The Chroniles of the UNSC Thunderbird Part I

The Chronicles of the UNSC Thunderbird is the second Infinity class Starship even more secret then the UNSC Infinity. The UNSC Thunderbird was set in active service a week after the Infinity and sent immediately into unknown territory looking for the Halo's as well and any unknown or uncharted Forerunner planets, installations, or sites.
==The Christening==
"Room Attenhut." The shout was heard throughout the mess hall. Staff Sergeant Leonard immediately snapped to attention with the rest of his squad in unison, along with the rest of the 75th Ranger regiment. In walked a very slender woman with a Naval dress uniform worn and the rank of Admiral displayed. What the hell is going on now? When someone higher rank form any branch shows, it ai'nt going to be pretty. As is stood there I noticed our platoon leader 1st Lieutenant Payne get uneasy. Another bad sign if she is. The Admiral took her place behind the podium and put her mouth near the microphone.
"At-Ease Rangers." I sat down and stared at her intently. I was going to find out what we were doing so might as well pay attention actually. She watched us closely and I've been through enough of these to notice certain signs of how severe the mission would be. If their looking like their about to send us to the slaughter house, its going to be worst then we've been through.
"I know each of you have been through more horrors then even I know of. Probably been on ops that even Gods given up on. That just shows you're the toughest sons of bitches on the universe." As soon as she said this someone from third platoon stood up and yelled "Rangers lead the Way!" In which the whole regiment stood up and yelled "All the way. HOOAH!" then sat back down. She cracked a smile and waited for us to finish.
"Now the ship your on is an experimental ship of a new class called the Infinity class. The ship is called the UNSC Thunderbird. It's task. Is to go in deep space and look for Forerunner active planets, structures, etc. Now I cant promise you that it will be a walk in the park or all of you will be coming home. All I can promise is there will enemy contacts. Yes the covenant have broken apart and we have a truce with the shanghelli, but there is a covenant faction out there called the Storm and they are always rounding up followers and trying to bring it back." she looked around at each of us again. I was starting to get this uneasy feeling. She took a deep breath and stepped back up to the microphone and continued to speak.
"I also cant promise you when you will come home. But I can promise you that whatever technology or whatever you find out here will benefit the human race and your loved ones at home. Dismissed!" She took a step down and left the room flanked by two rather young troopers but with the bodies of a 20 year old Olympian athlete. I knew who they were, like they would have known me if they had gotten up close. Spartan III's from Beta company. Tom and Lucy the only other survivors from Operation Torpedo or so I know of.
I got up and looked around for my platoon leader to find out what our orders were. Everybody was griping, complaining, or talking excitedly what our new mission was. Me all I thought was What the hell did we get ourselves into. I saw her and was about to walk up to her when the order "Attenhut." Came across the room. I snapped back to it and faced our Regiment leader Colonel Derick Johnston stand up on a table. 
"Everybody listen up I got our orders. We are stationed on b-deck where our barracks our. I want first battalion to go up and get set in and settled down. Second will go the armory and get there gear then head to the range to register equipment checks and just get some time in shooting. Third will stay here and eat get some chow in your bellies. Well rotate every 45 minutes to make sure everyone gets it all done and I don't hear any complaining saying oh I didn't get to do this. Now get to it, dismissed! Staff Sergeant Leonard a word." He said the last part in a lower turn. What now? I didn't do anything this time I swear. I thought to myself as I walked towards him. 
He stared at me and nodded his head to the door. I followed him out the door and we walked towards his office. While following him to office my head was spinning and thinking a mile a second of all the possibilities that he would want to talk to me. I just followed silently though not wanting to give him any ammunition to chew my ass out if it wasn't the reason. Near his office I finally came to the conclusion it was probably about stealing the Pelican and taking it for a joy ride. He opened his door and let me in first. He didn't follow me in. He just stood at he door for a minute and stared at his desk. I followed his gaze and saw three people behind it one in a chair and facing the opposite way. He looked at me and closed the door. I stared at the person sitting in the chair and she spun around. It was the Admiral from earlier. As soon as I saw the rank I snapped to attention and saluted.
"Ma'am Staff Sergeant Leonard, Reporting as ordered Ma'am." I stood there for several seconds as she looked me over. She then got up and waved me off. I dropped the salute and stood at ease.
"Long time no see Sergeant. Last time I saw you just got back from that op back in deep covenant space. Lost nearly your entire unit with 99% casualties but a mission was successful in the end. Then you got transferred to here the 75th Rangers and been through so many more black ops with no losses and 100% mission completion succeeded with ruthless efficiency. You reached your rank within 4 years and haven't climbed any further because of disobedience of orders. One because you wouldn't leave another squad and stayed till they were evacuated and second cause you got in a bar fight with one of your superior officers because he apparently insulted your daughter. Who I believed is also stationed aboard this ship I believe. Underage enlistment." she gave me a wink and I smiled that was my daughter for me.
She then looked at the other two who I recognized as Tom and Lucy again. My heart started beating faster and I felt nervous. What if they recognized me, what is she playing at.
"You do not recognize him do you?" She asked looking at them as they stared at me. They gave me a hard glance scanning me but no recognition came across there face. They looked at her slowly still staring at me.
"No Ma'am." They both replied as if they were guessing the answer. She then looked at me giving me a wicked smile.
"You recognize them? Don't you Sergeant." I nodded starting to get more worried and nervous. She nodded and sat back down. She grabbed the glass of water on the desk and took a sip, giving a sigh of relief.
"Tom, Lucy this is Matthew Leonard B059. He was apart of Delta Fireteam. He was the only to have survived by ducking in a very small ditch when the factory's reactor went critical and exploded. He woke up an hour later and fought his way past several covenant patrols to where he reached a Sub Cat Prowler and made his escape and into UNSC space. When he did he was immediately taken to me and was asked to be transferred back into the fight, and transferred here. You two are now transferring here as well best you three get back together and catch up. Don't wait here to long." She then left the room.
The room was filled tension for several seconds. Then Lucy ran up and hugged me tightly. She grabbed me tightly and I was sure she cracked a couple of ribs but I didn't care it been to long since id seen her. I held her closely as well as Tom walked up awkwardly I grabbed him and brought into the hug and tears started forming in my eyes. We broke up and stood there awkwardly.
"Come on guys we got lunch first." I say still teary eyed and my throat choking up. We left the office and walked back to the Mess Hall where everyone had got there food and were shoveling the food down there throats. We got in line and grabbed a tray to get our food. Main dish was Steak with mashed potatoes and gravy, with a side of green beans and rice, dessert was a weird version of cherry cobbler. I walked over and got some water. I walked over and sat down with the rest of my squad and Lucy and Tim sat next to me sitting down and acting shy which was weird for them. Before I started eating I decided it would be best to introduce them.
"Guys these here are our two new squad mates Corporals Tom and Lucy. Guys this the squad." Each of the squad members stood up shaking hands and introducing themselves. First up was Corporal Lawerensky a scrawny white kid that had a southern drawl. He shook each of there hands enthusiastically.
"Hi yall I'm Corporal Lawerensky, the teams combat medic and close quarters combatant." He sat back down. Next up was PFC Krieger. She had a Russian back ground and was pretty beautiful if I said so myself. She was also quiet she barely spoke but often her actions spoke louder then words.
"Hello I am Private First Class Krieger, very pleased to meet you I am the teams sharpshooter." She took her seat and continued to finish her food. Next was the new comer he just joined the UNSC only fought the covenant once and it counted. He fought on the Ark against the covenant, the flood, and a renegade group of elites who slaughtered his whole tea, before he managed to fight them off enough to run to an allied armor column full of allied elites. He never spoke of the Ark and I couldn't blame him. I mean he saw his team torn apart and eaten by brutes, infected and having to kill his use to be squad mates, then the betrayal. He went through hell and back and we respected him.
"Hi, I'm Sergeant Torchwood, the teams demolitions expert." He said quietly not even bothering to shake there hands. He told me when he came he wouldn't make friends cause he didn't want to feel the pain he did last time. Then Private Moralez stood up, there were white kids and then there was him. This kid was as white as could be not just by skin but by the way he acted. He was also full of energy every time but also the teams most creative member.
"Hey guys I'm Private Moralez, the squads communications man. You need a relay you'll get it." He was newer then Torchwood. Having never even been in combat. We didn't know how hell act in combat but he was cool and collected during the simulators which could get hairy at some points. Then we reached the last member of the squad. Nobody knew much about her. She was the only one who been in the squad as long as I had maybe even longer. I tried to look up her background but most of it was censored or blocked by ONI or not even there anymore. She only said she met Master Chief once and in the worst place at the worst time. She didn't even get up to introduce herself she just kept eating.
I got up and dumped my tray after eating and as soon as I was done the Battalion commander stood up. Saying it was time to rotate. Just in time I thought to myself. I formed up my squad and we headed towards the range to collect our equipment from the armory. On the way there Lucy kept close to me and I knew we were going to have to talk sooner or later. See the thing was Lucy and I had a thing back in boot. When we were about 12 we hung out more and more before I was transferred fireteams. I wouldn't say it was a romance thing but I wouldn't say it wasn't either we were always close by each other the whole time. I rounded the corners and went down several flights of stairs before we finally arrived. We were the first squad there out of the entire battalion. We walked up and the Sergeant in arms let us in and we collected our weapons and gear. I told Tom and Lucy to grab what they needed but not to much. 
I immediately walked over and grabbed a BR85 Battle Rifle out of the locker and shouldered it and peered through the scope. I decided it was in working in order and shouldered the rifle. I walked over to find a secondary and was drawn to a M319 grenade launcher and shouldered it as well. I then walked over and grabbed a M6D as my sidearm. Then grabbed a handful of fragmentation grenades and flashbangs. I stepped out the armory and waited for the rest of the squad. Tom and Lucy walked out holding nearly the exact same gear. Tom and Lucy were both armed with MA5D assault rifles. Lucys secondary was a ARC-90 rail gun, and Toms was a 363 remote projectile detonator. The rest of the squad filing out with a DMR, Assault rifle, and one more Battle rifle as there primary and there secondary's matching there specialties. I walk up the range officer and he starts talking to me.
"You guys are the first people here so I can run you guys through the simulator if you want." He says giving me a smile expecting a back down.
"Well take it sir." I shoot back calling his bluff.
"Well since you all are so gun ho ill run you through the new one we received this morning." I nod my hand and gesture for him to lead the way. He leads us to a medium sized room. And hands us each a magazine for simulation use and then closes the door behind us. I feel the sensation of my head going dizzy and I close my eyes. I wait a couple of seconds and then re open my eyes. The room is gone and is replaced by the scenario of a dense jungle. I look around expecting a warm reception and the squad fans out setting up a perimeter and nothing happens. All of my sudden my comms squawk to life.
"Alright Shadow squad, your objective is to move 5 klicks south and take a structure held by enemy forces, keep your eyes out though, we've sent several other squads but have lost contact with them." The comms clicked dead.
"You heard the man lets shake it we can make it in a couple of hours if were lucky. Come on guys form up delta formation." They immediately go in square formation with myself in the middle. We start walking following the river downstream and keeping our eyes open. I keep looking for survivors from any of the previous squads sent. We make it about 3/4ths the way there in a hour and half and I tell them to take a breather five minutes. Everyone sits down opening there canteens to drink water. I continue on a little following a weird type of mark on the ground. I follow it about five feet when a trooper bursts from the brush and comes running at me his weapons, gear, and helmet missing. He has this wild look in his eyes and grabs me by my front of my armor.
"We've got to get out of here. They got everybody, they killed LT, they'll kill us all." He keeps babbling and shouting off till things got incoherent. I pull him up and try to get his attention and have him snap out of it. He lets go and backs away a couple of meters. I was about to reach for him when a energy sword materializes out of nowhere and impales itself in him and raising him in the air. I stumble backwards and trip over a stump and fall backwards. The bodies thrown to the side and the sword walks towards me. I raised my battle rifle and fired a burst into the middle of the shimmering area. I hit its stealth generator and appeared a spec ops elite in shimmering black armor. I fired three more bursts and started to lower its shields. I fired again and my rifle jammed. I threw it down and was trying to grab my pistol out its holster. All of a sudden automatic fire filled the air and the elites shields drained in heart beat and then the elite was cut in ribbons. I turn around to see Lucy and Tom both holding smoking assault rifles. Lucy walks over and offers a hand I gratefully accept it and get up. I nod my thanks and grab my rifle. I pull the bolt back and fiddle with the rifle the jammed round falls to the ground. I look around as my squad gathers around.
"Nobody strays away, from now on you grab your battle buddy and stay close to them. You stick to them like paint got it?" I'm fuming cause of how careless and pissed I got. Everybody just stares at me and nods slowly. I then walk back to the fallen marine. I close his eyes and grab his dog tags. I then nod my head at everyone and we continue our journey to our destination. It takes us another two hours and we finally reach our objective and stare at it. Its a large pyramidal structure and I see it will be a tough nut to crack. At least four shades are stationed on it from what I can see and I knew there were more. Also at the entrance were two wraiths, a revenant and at least 20 infantry guarding the entrance. I hear a whine and look up to see three banshees in a patrol around the building. So armor, air, and infantry support. This will be fun I think to myself. I then back up and walk back to my squad.
"Ok guys this wont be easy. They've got shades, armor and air support along with infantry. 
--Sergeant Michael (talk) 20:04, October 11, 2013 (UTC)Sergeant Michael
Category:Stories