Thread: A Survivor's Musings

A Sangheili's Pride 1846 hours, February 23, 2551 Military Calendar Epsilon Eridani System, Virocha IV The Covenant cruiser Redemption emerged silently from the voids of Slipspace over the former human world of Virocha IV, joined by nearly a dozen more vessels of Covenant Fleet. Before them, the inky backdrop of space was illuminated by hundreds of plasma torpedoes and missile trails, each arcing across the blackness to melt armor or impact on energy shields. Dozens of vessels ?? both human, and Covenant - burned, lifeless hulks venting plumes of oxygen and vaporized metal, drifting aimlessly through space. The humans were putting up a desperate last stand to defend the planet from the onslaught of alien forces. Squadrons of Seraph fighters darted between the battling fleets, strafing human vessels and burning away their bulky Longsword fighters with their plasma cannons, it was a glorious sight to behold. An orbital MAC platform fired its last, a white-hot bolt that pierced the heart of the destroyer Esteem , destroying the reactor with a flash of blue-white light. Plasma eruptions chained down the length of the entire ship, before it was swallowed in a miniature sun. Nearly a dozen vessels fired upon the platform to avenge their fallen brothers, and the station melted and collapsed into a shapeless blob of glowing metal. The Redemption and a handful of other vessels steered clear of the orbital engagement, settling into position low over Virocha??s storm-filled skies. They began to deploy hundreds of Phantom dropships, the purple, beetle-shaped crafts plunging into the turbulent clouds in their decent to the surface below. Bolts of lightning arced between their hulls and high winds buffeted the craft, making maneuvering difficult. But the adverse weather also kept them clear of enemy fighters, who had been deployed where skies were clearer. Isla ??Unomee??s mandibles flared slightly, her fingers tightening around the grip of her Plasma Rifle. She was eager to get into the heat of battle for the first time, to prove that female Sangheili were capable of things other than breeding. She was the first female of her kind to be accepted into the ranks of the Covenant Army. It had taken her a long time, following only the strictest regiments of military and personal training and discipline, but she was finally able to wear the battle armor of her brethren, and she wore it proudly. The dark blue metal was polished to a near sheen all the essential systems were working perfectly. Her energy shields were powered up, her Plasma Rifle was at 100 charge, and she had four Plasma Grenades at her waist. A long-fingered hand gripped tightly against her shoulder, and she turned to lock eyes with Xantum ??Iskonee. The Sangheili Major stood there in his dull red armor. He growled roughly at her. ??I have risked my reputation and the lives of my soldiers by allowing you to join my troop. Do not disappoint me in combat, or I will not hesitate to kill you myself.? He glowered at her. Several other Sangheili cast their own looks of discontent. Even the Unggoy stared at her with incredulous eyes. Many of them had never seen a female Sangheili, let alone one in full armor. ??I will not fail you, Commander.? She said back to him, barely holding her own tongue. The Phantom rocked back and forth, forcing those inside to brace themselves well or be tossed to the floor. As they fell below the cloud barrier, the Phantom??s side panels dropped open to reveal the storm-whipped jungles that covered the surface of Virocha. Giant trees shuddered under the gale force winds, massive lightning strikes plunged into the dense canopy, but the heavy rains quickly extinguished any fires that may have started. In the distance, the sky was painted with a dull orange glow, enormous plumes of smoke and billowing steam suggesting that the fleet had already glassed that particular section. Isla felt her chest swell with pride, even as the ship dropped below the canopy into the swamps below. ??The humans have tainted this world with their presence!? Xantum roared over the howling wind. ??We are the arm of the Covenant??s Will! We will brush the filth from this world, and receive unimaginable reward!? It wasn??t the best of motivational speeches, but to Isla, already eager to fight, it was more than enough. Several Unggoy scrambled to man the plasma cannons on either side of the ship, although their small forms were almost swept from the ship from the winds. They strafed the trees with superheated gas, incinerating the wet foliage with plumes of steam and crackles of flame. The ship settled into a clearing in the thick trees, and the pilot barked an order to drop. ??Let??s move out!? Xantum barked gruffly, aiming his Carbine rifle towards the now activated gravity lift. ??Isla! Go!? She walked quickly to the gravity lift and stepped into the beam. At once, her entire body prickled from head to foot, and she dropped to the ground at a reasonable pace. Her feet sank into the thick mud, and she swept her Plasma Rifle around in a wide arc, looking for targets. There were no human contacts, none that she could see, at least. She stepped out of the beam, feeling the heavy rain splatter off her armor. Their active camouflage units would be completely useless in the environment. They would have to penetrate the human defenses by more traditional means. Heavy splashes in the mud behind her signaled that the rest of her squad had deployed. The squabbling Unggoy waddled out of the muck, their diminutive forms covered in mud up to their stubby knees. It took several minutes before they managed to organized themselves into a squadron. She growled at the smaller creatures, they were cannon fodder, almost incompetent fighters. Only their superior numbers made them a threat to anybody. Although, when properly motivated, the diminutive creatures could be surprisingly aggressive. They had all learned that painful lesson during the Unggoy Rebellion. It was only at that moment that she realized that Xantum had broken military protocol by sending her into the field first. Grunts were always deployed before the Elites, in case of enemy contacts. He had been hoping she would be killed first, and would not have to be a part of his squad. She??d show him. The Phantom pulled back, banking towards the horizon as it disappeared over the thick canopy, leaving them alone and exposed to the drenching rain. Xantum ordered them into the jungle towards the glow in the distance. They were to clear out any human resistance along the way. All over the planet, squads were tasked with the same objective. It would not be long until they could begin digging for the Forerunner relics. Isla set her face in determination. She would show her worth and then some. The thick covering of vegetation gave them some protection from the rain, although every tree, every clump of vegetation could hide a potential human. The wind blowing howling through the trees made their motions sensors completely useless, as it detected movement from all around. Isla snarled softly and toggled it off for now, it was just becoming distracting. Ahead of the Elites, the Unggoy patrolled nervously ahead of them, snuffling and yipping from underneath their methane breathers. Isla scanned the branches overhead for anything that would give away a human??s position. After nearly twenty minutes of walking in silence, one of the Unggoy yelped loudly, discharging his plasma pistol into a bush. Instantly, the entire squad opened fire on that spot, incinerating the brush and baking the mud into a brown crust. ??Cease fire!? Xantum roared. The towering Sangheili Major stormed over to the spot, glowering at the scorched, but empty ground. Growling loudly, he turned and shot the Unggoy who had fired the first shot. The creature jerked and fell face first into the mud, fluorescent blue blood bubbling from the corpse. ??The next one who gives away our position will be killed, as well as the one next to him! Do you understand?! ? The Unggoy cowered against Xantum??s fury, but got back into position, reluctantly continuing the forward march. Isla still had a 97 charge left on her Plasma Rifle, so it wasn??t a major waste however, the lack of enemy contacts on a word controlled by them was starting to make her wary. They should have encountered something by now. The wind and rain made it almost impossible to discern enemy movement from the background noise. For all they knew, they could be surrounded and not even know it. She began to get a cold feeling in her stomach as they walked. ??I do not like this?there is something out there.? She growled to the Sangheili next to her. He did not respond, a deliberate act, since she knew he could hear her over the radio. She approached Xantum and looked at him. ??Sir, I think we may be walking into a trap. I suggest we split into a smaller group to ?? Grrrt!? Xantum??s fingers were instantly clasped around her neck, squeezing like a vice. She choked for breath as the other Sangheili nearly lifted her off the ground. ??Silence your tongue! I am the commander of this squad, I will give the orders! You are ?? ?? The scream of a panicked Unggoy pierced through the air only seconds before the ground pulverized around them. The Unggoy were torn to pulp, blue blood pasting the trees in a storm of mud, rocks, slivers, and twisted metal. Suddenly, a hail of projectiles hammered the forest around them. Xantum??s head practically exploded before her, his eyes nearly bursting from his skull as the rear of his head tore away in a spray of purple blood and brain matter. The sharp report of the human??s sniper rifle tore through the air a second later. He dropped away from her and splashed into the mud, quickly staining the muck with his blood. In an instant, they were down by nine, and missing their leader. She screamed in rage, aiming her Plasma Rifle in the direction of the sniper, and pressed down on the trigger pad. Glowing blue plasma burst from the end of the weapon, hissing as it vaporized the rain. The tree burst into flame, the thousand-degree plasma incinerating even the wet wood in seconds. Something large fell from the tree and hit the ground. Her energy shields flared up around her as several rounds flattened against her shields, each a hammer blow against her chest. She ducked behind a tree, feeling it shake from the impacts. A splash next to her drew a quick glance. A flashing red light, sinking into the mud. ??Grenade!? She shrieked to her brethren, diving aside. The ground erupted up and out, splattering her with mud as rocks pinged off her shields. There was a steaming crater where she had been standing. The tree she had been hiding behind crashed to the ground, unable to withstand the damage from the grenade. She pulled herself up, covered in mud. Two of her brethren had fallen, torn open by shrapnel and bullets. Their corpses lay in twisted shapes in the mud, purple blood bubbling from the holes in their armor. She gripped one of the Plasma grenades from her waist, pressing down on the button to activate it. The blue sphere flashed to life, glowing blue-white in her grip. She lobbed it towards the humans, watching it arc through the air and disappear. She heard screams before the ground trembled, and a blue cloud of superheated gas flashed in front of her. She roared in triumph and began firing again.