//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 Stranded // Story: Remembrance // by Demonfire463 //------------------------------// Chapter 3 I lay in my escape pod, and look mindlessly out the small glass panel. I reach my hand up in search of a lever, my hand connects with something. Indeed it's the lever. I yank it down, it's followed by a clunk and a hiss. I shove the door off the pod. Upon stepping out, I notice the large antenna on my escape pod. Wow, didn't lose the comms device. Let's try to send a message to Infinity then. "Hello, this is James Patton, Sierra-140 of the UNSC Infinity do you copy? Command? Atlas Squad? Anybody please answer me!" I hear static only. God dammit! "Patton, we gotcha." The signal's weak and staticky, but I can make out most of what they're saying. "Thank God. Where am I?" "Your location is un----- we have no coordinates on your location. You're gonna have to ------------- get there." "What? You're breaking up!" "You're gonna -------- survive until we can --------------" "Repeat last." C'mon, don't give up on me. Only static responds. "GOD DAMMIT!!!" I slam my fist on the pod in frustration. "Sierra-140, do you copy?" "YES! Yes I'm here!" "Thought we lost you for a second 140, I have a message from Command." "Tell me what it is!" "Naturally, it's for you after all. Unfortunately we have no idea where you are. Somehow, we have no readings on your armor." "Where's Roland?" "That's another thing, your AI may have been terminated in the crash or in subspace." "...so, you don't know where I am, my AI's gone, and you have no readings on my armor?" "Correct." "So how do I get home then?" "Well..." "As you can imagine I'm a little concerned." I say with a strong tone of irritation in my voice. "Of course. But the thing is 140..." "What? WHAT?!" "We are --------------" "You're what?!" "We are listing you---------" "Dammit!" "You are now MIA. I'm sorry." "You can't do that, you can't just...can't just leave me here!" "Terminating signal." A female robotic voice says. "NO! YOU CAN'T JUST LEAVE ME HERE!!! WHERE AM I?! COMMAAAAAAND!!!" Only white noise responds, just static and I remain on the channel. I snap the antenna on the pod with my hand and pull the sniper off my back. I take the magazine out and click back the bolt. None in the chamber, four rounds in the clip. I take my magnum off my leg and do the same. One in the chamber, two full mags. No grenades. I frantically look left and right to check for Covenant soldiers. Nothing. I pull my knife out of the sheath on my chest. The blade shines brightly in the sunlight, the silver glint shines on my eyes through my visor. A bush rustles behind me, I whip around to see what it is. Nothing, just a bush. I squint at it. The bush seems disfigured, all wavy. I load one round into my sniper and hold it at my waist, ready to fire. I squeeze the trigger and the Elite charges. With his shields down and his camouflage inactive, I fire off another shot. It connects with his head and he falls dead to the ground. Several more Elites emerge from the trees and bushes of the forest. Some of them have Assault Rifles and Battle Rifles, one holds a shotgun, another holds a sniper rifle. The one holding the shotgun is a general, shown by his bright orange armor and his helmet. He walks over to the body and lightly kicks it. "You killed him." "He would've killed me." I shoot my remaining two bullets at the general, but his shields don't even break. I drop the sniper as he approaches. "You attempt to kill me now." He grabs me by the throat and lifts me off the ground so we're at eye level. "Yet, you do not. You seem to lack the same drive to eliminate us that other soldiers of your kind possess. You've still a magnum and your combat knife, why do you halt?" "I don't, ack, owe the UNSC anything anymore." I choke out. He drops me and I take a few big breaths. "Why do you say this?" "Those bastards, they listed me as MIA when they couldn't find my location." He hits me in the face hard enough to break my visor over my right eye. "You lie." "Oh yeah? They terminated my AI and left me for dead here, wherever the hell I am. Where are we?" "Unknown location. So you wish to see the UNSC burn for what they did to you?" "I want to ignite the fire that turns them to ashes. I want to see the Infinity in pieces!" I shout. He laughs. "Then join us. We will put an end to every UNSC soldier that crosses our path. With our supplies and your training, we are unstoppable!" "Keep your supplies, even take my magnum." I toss it at an Elite. "The only weapon I'll need is my knife. I'll keep the sniper for the scope though. I'm not gonna guess where you got these weapons, I got a pretty good idea that you 'borrowed' them." He laughs at this. "Well, let's go find a way onto the Infinity. You can have your revenge and we can reach our goal, everybody wins." "Except the UNSC." I chuckle. "Exactly. Let's move."