Blind Faith

"In the wake of the raid and destruction of a remote ONI research site, it has been uncovered that several of the missing researchers have been taken captive by the Covenant. Spartan Team RAPTOR has been deployed in Operation SNOWBOUND to recover both them, and their valuable data."
----"I count four Jackals in view. Snipers. Two positioned on the cliff faces to the southwest. One on each of the antenna arrays. "
The majority of Nelson-A089's kneeling form lay hidden behind a sizable rock, the only parts laying within view being the upper parts of his torso, and that of his SRS99AM-rifle. Though a combination of distance, elevation, and advanced stealth features of his MJOLNIR-R variant armor would make it incredibly difficult, if not nearly impossible, for him to be spotted by anyone who didn't know he was there. 
"Dial back your magnification and focus on the outskirts of the base."
From somewhere below and at a halfway point between Nelson and the Covenant outpost, Elise-A100 hovered over a datapad whose screen displayed whatever the Spartan marksman's scope saw in real time. He'd comply, the feed pulling back to display the full encampment; two antenna towers positioned at the base of a snow-capped mountain, the only structures to see in the snow-filled, desolate landscape that was Strilun-IV for hundreds, possibly thousands of miles. 
"Didn't figure you were the type to take in the scenery, El." Behind her, Delvin-A125 idly checked over his gear, consisting of a M932 DMR which lay upright next to him, an M7 SMG, which he checked the ammunition for, and several other pieces of equipment which would come in handy should things go awry. In his massive, armored hands, the latter weapon compared to a low caliber sidearm in someone else's hands. Across from him, Melody-A003 mirrored his actions, though her own equipment looked much more natural compared to her size. 
"Hate to agree with him, boss, but he's right. There ain't much to look at." She said.
"Come over here, both of you." Ignoring the two comments, Elise beckoned over the other two Spartans, turning to display the screen to them. It was much like they had said; besides the outpost, there wasn't anything else of interest in view. Apparently able to read the confusion of the two even through their helmets, she tapped on point at the edge of the outpost's border, which at the distance it was viewed made it hard to discern. 
"What is it?" On queue with Delvin's question, Nelson would magnify his scope, enhancing the image to show them to be a stack of several crates of UNSC-design, 'guarded' in the roughest sense of the word by three Grunts.
"Cargo. Supplies. Food. Technology. Probably whatever they managed to scoop up from the raid on the research site." Melody said. "Likely for use by our M.I.A. scientists."
"Exactly. The briefing said that their data included information on ancient xeno-architecture and technology that matches that revered by the Covenant." Elise confirmed. "The raid could have been a distraction to take the researchers. Or one of their Commanders seized the opportunity to gain some unwilling participants in an excavation project." The feed would flick off, and Elise to would stow away the datapad and proceed to pickup her own weaponry, a mirror of the kit carried by both Delvin and Melody. "Let's get started."
The descent further down the mountain towards its base where the outpost was roughly an hour and a half of scaling down vertical ledges that at times were coated with slick caps of black ice. The three Spartans also needed to remain aware of the routes they took, so as to not openly expose themselves to the Covenant lookouts below; while they possessed the same MJOLNIR-R variant armor as Nelson, and possessed a slate gray color scheme to better blend in with the environment, it wouldn't be impossible for a wandering gaze to catch sight of and focus on one of them, ending the entire mission before it truly began. As the approached the southern edge, Melody would scale up one of the rock faces, while Elise and Delvin continued through the crevices in between. While she swiftly took down one of the Jackal snipers, the other would be dropped simultaneously by a well-placed, soundless shot from Nelson nearly a mile away up the mountain.
The pair on the bottom slowed as they approached the perimeter, cautious and for good reason. The sensors utilized by the Covenant were designed to turn hostile immediately upon those who didn't transmit the correct identification codes, with no hesitation. Their MJOLNIR-R armor was designed to bypass, or at the very least mitigate, detection by the sensors, primary through reducing factors of detection, such as sight, infrared, and radar. The shoulder pads they wore as part of the ensemble were AESA panels that directed away outside radio signals, effectively making them indistinguishable from the 'background noise' that was the surrounding environment. Its success rate was 72% in a controlled environment, with estimates falling as low as the fifties in the field. Still, it was the best they had. So they'd make do.
In the event of a failure, speed would become the most important factor in the mission. They'd need to infiltrate, kill, secure, or recover any targets on site in short order, before the Covenant would manage to get a signal out for reinforcements. Such an outcome would almost certainly be death for the team. Upon Elise's signal, both she and Delvin would rush forward, passing through the invisible boundary of the sensors. One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Seconds past as they sprinted forward, splitting apart and heading towards the antenna lookouts. Both would fall in short order, followed by the three grunts positioned by the crates by way of Delvin's rifle. 
Melody would drop from the cliff overlooking Elise's antenna tower, and the two would proceed to entering its underground portion, while Delvin dealt with disabling the sensor array and communications of the site. That meant destroying the pinch fusion generators that powered them, an easy enough task when using shaped charges. The resulting explosions were focused, anticlimactic displays, disabling the essential components of the alien machinery without disrupting its more delicate internals, and resulting a louder and more easily identifiable mess. It'd be a relatively short wait afterwards before both Elise and Melody emerged from the sub-levels of the tower, towing behind them several disheveled, injured, and weakened humans. The two Spartans' armor was splashed with splotches of purple and green, indicating they'd found more enemies below. 
"Me and Nelson always get the boring tasks." He said as he approached the group. He'd wipe off a sizable splotch that'd landed on the edge of Melody's helmet, before knocking it with his hand. She'd reply with a not so light thump to his chest with her fist, the metal of their two armors clanging on impact.
"Five of the nine have been recovered. Saw remains of the two more within the underground. They said they were killed early on for refusing to commands. There were three Elites down there as well. Looked like some minor commander. Probably just a babysitter for the site." She relayed. Delvin would look past her and down towards the scientists. They were scrawny, and gaunt, likely from the hospitality of the Covenant. He could see them visibly shaking in the cold, and so made for the UNSC crates, opening and tearing through their contents until he something akin to a tent or some sort of emergency shelter, which he ripped and tore in order to create makeshift blankets for them.
"Nelson, send out the recovery signal in affirmative."
"Solid copy, boss. Signal up and out. ETA thirty minutes from orbit. Already on my way down."
By the now the sun of the planet had begun to set, rapidly dipping below the horizon and painting the sky a deep orange. As Delvin distributed the coverings from the cold and Melody took up a watch in one of the antenna towers, Elise looked on at the distant, infinite, horizon. The operation was a success, partly. Two of the scientists were unaccounted for, and the data they'd recovered here was corrupted, likely from being mishandled and damaged. This outpost was only one of several on the planet if the initial recon scans were correct, which meant the Covenant had a vested interest in whatever lie beneath the surface. Only the top brass would know how important the recovery of these scientist would be to delaying their goal. Their job, however, was done. Once back into UNSC territory, Elise would put the snow-blanketed landscape in the back of her mind and refocus on the next horizon that awaited her team. 
Category:The Weekly