from one member of Scott’s squad, to another. “That is why I have chosen you all to be here. You are some of the very best soldiers that this boat has to offer, and I am assigning Cobra team to escort me down to the capital city of the country of Equestria. You will remain with me there until our visit is over. The ruler over the country is Princess Celestia.” he said. “I assume that I will be dealing with her for the most part, although I don't know anything about her. You will act polite and respectful in her presence at all times, as well as in the presence of any others. Your main job will be to maintain the security of not only myself, but of anyone I will be dealing with, even if that includes assisting the alien guards who already protect the palace. As far as weaponry, the aliens seem to make use of primitive bladed weapons such as swords, and polearms. However, there is a possibility that they may be more advanced than we believe, so be ready for anything.”

The five soldiers sat quietly at Cole gave his briefing. Scott didn’t know what the others were thinking, but he assumed that they all felt similar to the way he did, during his very first live combat drop. An unshakable nervousness that had lingered within his very spine as the clock slowly ticked until the time of the drop. The months of intense training had hardened him, but nothing compared to the physical and mental ruggedness he received ever since his first mission. Scott remembered the day he was sent on his first mission eight years ago as clearly as looking through a freshly washed window. Although they were not yet a team at that point in time, Scott knew that their experiences were all similar in more ways than one.

Do any of you have any initial comments or concerns?” Cole asked. “I am well aware that this is not the type of mission that you are all normally accustomed to, so I am open to any questions.”

Scott laughed nervously and scratched his scalp, as his thoughts returned to the present. “Sir, permission to speak freely?” he asked. Cole nodded. Scott cleared his throat. “After being a helljumper for several years now, missions hardly ever surprise us anymore.” he said. “We have all gotten used to receiving high priority missions with little to no warning, and then being thrown into some of the nastiest, bug-infested shit holes that this galaxy has to offer. We receive our orders, we drop in behind enemy lines, we accomplish the objective, and then we extract as fast as possible. Get in, get out. No time to take pictures of the scenery. That’s our job, and we have all gotten used to it. However.” he chuckled. “I will admit, sir. This mission takes the cake. Although I must say that I never signed up to be a bodyguard.”

“Ah, but an ODST can easily function as a bodyguard,” said Cole. “Although I highly doubt that any old bodyguard can become an ODST.”

This caused a small smile to appear on the faces of Cobra team.

“I need soldiers that I can trust,” said Cole. “I don’t need any young hothead with a rifle in their hands to do something stupid while I am conducting diplomatic business. Trust me, this is as strange for you as it is for me. You all didn’t train to be bodyguards, and I didn’t study to be an ambassador for the United Nations Space Command. However, what makes a man good at what he does,is his ability to adapt to accomplish any objective, no matter the circumstances. I can count on you all, correct?”

Scott smirked. “Sir, we are ODST,” he stated matter-of-factly. “If we couldn’t be depended upon, they would have shipped us off to work behind desks a long time ago.”

“Good,” said Cole. “We depart at oh-six-hundred via pelican. I recommend that you all get your gear together. I do not know how long we will be saying on the surface before returning to the Everest, so pack several sets of attire.”

“What about armaments, sir?” asked Ray.

“Hopefully they will not be needed,” replied the Admiral. “But bring whatever you feel is necessary. I trust you all to make good decisions. Remember, we don’t want to make them feel nervous. Chances are, you won’t even be allowed to bring your weapons into the palace.”

“Got it,” said Ray. “Thank you, sir.”

“Are there any more questions?” Cole asked, looking over the five men. None of them said anything.

“Good,” said Cole. “I will see you all again at oh-six-hundred. Dismissed.”

The admiral shut down the holotable, and then proceeded to leave the room from the direction he came from. When he was gone, John spoke up.

“What do you think, Scott?” he asked.

Scott stared into space. “I think that we all need some coffee,” he said. There was a muffled murmur of agreement between all five of them as they stood and walked out of the briefing room, and headed back to their private rec room.

As they walked, Scott Jeffries felt the nervousness in the pit of his stomach grow more uncomfortable each second. He hadn’t been this nervous for a mission in a long time. A very long time.

Jeffries awaited the plunge silently as he sat within his SOEIV, like an ancient sword stuck inside of a massive stone, about to be hurtled down from the heavens right into the middle of hell. He couldn’t see what we below him, as the airlock doors were closed, but deep down inside he knew. He was aware that there was a very real possibility that he would not return home from the mission, as well as the chance that he would likely return instead of someone else. After hearing about the demise of the 105’s Drop Jet Platoon of ODSTs only an hour before, Scott was very nervous. Although the Covenant had begun their assault on the outer colony only a few days before, most of the planet’s built-up infrastructure was already in ruins. The glassing had already begun in some areas of the world as the alien armada efficiently bombarded the planet with plasma, section by section, continent by continent. This was one of the last, relatively intact cities left on Jericho VII, and he was among the many ODSTs being sent in to assist in the evacuation of the last remaining civilian populations on the planet. Although the name of the city had slipped his mind, the objective was all that he cared about. Cities could be rebuilt, homes reconstructed. But human life could never be replaced, and for every person that was rescued, humanity had even more of a reason to fight. To survive.

An alarm sounded, and the large airlock was suddenly illuminated by several rotating notification lights, which shone past the seven drop pods, hanging from the ceiling on clamps, casting heavy shadows across the inner walls. After the warning, the floor disappeared. The massive airlock doors opened wide revealing a massive black marble, which blocked out all view with its heavenly body. No matter how beautiful it was, even godly-creations can suffer from injury. With the sun on the opposite side of the globe, there were no distinguishable features about the planet, besides the massive red scars that had been burned into the surface. They twisted and they dove, severing mountains from their cousins, spreading burning destruction through forests, and shattering continents into uncountable sections of soot-infested, barren land. Menacing plumes of smoke arose from the great gashes, and invaded the atmosphere, choking out everything it came in contact with within its fiery tendrils of shadow. The next target that the great fires would consume, would be the city. The final bastion of humanity on the dying world stood like a beacon in the night sky, shedding just enough light to hold off the encroaching darkness. The lights of buildings were just visible through the smog, and anti-aircraft tracer rounds could been seen streaking through the sky. Thousands of tiny lights flashed all over the surface, constantly in a vain attempt to hold off the unstoppable enemy. But it was no use. This planet would die just like all the others.

Scott’s drop pod shook as its thrusters engaged along with everyone else’s. He counted down to himself. Three... two... one. The next second he was in free-fall as he plunged into the awaiting darkness. Through the thick glass he could see many other pods darting into the atmosphere, their thrusters shining in a whitish-blue, leaving glowing trails as they plummeted. The shrouded atmosphere parted before him, unable to prevent the unstoppable object from reaching the surface. Suddenly, he breached the thick smoke layer, and the city became entirely visible as the monstrous skyscrapers rushed towards him like knives, but they did not collide with one another. Instead Scott fell without resistance between two buildings, which raced past him in an indistinguishable rush of color. The street below rushed up to meet him, and he fell with the full intention of landing right in the middle of it. The pod’s drag fins opened up to slow his descent just so that he wouldn’t become vaporized on impact. He had a job to do after all.

There was a lurch in his stomach as the SOEIV slowed down dramatically, and the next moment he struck pavement, coming to a sudden halt. Two seconds after that, the door lock disengaged, and the lid opened up automatically. Scott jumped out of the pod, and his boots struck the hardened city street. He immediately leveled his MA-5K assault carbine, and scanned the surrounding area for any threats. The briefing hadn’t had much information on enemy activity within the city limits, so everyone on the mission had been advised to stay cautious at all times.

Surrounding him, civilian vehicles sat abandoned in the streets, some with their lights still on and flashing. There was no sign of any life around him besides the tickle of the warm night air. He looked up. Above him, pelican dropships flew across the night sky, undoubtedly traveling to and fro from city hall. Everyone in the city who hadn’t managed to get off planet at the beginning of the invasion, had been instructed to migrate to the city center, for last minute evacuations. That was where everyone was, and that was where he would be going. The others had dropped within the nearby streets, and were definitely close by. Looking over his shoulder on last time, he then proceeded to fast jog to the end of the street. By glancing up at an overhanging road sign, he verified that he was now on Policant Street, the name of which he remembered specifically from the briefing. He looked to his right, and there it was. About ten blocks down, was a tall skyscraper, which unlike the other buildings in the city, had every single one of its lights on. It was a massive beacon of golden light, almost as if it was meant to guide people to it, for salvation. In a way it did.

Scott continued his fast jog down the deserted, quadruple-laned thoroughfare. More abandoned vehicles clogged the streets, forcing Scott to weave in and out between the ghostly sedans and SUVs. He glanced to his right and noticed that the glass doors on a building had been shattered. Mixed in amongst the glass fragments, was a dark substance which looked oddly like blood. Whatever it was, it was smeared all over the threshold, and had been spread further into the building, as if something had been dragged through it. Scott didn’t have time to investigate, nor did he wish to find out.

A low humming sound was suddenly heard by Scott, originating from above him. He looked up, and saw a Covenant phantom dropship for the first time in real life. By far, it looked far more menacing than how the training simulators depicted them. It flew slowly, high above the city. Scott watched it as he continued to jog down the street, already having covered three city blocks. He estimated that there were only six or seven left until he reached city hall. Suddenly, out of nowhere, the phantom exploded in a bluish-purple fireball, combined with a yellow plume of fire. A second later, a squadron of three longsword fighters flew overhead, launching a volley of missiles at a far-distant target that Scott could not see. They too passed beyond view, and it was once again silent, except for muffled, echoing sounds of distant gunfire.

Something wasn’t right. For a split-second, Scott thought that he heard something else besides that of the far away fighting. A shrill sound, unnatural to a combat environment. A sound that demanded attention at all times, no matter what was going on. He stopped jogging and listened. Silence. He waited for a few more seconds, and sure enough he heard it again. As clear as day, he recognized that sound anywhere. It was the sound of a woman’s scream, and it came from a building down the street, to his left. Without thinking, he made a rapid sprint down the road, praying to hear it one more time, so that he could confirm which building it originated from. He asked, and the universe answered. The scream came from a second-floor window, on a apartment complex to his left. He quickly ran up the steps and stepped through the open doors into the lobby. If there was indeed a god watching over him, he mouthed a silent thank-you in appreciation. He switched the vision mode on his visor to a low-light setting, allowing him to easily see in the lightless building. He ran to the back of the lobby, and found the emergency stairs. He opened the door as quietly, and as quickly as he could and began to climb up the steps. He kept his rifle pointed up the stairwell, and he kept his back against the wall. He reached the first landing and checking to make sure the second-floor landing was clear of threats, before proceeding up the rest of the stairs. He slowly opened the fire-proof door, and stepped onto the crimson carpet that made up the flooring for the hallway. There lights in the corridor were out as well, and apartment room doors were spaced out evenly on both sides of the hallway. At the very end, there was an open window, overlooking the street in which he came from. He walked quickly down the hallway, checking doors as he went, all of them locked. Suddenly, out of his peripheral vision, he noticed that the color of the carpet was uneven. Looking down, he noticed that the carpet was not a solid red, but rather a blue color with red splotches in random places. He reached down and touched the discolored rug with his gloved hand. A sticky substance coated his fingers. It was blood. Standing up once again, he suddenly realized that there was blood on the walls as well, smeared all over the place. Scott felt his stomach grow cold when he saw a fresh, bloody handprint on the wall. Little droplets of the stuff trickled down the wall, from the impression. Whatever had happened here, it had happened recently. His thoughts suddenly returned to that of the woman’s scream, and he realized that there was a large possibility that whatever had caused the disturbing mess in the hallway, might still be in the building. He raised his weapon again, and continued to walk down the hall. Every single door that he came to was locked. Every few seconds, he looked over his shoulder to make sure that he wasn’t being followed. As he neared the end of the hallway, he noticed that the last door on the left side was open. The scream had come from a window in that apartment. As he neared the opening, he noticed that the door wasn't merely open, but ripped completely off its hinges. He put his left shoulder up against the left wall, and peeked around the corner. From what he could see, the inside of the apartment was no less unsettling than the hallway, or the empty city streets outside. He felt his heartbeat quicken. Just inside the door was a small kitchen that had been demolished. Cupboards were smashed open, and an oven on the wall was missing its door. Broken dishes were spread across the floor, their fragments creating an impossible maze for any small creature or insect, which attempted to traverse the craggy terrain.

He stepped into the room, being careful not to bump into the door which lay in the middle of the floor, or to step on any of the shattered dinnerware. Barely managing to stay attached, was a ceiling fan, which dangled by that of a thin wire. From where he stood inside the kitchen, there were too doors, one directly ahead of him, and one to the left. Checking the closer door first, he quickly realized that it was just an empty bathroom. He proceeded forward slowly, into what appeared to be a living room. He stopped, and whipped around the corner quickly, scanning the room through the smart-linked sights of his rifle. It was empty. Except for an overturned coffee table, a shredded couch, and a toppled entertainment center, there wasn’t a presence in the room. At was still. All was silent, as if the room itself was preparing to mourn for its coming destruction.

From the room that was probably once a place where a happy family would sit to enjoy time together, there were two more doors, both situated on perpendicular walls, in the far corner of the room. Scott took a deep breath, and crept closer to the two entrances. As he grew nearer, he felt his senses heighten from the increased adrenaline pumping through his bloodstream. His hearing became acutely sensitive, and he felt as if he was seeing the world around him move at a slower pace. The shadowy openings were outlined in white, thanks to the low-light vision filter that was included in his helmet’s installed VISR system. His heartbeat throbbed in his head as he edged himself closer, careful to not make a single sound. He pressed his back to the wall, and slowly peeked his head around the corner. He hoped to find the source of the woman’s screams. He expected to find another bedroom. He ended up finding both, as well as a living, breathing, eight and a half foot tall elite. As much as it surprised him, he did not make a sound. He had never seen one up close before, and its size didn’t make the situation any less intimidating.

It stood with its back to him, looking out the bedroom window, and up at the night sky. It was muttering something in a language that Scott did not understand. It wore a dark-blue set of armor. On one of his hips, was a plasma rifle, and on the other, the hilt of an energy sword. On the ground behind him, lay the motionless body of a woman. Twin, cauterized puncture wounds marked the place where the elite had stabbed its energy sword into her abdomen. He didn’t know who she was, but yet he did. She was another person who had lost their life in a ruthless holy war, waged by aliens. Every day, its seemed like there was less and less of a chance that humanity would be able to make it out on top. How could humanity possibly win against a force that slaughtered innocent women and children, as easily as they killed soldiers?

Scott aimed his rifle at the elite’s back, with his finger ready to squeeze the trigger at a millisecond notice. He adjusted his stance to a crouching position, and prepare to fire. At that very moment, there was a loud crash that came from the kitchen, as the copper strand finally broke, letting the ceiling fan crash to the floor. The elite whipped around faster than Scott could have thought possible. Their eyes met, and they stared at one another for an entire second, before the elite drew his sword, and Scott fired his rifle. The alien’s shields flares as the bullets collided with the bluish energy barrier. It activated its sword, and swung it at Scott’s face. He was forced to duck and roll to right side, into the bedroom, to avoid losing his head. The sword sliced through the door frame, causing a foul, burnt smell to fill the room. Scott got to his feet and fired another short burst into the elite, but wasn’t able to crack through its shields before the alien pivoted on one foot and kicked Scott square in the chest. His rifle was knocked out of his hands as he flew into the far wall, smashing a glass picture frame, before falling onto the bed. The elite turned around to face him, and stalked forward, his sword pointed at the floor. Scott looked around for an escape, but there wasn’t one. He was cornered. The elite raised his sword, and brought the twin, superheated blades within eight inches of Scott’s visor. It reared back, ready to stab, but something stopped it. A voice.

“Hey you ugly, bastard split-lip!” shouted the masculine voice. “Over here!”

The alien turned around only to see a blur of grey, as an armored figure slammed into it full-force, colliding with its chest. The elite was knocked onto its back, dropping its energy sword from the impact. It was another ODST. Scott’s savior then jumped on top of the elite, unsheathing his combat knife. He lunged forward, going for the Sangheili’s throat, but the alien batted the soldier away with one hand, knocking him off to the side. The ODST looked up at Scott.

“Don’t just sit there!” yelled the fellow soldier. “Help me out here!”

Scott was awoken from his near-death trance, and got to his feet. The elite staggered back up as well, searching for its weapon. The soldier stood too, and took a fighting stance, holding his knife out before him in one hand, while his other was balled up in a tight fist. The elite saw the weapon lying on the ground by the window, and made a lunge for it. The other ODST tried to block its path, but the elite knocked him away with ease. Scoot then took the initiative to attack. He jumped off the bed, grappling onto the elite’s shoulders, and wrapping his arms around its neck. The monster attempted to shake Scott off, but the ODST held on with all his might. The other soldier got to his feet once more, and used the opportunity given by Scott’s distraction to plunge his knife into the elite’s side. It roared out in agony, and slammed into the bedroom wall, causing the room to shake. Scott leaned backwards, putting all of his weight behind him. The elite attempted to remain standing, but fell backwards onto Scott when he made a final tug on its neck. With the elite on top of him, Scott drew his sidearm from its holster and placed it up against the alien’s helmet. He pulled the trigger several times, each causing the elite’s shields to flare at a brighter intensity with each impact. The elite brought its arm back, and knocked the pistol of Scott’s hands. The other soldier tried to jump on top of the alien, but was kicked away by its massive foot. The elite then rolled over, so that its four-mandibled mouth looked like it was biting Scott’s face. It raised his fist, and a miniature energy dagger materialized itself, pointed right at the ODST’s visor. It brought its first back, about to finish Scott off once and for all, but suddenly the other ODST jumped onto the elite’s back, yanked the knife out of its side, and plunged it several times into the alien’s throat. Purplish blood sprayed onto Scott’s visor, and coated the knife entirely. The elite reached up to grab at its punctured artery, but it was too late. It groaned, and then fell off to the side, breathing its final breath before going limp.

Both ODSTs stared at the dead alien, entirely out of breath. Neither spoke for a few seconds.

“Thanks,” said Scott, panting heavily.

“Don’t... mention it,” said the other.

Scott sat for another moment before getting up on his feet, and walking over to retrieve his rifle and sidearm, which had both been knocked under the bed during the terrifying fight.

“I saw you turn down this street,” said the stranger. “I wasn’t quite sure why you had, so I followed you. I got inside, and when I heard gunshots I came running as quickly as I could.”

Scott looked over at him. “It's a good thing that you did,” he said. “I would have been seared meat if you didn’t come along.”

The stranger walked over to the dead alien. “Why did you come in here?” he asked. “Did you see this big guy go in?”

“No,” said Scott. “I heard a woman’s scream.” he nodded towards the dead woman.

“I see,” said the stranger, before looking down at the ground. “Did you know who she was?”

“No,” said Scott, as he walked over, and crouched over the woman. “No I did not.”

The other soldier walked over as well, and stood over Scott.

“I could have saved her,” Scott said, growing pale. “But I wasn’t fast enough. If I had just gotten here a little sooner...”

“Hey,” said the stranger. “Don’t beat yourself up over this. It wasn’t your fault.” he turned towards the door.

“But it was,” said Scott. “I wanted to save her, but I failed. I just need to... Just a little more time-”

“It’s a shame, but there is nothing we can do to change it,” said the other soldier. “Come on. We had better get going to city hall. Our help is needed there.”

Scott sighed, but nodded, and looked one last time at the woman, before following the other ODST out into the hallway, and outside into the dreary nighttime city.