Emergence *A Gears of War/ Halo Crossover*

Manny wrote:Read some things that kinds threw me off.

Kayla Harlowe? Josh and Phil are Spartan IVs? Morgan died of natural causes?

Wut?

Morgan, in this story arch, passed away of old age, instead of suicide by exploding house.

Josh and Phil, if you remember from Hunted, actually survived *'cause I still have yet to redo Homecoming.* and I've decided to enter them into the Spartan IV ranks.

Kayla is a normal Spartan IV that took on the last name Harlowe because her original parents died at a young age, when Blaine and Bailey set out to find their own IVs.

Lot's of confusing changes have been made. I want to redo Homecoming again so that this makes a little more sense.

Changes in canon;

-Morgan died of old age in Douglastown, Angus, Scotland.

-Josh and Phil DID NOT end up dying at the end of the Great War, instead they are alive and Spartan IVs.

-Kayla and many other of Blaine's IVs *not the ones the UNSC chose* took on the name Harlowe or Bailey in respect to both Blaine, Dr. Bailey, or Agent Nine.

Sorry for the confusion.

Chapter 16: Clearance Sale. (Part 1 of 2)

Cole lead the small group through the doorway and into the adjacent alleyway.

"Huh, kinda 'anti-social' aren't they?"

"Uh- it's pronounced 'ass-holes'." Baird spat.

"C'mon, we still got some options."

"Yeah, he made mention of a grocery store around here, we saw it in our Pelican on the way here." Josh nodded.

"Let's see if my coupons are still good." Cole chuckled.

"As a huge Thrashball star, I didn't know you actually did you're own shopping Cole." Baird shook his head.

Cole didn't respond however, as they found themselves in front of a chain-linked door in front of them, a chain and lock between them.

"Perfect time for Jack to be here, I miss that little guy." Cole said, as Josh and Phil looked at each other, drooping their heads.

"Jack?" Kayla asked.

"Hey, he isn't scrap yet, okay? I'm just looking for a power cell for him." Baird grinned, looking over to the confused Spartans. "Little robot, cuts doors for us. Fun as hell at parties."

"Then let's open this the Delta way." Josh smirked beneath his helmet, kicking the gate open.

The squad trotted into the children's playground, miscellaneous toys scattered along the field. Teeter totters, those spinning disk platforms, horses, slides, swings, sandboxes. For Josh and Phil, the sight was tragic, kids had once played here, once upon a time. For Cole, Baird, Sam, and Carmine, they had become accustomed to seeing it. While that didn't bring them any more comfort, they at least acknowledged there was nothing to be done about it.

The ground beneath them quaked, as the teeter totters and teeter horses rocked back and forth. Gathering cover behind a low brick wall, a Stalk ripped the spinning disk platform out of the ground and launched it, Carmine diving expertly out of the way and into cover. A single sac of Imulsion splashed onto the ground in front of them, as a bulky beast lifted itself from the liquid, roaring at them, as a pair of elongated arms erupted from it's chests.

"What the fuck is THAT?!" Josh whined. "That don't look like no exploding spider!"

"Whatever the hell it is," Cole looked at the others. "It's set a new world record of ugly!"

Cole, Sam, and Baird raised their Lancers, while Phil, and Kayla raised their MA5Ds. Josh prepped his SAW, Carmine his Torgue Bow, and Scott his Shotgun. Josh opened fired with his SAW, the incredible punch from the light machine gun riddled the abomination full of holes, Imulsion leaking out of them. It's body glowed white momentarily, as it exploded viciously, more Stalks erupting out of the ground.

"How're your UNSC weapons able to hurt these things?" Baird asked.

"UNSC got some upgrades from our top scientific minds. Not necessarily Imulsion-infused, but we got our hands on some alien tech." Phil smirked.

Lambent Grenadiers and these new Drudges popped out of the Stalks. Cole, Sam, and Baird focused their fire on the boils on the surfaces of the Stalks, while everyone else opened fire on the numerous Lambent storming their position. Unclipping a grenade from her belt, Kayla primed the orange spiky grenade, tossing it at one of the newly mutated Drudges. The grenade latched into it's skin, as an orange field of energy pulsed outwards, drawing the other creatures closer, until it exploded with one final burst of energy.

Anything caught within it's field of effect were disintegrated into tiny orange ashes. Those that were outside of the field of effect convulsed, exploding violently. As the last boil exploded on the last Stalk, the soldiers sighed in relief as the Stalks dried up, void of life energy. Standing, the soldiers worked their way to the other end of the playground, as Cole detoured for a brief moment. The soldiers stopped to look at their temporary Squad Leader, who worked his way towards the slide. Baird slapped a palm to his face, as the Spartans, Sam, and Carmine laughed, Cole slid down the slide with his hands in the air.

"WHOOO!" Cole yelled in victory, as he hustled over to the exit to the playground.

The others trotted over to him, as the chain link fence exploded, a trio of black covered monkey like creatures clambered into the playground, their mouths yellow.

"Lambent Wretches!" Phil pointed, as Josh opened fire.

His rounds riddled the Alpha Wretch's face, as it fell backwards, exploding. The other two screeched, their voices deeper and darker than their normal counterparts. Their roars were answered by shrill squeaks, as tiny spiders rounded the corner.

"Polyps!" Baird opened fired with his lancer, the minuscule creatures popping like zits.

A pair jumped onto Kayla, their clawed appendages breaking through her shields in a matter of seconds, their claws puncturing her undersuit. Swatting them off, she kicked them away from her, as Cole shot them out of the air. Her suit's automatic bio-foam distribution matrices took effect, and she felt instant relief from the pain.

"I hate spiders." She spat, firing her Assault Rifle at the remaining Wretches.

The cobblestone streets just outside of the playground shuddered, creaked, and finally cracked as another Stalk crashed through, dropping more Lambent on them. A Drudge mutated instantly, upon exiting the 'womb'. This one had a snake like thing on it's head, firing flaming Imulsion in a jet stream at them, it's two hands firing globules of Imulsion at them as well. Taking cover behind a destroyed car, Carmine stood, his Torque bow launched a single arrow at the beast, smashing it in the soft belly.

The round exploded, as the Drudge exploded as well. The team celebrated, making short work of the Lambent Grenadiers and their Gnasher shotguns. Suddenly, there was a slithering sound beside them, as Josh peered over to his left, the snake head of the Drudge was still alive!

Kicking it with his boot, a few seconds of exposure to the Imulsion jet burned through his shields, as he thrashed around to put the flame out. Carmine placed the blade on the edge of his bow on it's 'neck', and slashed backwards, cutting the head off of the snake. It shriveled for a second as, like it's companions, exploded.

"Can we please be done with this shit already?" Josh moaned, smacking a few embers off of his shoulder.

"Grocery store is just ahead." Cole reassured him. "We get the supplies and back to Sovereign, and you can rest for a while."

"Again, I didn't know you shopped Cole," Baird chuckled. "I thought you had people for that."

"Yeah, one o' them musta showed me where it was when I got my 'manicure'." Cole scoffed. "Let's just keep moving."

--------------------------------------------------

Josh and Phil closed the door behind them, moving food shelves in front of the door, in case their had followers. Cole eased himself forward towards what appeared to be a cardboard cutout of a younger him, a bowl of Wheaties in his hand, and a smile on his face.

"You ever feel like your dead?" Cole frowned, gazing at his past. "But nobody told you?"

"All the time." Josh retorted, as Phil smacked him on the back of the head.

"Alright folks, store is holding a clearance sale today!" Cole sighed. "Lets see what they got on special."

"Right-o." Sam paused, gazing at the food shelves. "Where's the coffee?"

"Where's the bacon." Carmine muttered, disappointed.

Lol, "where's the bacon".

Chapter 17: One disk, one destiny.

"Seriously dude, you gotta stop with the tomatoes, you're freaking me out." Darryl said.

"Lay off Darryl." David replied. "You're passion is killing things, his is growing crops."

"It's more than that." Dom sighed. "I'll explain when we're NOT being shot at.

The Promethean Lance aimed it's Light Rifle at them, before it stopped in it's tracks. Peering behind it, it's targeting matrices found a parasitic lifeform. Over-riding it's current objective with the one it was originally developed for, the Lance teleported forward, slagging one of the Lambent Grenadiers in half.

Turning back, another rushed at it with a Lancer, it's chainsaw at the ready. The Lance retaliate by impaling the Grenadier, shucking it's body away like a farmer to a bale of hay. Firing two direct rounds of it's Light Rifle at the Drudge on the cat walk, Marcus roared.

Sure enough, the Drudge's body convulsed as the lambency within it caused to mutate much quicker. It's torso elongated, as a single head crab extended from it's head. The catwalk shattered beneath it's now increased body mass. Stumbling towards the Lance, the Promethean beast's face plate opened up, as it roared, it's red skull piercing the COG soldiers' constitution.

The Drudge, however, seemed completely oblivious to the now puny robot's attempt at intimidation. Rather it grabbed the beast by it's sword and ripped it off, restraining it as the head snake fired a steady stream of Imulsion fire at the Lance chest. Roaring in defiance, the Lance prepped it's Prism Grenade launcher, firing the round directly into the center of the Mutated Drudge.

An orange sphere of pure energy exploded out of it's chest cavity, drawing all the nearby Lambent into it's radius. The group of soldiers watched as the creatures exploded.

"The deck is clear!" Blaine called, looking in front and behind them to be sure.

"Let's get up to CIC and see what's on this disk." Marcus growled, holding it up.

------------------------------------------------
"There, got it."

Anya clapped her hands together as the primitive television screen flashed to life. The image of a bald, elderly man with a striking resemblance to Marcus appeared on the screen. He wore a white lab coat, indicating to Blaine that he was a scientist of sorts. Something about the wrinkles near his green, troubled eyes held a dark secret, that much Blaine could tell.

"Marcus, if you get this message, if you're still alive- I need your help. I know that's not much, coming from the man that always refused your help." The man paused, clenching his fist and closing his eyes. "But this time I am really in need of your help. Please- here me out. This is complicated, and I don't think I have much time."

"Oh god." Anya frowned, looking over to Marcus, leaving all but Blaine and Darryl confused. "It's-"

"It's my father." Marcus replied. "I noticed."

"Wait-" Jace quipped. "But- I thought he-?"

"-Leave it Jace." Dom barked, tensing, as Jace backed down.

"I'm confused." Jorge asked. "Why is this a big deal?"

"Because Dom and I watched him die sixteen years ago." Marcus grumbled, pausing the video.

"But Marcus, he looks older than when we last saw him." Dom replied.

"I'm being held by the Locust. I've developed a solution for the Lambent epidemic. But the Locust wants to use it to destroy humanity. They don't realiz-" The video glitched for a moment, Anya attempted to fix it, Darryl helping her.

"-And he knows about the Lambent." Blaine replied, hefting his Lancer. "Which means, he's-"

"Still alive." Marcus finished, glancing back at the video. "If this is true, I've got to find 'im."

Looking over at Darryl, Marcus sighed.

"Any way of knowing when this was recorded?"

"There is no date code." Anya growled, frustrated.

"Hold on." Darryl sighed, tapping the monitor 'lightly' with the palm of his hand, as the video resumed.

"-They don't realize it won't save the Locust. Sera is dying, Marcus. This whole planet is infected. It's the Imulsion that is infecting it, it was ALWAYS the Imulsion Marcus, and I think I can stop it!"

Marcus gazed into the television screen, Blaine and Dom had never seen their comrade like this before. He was fixed to the screen, unmoving.

"I understand it all know. I've tried to contact you over the years, but I've been-" The video glitched out again, as Anya sighed.

"Damn machine!" She growled. "Baird is never around when you need him."

"Pfft!" Darryl spat, offended. "I'll pretend you didn't just say that."

"All you did was hit the monitor!" Anya sighed.

"Yeah, and it worked, didn't it?!" Darryl growled. "Let me see the goddamn disk. I can get it working for you, I just need some tim-"

Reluctant, Anya handed the disk over to Darryl as an explosion racked the entire vessel.

"Ships company, this is Captain Michaelson, return to battle positions! We have Lambent on deck!"

"Come'on!" Marcus roared. "Everyone get out there and finish these assholes off!"

Rushing out the doors, Blaine was next to last, Dom following behind him.

"C'mon Santiago, we gotta go!" Blaine replied.

"I just need to know, did he die peacefully?" Dom asked, a twinkle appearing in his eyes.

Blaine pondered for a second about who he was talking about, but then it hit him, and suddenly he was filled once more with grief.

"Yeah man. The Old man died in his sleep. Can't get more peaceful than that." Blaine replied. "Those crops, they aren't because you developed a Green thumb, are they?"

"No." Dom sighed. "Remember how I told Baird that I was looking for someone, on the way to Franklin's? Well I found her, she was Maria, my wife. I lost her on E-Day. I found her a few short months after you guys left. She was captured, Blaine, by the Locust. Tortured within an inch of her life. She had no humanity, she wasn't there anymore."

Blaine nodded, he knew what Dom was going to say next, as his old friend's eyes watered.

"I killed her man." Dom sobbed. "I had to do it, end her misery."

Wait, I THINK this is during the events of Gears 3? Is it?

It is indeed. Are you currently playing the game? If so, there will be some spoilers ahead.

Shad0wChas3r wrote:It is indeed. Are you currently playing the game? If so, there will be some spoilers ahead.

No worries Shadow.
I had a friend explain to me what Gears was about, and I vaguely recalled the scenario he described in Gears 3.

Chapter 18: Fire Sale *Clearance Sale 2 of 2*

"Oh my god." Kayla gasped, as the group passed by a few decomposing bodies.

In the hands of the smallest corpse was a teddy bear, the biggest of them holding a Gnasher Shotgun in his hands.

"Yeah. Welcome to Sera, home of the most disturbing images known to Mankind." Sam frowned, placing a hand on the Spartan's back.

"Well, Seran kind." Clayton replied. "We have no idea what these guys have been through."

"Yeah, if you met the Flood, you'd be shitting your drawers."

"HA!" Cole laughed. "The Cole Train ain't afraid of a little water!"

"It's not like that." Scott replied, pulling open his video cam. "This is one of those Halo rings I'm sure Admiral Blaine has told you about?"

"Halo rings, now we're talking about Angels?" Baird scoffed.

"No, it's an artificial world meant to destroy the Flood's food source." Phil shook his head.

"Say again, did you just say 'food source'?" Clayton asked.

The video continued, showing little bulbs of feathery flesh scuttling across the ground, an Elite firing at it with it's Plasma Repeater. The little squid creature lurched at the Elite, grasping hold of it's chest. The Elite fought to get the parasite off of it, but the stinger on it's 'head' jabbed into it's prey's chest.

Helpless as the venom entered it's blood, the Elite roared in defiance, it's squad mates rushing over to help it. By that time, however, it was too late. Thinking on it's feet, the leader of the Squad pulled out it's sword, slashing off the arm of the doomed soldier.

The infected Elite convulsed as biomass dribbled out of it's mouth, it's entire right shoulder bulging out of it's armor, it's neck snapping out of place. A trio of feelers poked out of a bulge in the abomination's chest, as the bone from it's severed arm's stub elongated, forming a whip like appendage. Turning on it's team mates, the Combat Form made short work of the Elites, turning on the camera.

"I recovered the video some time after it was recorded. Apparently one of our Marines went in for some recon against the Covenant."

"That shit was scarier than Serapedes, and those things scare the shit out of me!" Cole said, stumbling backwards.

"What's worse though, is they get their name from the vast number of those squids that attack you at once." Josh replied. "You think a pack of Polyps are bad, try taking on some thousand Spores."

"You've made your point." Sam replied.

"Yeah, let's deal with the REAL problem at hand, instead of show and tell, okay?" Baird replied, revving his chainsaw.

A pair of boards covered their path further into the mall, as Baird demolished them with his Lancer's saw.

"Speaking of the Polyps, there you go Baird!" Sam chuckled as they looked up, some hundreds of Polyps scuttled across the rafters above them.

"Yeah great." Baird sighed, turning to Cole. "How are you sure there is gonna be anything here anyway?"

"Survivor's intuition baby!" Cole smirked. "Just gotta trust that the Cole train'll bring you to the Playoffs! WHOO!"

"Should we really be this light hearted?" Kayla asked, tensing. "We might not be alone in here."

"It's alright Kayla." Phil replied. "It's four Spartans, and at least two of the best COGs I've met. Still haven't seen much from Sam or Clayton yet."

"Thanks." Clayton scowled. "First the bacon, now my feelings."

The ground beneath them shuttered as a huge tremor developed beneath their feet. About twenty feet from them, a Stalk ripped up through the earth, a sac of Imulsion fell to the ground, as a metallic Dog rose up from it. The Spartans tensed as the usual orange highlights of the dog like android were now yellow.

"What the hell is THAT?!" Cole train roared, firing his Lancer blindly at it.

"Promethean, Classification: Crawler." Kayla replied.

"Remind me which one here is the robot, her, or the fucking DOG over there?!" Baird spat.

"Promethean Crawlers were built to combat the Flood. But they've been converted to fight Humans now too." Scott replied. "Just shoot the damn thing!"

A red beam appeared out of it's mouth, aimed directly at Clayton Carmine. Diving left, the round barely cleared the soldier's boot, as Clayton took cover behind a pillar.

"BINARY RIFLE! HEAD'S DOWN!" Phil roared as the Spartans instinctively ducked down.

The COG soldiers didn't hesitate, as Josh stood and fired his BR at it's head. Instead of exploding like it normally would have, the dog convulsed.

"They mutate too?!" Phil barked. "How is that even possible, it's not even made of biomass!"

Sure enough, it was mutating. Making a much deeper sounding screech then a normal Crawler, the machine start leaking Imulsion out of it's orifices, becoming completely surrounded in a shell of it. The sphere of Imulsion bloated outwards. The soldiers took no time to hesitate as they opened fired, but their bullets weren't connecting. The Imulsion was absorbing their rounds!

After another brief second, the sphere elongated into a long, flat object, as the liquid returned back to it's host. The Crawler, once formed liked a dog, was now long and thin, in the shape of a centipede. Hardened Imulsion acted as the binding agent which kept the creature together.

Scuttling across the floor, the Crawler started crawling up the wall, as the soldiers let into it. Cole train panicked, which was a rare sight, and backed off.

Lifting it's head off of the ceiling, the Crawler fired a single jet of imulsion based flames at them. Diving to the sides, Carmine was left all to his lonesome, as the creature lunged at him, swallowing him whole.

"OH HELL NAW!" Cole Train cried, firing his Lancer. "Clay ain't dying like Benny did damn it!"

There was a minor revving sound for a second, as Clayton's Lancer's saw blade protruded out of it's skin, working it's way around the beast entirely. Following up with that deep screech, the Crawler glowed yellow, as Carmine jogged back to the others, the machine behind him exploded violently, taking out four empty shelves.

"That's poor customer service." Clayton shook himself clear of the slobber that covered him. "Can we go now?"

"Yeah." Josh replied with a nod. "I'll take point."

----------------------------------------------

The King Raven descended upon them, picking up their crate full of food.

"We really lucked out." Kayla replied. "Who'd have thought that a mall would have just ONE crate of food left?"

"I told you the Cole Train knew his stuff! Hanover's always been good to me."

"Ah great, more nostalgia." Josh replied. "We done here? We'll need to link up with the Admiral at some point."

"Yeah Cole, Hanover's overflowing with Lambent, wanna call it a day?" Sam asked.

"I wanna go back, see if there was Bacon in that crate." Clayton smacked his lips, as Scott lightly slapped him on the back of the head.

Cole shifted for a moment, over looking his squad.

"Well- we still got to check the warehouse." Cole rubbed his feet along the cobblestone. "And- you know... the stadium!"

"Oh god." Baird spat. "You're not going to make this a pilgrimage, are you?"

"Come on now!" Cole spat. "The Warehouse is right up ahead. I know a short-cut."

Following Cole up the road, they cut through some buildings, until they found themselves in a courtyard.

"Warehouse is ahead folks." Cole stopped as the ground quaked beneath them. "Uh oh, STALKS!"

"Let's hope we don't get eaten, yeah?" Clayton replied sarcastically. "I can't believe you guys didn't even help me!"

"That was one time!" Scott replied. "We won't let it happen again.

"Besides, I was too busy cleaning Baird's diaper."

"That was one time! I told you Stranded food gives you dysentery!"

A stalk protruded out of the ground, two packs of Polyps, three Drudges, and a few Lambent Grenadiers popped out. A massive bulge formed on the stalk, as two massive creatures plopped onto the ground. Both the COG and the Spartans cringed for a moment.

One of the beasts stood, it's arm was replaced by a massive curved sword, usually a Butcher's Cleaver. The other's right arm was a giant shield.

"Oh this day just gets better and better!" Josh scoffed. "Now we've got infected Hunters AND Boomers!"

"GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!" The infected Boomer growled as a ball of imulsion formed in it's left hand.

Flinging it upwards, the ball descended upon them in the fashion of a Mortar.

"MORTAR, LOOK OUT!" Phil barked as the Spartans jumped to one side, the COG to the other. "We'll take care of the Hunter! You focus on the Gunker!"

The infected Hunter held the same look as a normal hunter, minus the worms that made it up had swelled considerably. Where there was blue armor, it had now become pure black. Yellow veins flowing through it's worms. It's Fuel Rod weapon glowed a sickly greenish yellow, as the Spartans hefted Hard Light shields. A massive stream of yellow and green plasma shot towards them.

Holding steady, the stream was negated by their shields. Scott, and Kayla flanked around the beast as it roared, preparing yet another blast. However, it's fuel rod didn't charge nearly as long this time, as a spear of green and yellow Plasma arched out towards them. Scott pushed Kayla out of the way, activating his shield at the last possible second. The blast threw him backwards into a car, as the Hunter charged forward, causing the ground beneath it to quake.

Phil and Josh aimed their SAWs, opening fire onto it's back. This only mildly irritated it of course, as it turned and stumbled towards them. Scott stood, as he and Kayla charged the Hunter. Tackling it from behind they stumbled the beast into the Gunker, which shined a brilliant yellow before exploding, like all the rest of the Lambent beasts before it.

"Right then." Sam replied. "That was an efficient way to kill it."

"We're Spartans." Scott smiled. "Efficiency is our trade."

"Alright, let's go talk to the nice people." Cole quipped, heading the group.

"Yeah... can't wait." Baird sighed.

A sniper appeared above the Stranded encampment's wall, peering down his scope, the Spartans tensed as the COG continued to move.

"Damn Lambent." The sniper, who ironically had bad sight, muttered as he took the shot.

The bullet grazed Clayton's helmet as the man growled with frustration.

"GEEZ LOUISE WHAT THE FUCK?!" Clayton roared.

"Boy, the world has it out for you." Josh replied. "You're quite popular."

"Tell that to Benjamin and Anthony." Clayton growled, as Cole and Baird got quiet.

"Hey hold you're fire!" Sam roared, changing the subject. "We're on your side!"

"Sorry!" The sniper replied sheepishly, ducking back down as the gates opened, a single hooded lady stepped out.

"Now isn't this a surprise. The armored wonders turned out to save little old us."

"Don't you people ever try Gratitude?" Baird growled stepping forward. "Just to break up the monotony of sarcasm?"

"It's only fair." Clayton sighed. "You scratched my helmet."

"I apologize for blondie here. Someone stole his teddy when he was little- is everyone alright here?" Sam replied with a smirk.

"Heh, yeah. Thank you for the help, we owe you one," The woman smiled as she glanced over the Spartans with a hint of fear, her eyes barely catching on Cole. "Hey- hey you're him aren't you? Augustus Cole! THE Cole Train! What brings you back to Hanover?"

"HEY! Surprised you remember me!" Cole smirked. "We're just passing through looking for food. If you got anything to trade, the Cole Train, would sure- appreciate that whoo!"

"There he goes again." Josh whispered, as Phil swatted him.

"Haha sure, why don't you guys come on in. We don't have any food, but we might have something else you need." She replied as she placed a hand on her hip.

Cole, Clayton, Scott, Josh, Phil, and Baird looked at one another with wide smirks *well, minus Josh, Phil, and Scott because of their visors.*, while Kayla and Sam slapped themselves in the forehead.

"I meant supplies." The Stranded leader sighed.

"Correction from earlier: First the bacon, then my feelings, now women. This day keeps getting worse."

"Clayton, you've almost died at least five times in the span of two hours, and you're bitching about Bacon, your 'feelings' and losing women. You can't have these things when you're dead." Scott replied.

The group were lead further into the compound, as the door closed behind them. The leader walked them around, and while not much went on, minus people swooning because of Cole, the group found themselves out the back door of the facility, a rather nice sight before them.

On a trolly, numerous blue boxes of ammo were stacked neatly, waiting to be used. Baird's mouth was left agape, as the others all looked at it.

"There you go, all it's missing is a bow."

"This... this is very generous of you ma'am. Thank you so much."

"You saved many lives, Cole Train. Before and during the war. This is all that I could do, but not all I'd LIKE to do." She smiled, then frowned. "My son- he was a big fan of yours. Died of rustlung a few years back."

"I'm sorry to hear that ma'am." Cole frowned. "When this is all over, I'll be there for his funeral. You have my word."

A smile curved on her mouth as she nodded. "I'd like that."

With that, the Leader returned into the compound, as the door shut behind them. The group gathered as much ammo as they could, taking a breather.

"So what's next?" Phil asked, stretching his legs.

"We're going to the Stadium baby!" Cole looked back at the gate, thinking of what the woman said. "An' this time, it ain't just for ol' times sake."

Clayton and Cole Train have become my favourite characters so far.

I get quite a few chuckles.

Manny wrote:Clayton and Cole Train have become my favourite characters so far.

I get quite a few chuckles.

Favorite as in Gears characters, or overall?

I know Phil and Josh kinda lost their luster when Craig and Morgan died. Kayla is all about keeping to the books, and Scott is... Scott.

Blaine isn't as much of a funny boy as he used to be. Darryl has kinda matured as well, as you would assume from his point of view. And Naomi and David have always been kinda serious.

Shad0wChas3r wrote:

Manny wrote:Clayton and Cole Train have become my favourite characters so far.

I get quite a few chuckles.

Favorite as in Gears characters, or overall?

I know Phil and Josh kinda lost their luster when Craig and Morgan died. Kayla is all about keeping to the books, and Scott is... Scott.

Blaine isn't as much of a funny boy as he used to be. Darryl has kinda matured as well, as you would assume from his point of view. And Naomi and David have always been kinda serious.

Overall I'd have to say.

I understand what you mean, but I'm curious, are my characters not interesting anymore? Or is it the personalities of Cole and Carmine you enjoy more?

Shad0wChas3r wrote:I understand what you mean, but I'm curious, are my characters not interesting anymore? Or is it the personalities of Cole and Carmine you enjoy more?

Phil was always the more serious of the two brothers. I like him, but not in the funny way I like Carmine and Cole.

Josh was funnier when he was an ODST hating on Spartans. Mostly because the irony was he was secretly jealous.

Kayla, as you said, sticks to the book. And Scott? I don't know yet. A neutral opinion so far I guess.

Carmine and Cole stand out because they're funny.

Thanks for the feedback. I'll try to get Josh back to his usual funny ways, even if it isn't envy of the Spartans.

I'm not trying to force my characters change just so you'll like them, I just kinda noticed that they were somehow different from how they used to be. Obviously, seeings how Josh and Phil are now Spartan IVs.

However, I'll make it a goal to make them a little more like their classic selves, but not so much that I force you to like them. If you like them, great, if not, I understand .

Update coming soon!

Chapter 19: Old Friends.

"STADIUM JUST AHEAD PEOPLE!" Cole roared as the squad trudged on to the entrance of the building.

Crossing a wooden bridge across the tributary that ran alongside the house of Thrashball, Clayton crouched down beside the iron gate, a single lock on the door.

"Say Baird, you don't happen to have any wire cutters on you, would you?" Clayton asked.

"Ah, sure." Baird smirked cockily, placing his lancer flatly in his hands, as if sarcastically offering it to Carmine.

"The ground is quivering, anyone feel that?" Kayla asked, looking up at the others.

"Yeah, which on this planet, could mean anything." Josh scoffed.

Sure enough, the wooden bridge behind them splintered, as it fell into the raging water, a single stalk burst from the tributary, as a giant ball of Imulsion splashed down in front of them.

The Gunker stood, growling as it did so. Readying it's Cleaver-arm, the Spartans burst into action, as the COG took cover. Kayla's arms and legs quivered as energy burst forth from her suit, a tiny, floating turret appeared above her head, firing small bolts of light at the Gunker.

Josh and Phil provided mobile cover for the COG using their Hardlight shields, while Scott activated a Hologram, his visual copy charging straight towards the Gunker. Furious, the Gunker pooled a glob of explosive Imulsion in his arm, flinging it at the encroaching Spartan. The sword-arm lashed forward with unbelievable stretching ability.

The blade, however, went through the hologram, sticking itself into a jersey barrier. Taping a few buttons on his Tac-Pad, Scott summoned down a single weapon's pod, as a pure red weapon formed around his hand. Aiming it square at the beast's chest, a quad of red balls burst forth, smashing the Gunker directly in the weak spot. More red balls bounced off of the behemoth, further damaging the beast. It's veins glowed a very whitish yellow, as the Gunker exploded, leaving a massive crater in the tributary.

"You mean to tell me we have weapon drops at the ready, and you didn't bother to tell us?!" Baird growled.

"Negative." Kayla replied. "I requested a weapon drop from the Aura of Armaggedon. It takes time for them to get those, especially Forerunner technology at the ready."

"In other words, this was most likely a one time thing. Gunny really needs to get his ass to work up there." Scott scoffed.

"If there is no more interruptions, the Cole Train would like to head inside now baby!" Cole laughed, using his Lancer to cut off the lock.

"Yeah, great. Can't wait." Baird spat.

"In case you guys didn't know, I was a Cougars player. Baird was a Sharks fan- 'cause he didn't know any better. He's still bitchin' about it!"

"Hey, it was the Allfather's trophy, and that was a blind referee. Just sayin'."

"Sounds like you were quite the player Cole." Phil replied.

"Oh he was, saw him myself." A voice called out from the shadows.

"We're Gears, we want no trouble baby!" Cole responded, lowering his weapon. "We're on our way to Centennial Bridge."

"Well, we can take you to our Leader. Course she ain't really fond of Gears. But she might listen to you, Cole Train. C'mon, there are some others that want to meet you."

A girl, no older than eighteen stepped out of the shadows. Walking over to the Cole Train, she offered a hand, as he graciously took it. Leading them around the corner to the front gate, the Spartan's all had to polarize their visors. Before them stood a giant golden statue of Augustus 'Cole Train' Cole, beaming proud before the stands in his most notorious pose. He held the Thrashball in his hands, shoulder tackling what one would assume was a Sharks player to the ground.

"Compensating for something, are we?" Josh scoffed. "Funny how the Sports players get all the fame, but us Spartans don't get jack squat when we return home."

"First you bitch that the Spartans get too much praise, and now that you are one you're bitching that you don't get enough?" Scott shook his head. "That should be illegal."

"No," Clayton retorted. "It should be illegal to tease people with bacon."

"Would ya look at that." Sam smirked, changing the conversation whilst glancing over at Cole. "You're still the hero around here."

"Yeah, isn't that loyalty. They didn't even melt it down for scrap!" Baird scoffed.

"Hey everyone!" The girl shouted, as everyone's attention diverted away from their usual activities. "Look who I found! Little guy needs his home back!"

"Is that Cole?" One of the men asked one of the others.

"Cole Train, is that really you? Oh my god, COLE! What'cha doin' back here?!"

"Hey, you look just like a remember! What, you coming back home or something?"

"Heey! Can't keep me away forever baby! Just makin' sure everything's the way I left it. More or less."

"Yo, you wanna have a beer with us? We brew some pretty good stuff."

"Say yes, say yes, say yes." Clayton silently prayed behind them, as Cole shook his head.

"Thanks but no thanks-" Cole replied.

"-but beer." Clayton sighed, devastated.

"Still on duty. We're looking to do some trading for supplies, got anything?" Cole nodded.

"Better talk to the boss. We can take her to you!"

"I heard from this one that she might not be a fan." Cole said, indicating the young girl.

"Kendra, you get back over here! What have I told you about getting on scouting duty without letting me know!"

"It's alright baby!" Cole replied. "Cole Train would've kept her safe."

"The Boss'd listen to you mang. You're the Cole Train! Whoo Whoo!"

Clayton, Baird, Kayla, Scott, Phil, and Josh looked at one another, as Josh quietly replied.

"Here we go again."

"Hey, the Cole Train don't go whoo whoo. It's WHOOOOOOO!"

The crowd cheered in awe as Cole Train's trademark war cry echoed throughout the stadium.

"Well, I did have ears, once upon a time." Josh grimaced.

The cheering stopped, however, when the ground beneath them rumbled, and the trademark sound of humming filled the air.

"So now our Covenant buddies decided to show up again." Phil tensed. "Alright Spartans. Swap to UNSC weapons."

"Oh my god, there's Lambent in the stadium. A giant stalk just tore through the field, they're everywhe- aghhhhh!"

"Get down, find some cover!" Cole barked, as the fans dispersed, plasma and imulsion explosions riddling the entrances.

"Spartans." Phil clenched his fists. "We take the top path, Cole, you take your guys through the main entrance. If you meet with Covenant down below, we'll cover you."

The Spartans took to the stairs as soon as Phil issued the order, leaving the COG soldiers to ease their way into the bottom door. Phil pulled out his DMR, while Josh brought his BR up. Scott lashed out his SAW, with Kayla using her MA5D. Grasping a Stranded in it's four fingered hand, the Elite plunged it's Energy Sword through the woman's abdomen. Staring into it's harsh eyes with despair, she glanced over to the Spartans, as she stuck a Frag Grenade to it's armor.

"Take care of my daughter." She nodded, glancing over to the girl's hiding place, as the explosive claimed her and the Elite.

Phil lifted a hand, pointing towards Kayla and Scott, he ushered them forward, as he and his brother advanced towards Kendra's location.

"Kendra, are you in there?!" Phil barked inside, as Josh scoffed.

"Of course she is, you fucking dumbass!" Josh laughed, covering his brother from Grunts and Jackals that squeaked by Kayla and Scott.

"Let me reiterate, it's Phil from just a moment ago. I was one of the guys with the Cole Train. Come with us, we'll keep you safe."

Sure enough, the young brunette girl stepped out of the footlocker. Nodding, she lifted a Gnasher shotgun.

"I wanna kill them all." She growled.

"You'll have your chance. But wait until we get you out of here."

Nodding, Kendra followed the Durgin brothers into the main lobby. Lambent Drones, Elites, Drudges, Polyps, Grunts, Jackals, and even Brutes joined the Humans in the fray. Passing Kendra his Lancer, Phil nodded. Standing, he fired five rapid rounds, downing three Grunts, a Jackal, and a shieldless Elite. Josh made short work of the remaining Grunts and Jackals, while the COG and Stranded below brought down the Drudges, Lambent Drones, and Polyps.

Yet again, one of the remaining Drudges grabbed onto one of the Brutes, spewing bubbling imulsion down the beast's throat. The ape like creature convulsed as it's muscle mass increased nearly ten fold. Cole and Baird hadn't been around when Phil and Josh had witnessed Blaine take down one of the Lambent Brutes.

Phil nodded to Scott, who stood, his Incineration Cannon at the ready. Kendra, however, pushed his gun to the side before he could fire.

"There are Stranded down there, they're gonna die!" Kendra barked. "Please don't kill them."

"It'll be quick, better than having that burning liquid in them." Sam quipped, yelling up. "We have no choice."

"There is ALWAYS a choice baby!" Cole growled, charging forward with his normal Lancer.

"Cole, no!" Phil barked.

Cole, however, did not listen, continuing his break neck charge of the Lambent Brute, which laughed mockingly as it slagged Elites, and it's fellow Brutes in half. Revving his Lancer, the Lambent Brute's tentacles lashed outwards, imulsion flowing through them. Sawing them off at the source, the superstar continued his path, as he flipped the gun in his hands.

Throwing it like a javelin, the Lancer stuck itself in the beast's abdomin, sawing it's way up, while Cole produced a grenade. Diving beneath it's legs, the athlete stuck the grenade to it's lower, back. Juking around cover, the Lambent Brute exploded, any Stranded in the vicinity were eviscerated. But the numbers were far fewer than before, thanks to the time Cole had bought them.

The Spartans vaulted from the higher levels to check on their comrade, concerned for his health, as Kendra worked her way down the long way, catching up to the COG, who also ran over.

Cole sputtered from behind his pillar, as he grinned.

"Nobody plays this game better than the Cole Train baby, NO-ONE!"

Phil single handedly helped Cole to his feet, as the group celebrated. The Covenant insurgents had been eliminated, but there was still the Lambent in the stadium itself. Cole led the pack into the locker rooms.

WHOOOOO! Go Cole Train!

Chapter 20: Cole Train in the station.

Cole's POV

The doors to the familiar locker room opened. The overwhelming feeling of nostalgia washed over the Thrashball player, as he glanced around the room. None of the others had known what it had been like to be where he was. He was humble, but he was also the star.

Dust layered the walls of the locker room, as old flyers with the Cougar's face littered the floor. His team-mates had been in a hurry to evacuate the place after the Locust emerged. Sure, he had signed up to the COG to protect his fans, his people. But he never even thought to invite the others to come along. They would've been stubborn at first. But they'd most likely still be alive.

Then he thought again, what did it mean to live, if you had nothing left when the conflict was all over, what did it mean to him, if the war ended. He'd be too old to play his favorite sport again, he'd never be able to do the things he could've done with his career.

Steeping over to the row of lockers just before him, he glanced at Josh and Phil in his peripherals. Josh had most likely made a snide comment, as did Baird, as both Sam and Phil reprimanded their respective burdens. Kendra, Kayla, Carmine, and Scott ebbed away and into the Stadium, as the others let him have his moment. He'd have to be sure to thank them later.

Glancing at locker eighty-three, Cole sighed. Opening it, something filled the back of his mind, and with sudden clarity it all came back to him. He remembered why he had given it all away to be a COG soldier, why he still had a life ahead of him after the war was over, if the war ever ended.

Inside of the locker, his locker. Laid an old helmet, with the words 'Cole Train' emblazoned on the side, the face guard intact. Lifting it with his right hand, he glanced down, and his COG armor was instead replaced by that of his old Thrashball armor. The numbers eighty-three highlighted on his breast-plates. The familiarity of the feel, the weight on his shoulders, the overprotection of the armor from injuries, it all came back to him. Brushing his hand along his short, black hair, he realized he was no longer bald.

Relishing in his memories, he turned on his heels, a giant smile on his face. Jerome Johnson, his right side forward, clasped him on the back.

"Cole Train, you ever gonna let someone else have that ball? Take the day off!"

Strutting his way out of the locker rooms, with his helmet in tow, Cole Train passed by all of his old team-mates. Facing the entrance to the field, he turned to the Cougar's head mounted on the wall. Brushing his free hand on it's snout, the man felt empowered by the feel. A power he hadn't felt in over sixteen years.

Newspapers would have his name in big letter across the front page. Magazines had his trademark pose with his number posted right beside him. His war cry echoing throughout the crowd, he could hear them chanting his name, as he slowly walked out onto the field, the sunlight beating down on his old armor.

Waving to his fans, all went quiet as a single announcer stood at the top of the stands, a microphone in his hands.

"Ladiesssss and Gentlemeeeen. He'ssss Hanover'ssss favoriteee soooon! NUMBER 83, THE COLE TRAIN!"

Placing the helmet on his head, Cole was ready for business. Vaulting over one of the customary covers set in place. Cole landed, as Stranded all around him fled for their lives from the Lambent. Phil, Josh, Scott, Sam, Clayton, Kendra, Kayla, and Baird fought off the larger numbers, as one of the Stranded pointed towards him.

"HELP, THERE'S A GIANT STALK ON THE FIELD!" She cried, pointing to his left. "GET THE BOMB!"

Charging forward with new found energy, Cole saw the bomb located behind one of the goal posts, which had been knocked over during the last big battle. The Drudges between him and the bomb bubbled with excitement as they stumbled towards him. Rushing up to one, he shoved it aside, the force of his charge too much. It exploded beside him.

"Yeah, you're punked ass messed up my sacred turf! Bad idea! I'ma bout to cream some of these bitches!"

Tackling one to the ground, Cole rolled off of it, using his momentum to keep his speed. Vaulting with one leg forward, Cole jumped over the goal post, grabbed the bomb, and turned back to the giant stalk.

More drudges exploded out of the ground, continuing their onslaught towards him. He snickered cockily, as he wrapped his hand around one of their 'throats'. Slamming it into the ground, Cole shoulder bashed the next one. Sliding beneath the last one's legs, Cole planted the bomb on the stalk.

Nostalgia overwhelmed him as the bomb charged itself. Doing his trademark jig, Cole lifted his arms in celebration and roared.

"WHOOOOOOOO!" He cried out into the stands, as the crowd roared.

The visage disappeared, however, as the bomb detonated behind him, blasting him off his feet, his helmet sent flying into the stands.

Everyone's POV

"CRAZY BASTARD!" Phil growled, charging over to Cole, the Lambent invasion finally finished.

The others followed closely behind him, as Sam knelt down beside Cole's still form. The helped him up gently as the super-star gasped for air.

"Are you okay Cole?" Sam asked, as Cole chuckled.

"Haaah! The Train's still got the moves baby!"

"Yep." Josh, Phil, Scott, and Clayton all replied.

"That was a move I first used against the Eagles in the national finals! Ha, -course those bitches didn't explode!"

"Yeah." Baird nodded, sincere. "You still got it buddy. Now let's go sweet talk the Queen of the bums."

"Hold up one second." Cole paused, reaching into his ammo pouch. Grasping the box he had also retrieved from his locker, he plucked his Championship ring out of the box, fixing it to his right finger. "A momento. In case I get home sick again."

Phil gently pat Cole on the back, as they trekked up the stairs into the announcement booth, where they would meet the Leader of the Stranded.

----------------------------------------

"Cole this is Anya! The ship is under attack by Lambent Invasion! Is there a way we can get you back?"

"We sent our bird back with ammo and food. We struck gold son."

"Alright, well we need Baird as soon as possible."

"We'll find a way Anya, Cole out."

Opening the door to the booth, the Stranded inside were everywhere attempting to evacuate before more Lambent showed up. One woman issued commands in a very deep, thick french accent.

"Hey, this is your fault!" She growled, pointing at the group. "Those things would've left us alone if you hadn't showed up!"

"Uh, the correct phrase was; Thank you for stopping the horrible monsters. You're my hero." Josh scoffed. "No prize for you, I'm afraid."

"Shut up you." Phil growled. "Sorry about him, he's cranky. Didn't get his bottle yet today."

"Ma'am, our ship is in trouble and we're looking for a way back. Do you have any transport we can borrow?" Cole asked.

Reaching down to her pockets, the leader flipped Cole Train the bird.

"Here are the keys to my luxury yacht! Look, COG, you're on your own. Get out while you can."

Again the ground shuddered as another giant Stalk pierced through the center of the field. The leader turned on her heels and continued to issue orders.

"Come on, come on! MOVE IT!" She barked. "Everyone downstairs! Open the rear gates! We've got people to evacuate!"

"Leave it to the French to run away." Josh scoffed, as Phil smacked him on the back of the head, hard.

"Our only chance is Centennial Bridge." Sam replied. "Sovereign is gonna pass right underneath it."

"Right." Cole nodded, tapping the lady on the shoulder. "Ma'am, is the cable car to the bridge still working?"

"Yeah, but here is some free advice COG. Forget the bridge. There are Stranded over there that you really don't want to mess with."

"We'll take our chances." Phil nodded. "Thanks."

"Fine, get yourselves killed. It's no skin off my back."

"They seem to know a way out." Baird said, pointing at the fleeing Stranded.

"So do I." Cole replied. "This is my house, afterall."

Rushing over to the door, Cole nodded towards Phil and Josh a pair of  soda machines blocking the door. Pushing them aside, the two Spartans covered the others as they piled into the Elevators.

"Um, what's the maximum limit on these things?" Clayton asked, glancing at Kayla, and Scott, who accompanied him and Sam.

"It'll handle us all." Cole replied. "Have faith."

Chapter 21: Situation F.U.B.A.R.

This is a long one, and while it could easily be separated into two chapters, I couldn't really find a proper part that wouldn't take away for the moment. Thank you for baring with me. I promise this won't be disappointing.

"You did the right thing." Blaine replied. "You ended her suffering, that's all that matters."

"Blaine?" Dom asked. "If something happens to me, promise me you'll look after Marcus?"

"Don't think like that-"

"Please, just promise me."

"I promise, I promise I'm going to keep your ass safe, just as much as I keep him safe."

--------------------------------------------

Captain's Quarters

"A helluva lotta good those guys did." Darryl chuckled, as they passed the corpses of the two Onyx Guardsmen.

"This is the Chairman!" Prescott's voice boomed out of the intercom.

"Great, he needs coffee." Darryl spat.

"I'm trapped in the Captain's Quarters with Lambent and we're both injured!"

"Correction, he needs a band aid." David retorted, holding a finger up.

Blaine ordered his Spartans to breach the door, their heavy metal boots clashed against the doors, smashing them open. Charging in, David, Naomi, Jorge, and Darryl made short work of the ones inside the room, while Blaine, Dom, Jace, Anya, and Marcus cleared the Polyps charging them from the rear.

"Take off!" Prescott growled, clenching his fist. "Why not?! Then get someone else to do it!"

Sighing, Prescott stepped away from Michaelson's still form, as Marcus lowered himself down, placing a few fingers on Michaelson's neck.

"Very well, stand by!" Prescott growled.

"Michaelson's gone." Marcus shook his head, as Blaine shattered the desk with his fist out of frustration.

"Fenix, get to the lower deck. We've got Ravens that need to get airborne."

"Are you injured?" Marcus growled at Prescott.

"Yes, but I-"

"Good, then stay here. You don't move until we get back, understood?!"

"I'll try not to get myself killed, Sergeant."

"Damn straight you won't." Blaine nodded to Darryl, who walked over to Prescott. "Keep your head down, stay safe. That's an order."

"You don't get the righ-" Prescott started, as Darryl gripped the man by the back of the throat and tossed him into the Captain's chair.

"You look tired, have a seat."

"I'm not the conversational type, but when I get back, I expect a nice, long, chat." Marcus threatened, as he ushered everyone else to leave.

Anya walked over to the Chairman, who growled at her presence.

"After we get those Ravens in the air, I'll give you first aid, okay?"

Brushing her off, Anya caught back up to the others, as Darryl stood behind Prescott, his Lancer at the ready.

"What if Prescott tries another disappearing act?" Dom asked.

"He won't." Blaine replied with a smirk. "Darryl makes sure no one gets IN to his target, but he also makes sure his target doesn't get OUT."

-------------------------------------------------

Lower Decks

"KR-70 you're clear for take off!" Marcus barked into the comm.

"Great, let me start the engine and we'll be outta her- WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!"

Before anyone could realize what was happening, a giant tentacle reached over the side of the boat, wrapped itself around the helicopter, and crushed it, dragging it off the boat with it.

"Holy shit, what the hell's that?!" Blaine asked.

"That isn't a Stalk!" Dom replied.

"It's a god damn Leviathan!" Marcus turned to the Spartans. "It's a giant ass fish, give it's tentacle everything you got!"

"Hell yes! Fish fry tonight darling!" David taunted, firing his Lancer at the tentacle, as the others continued their endless stream of ballistics.

Annoyed, the tentacle receded, as Marcus turned to them.

"Anyone at the lift controls?" Marcus barked. "We need a lift to the upper decks!"

"You got it Fenix!" Greg, a Cog that Blaine had talked to earlier in the morning replied.

Everyone piled onto the lift, as it was raised to the upper decks. Dom paused for a second, as he glanced up into the sky, smoke billowed up to the heavens, as Jorge sniffed the air.

"The bloody ships on fire!" Jorge roared.

"Alright Delta, let's get these fires under control!" Marcus barked to his COG soldiers.

"Spartans keep them covered." Blaine barked. "Darryl, what's the status?"

"Squirms worse than a worm on a fishing hook, but he's doing as he's told. Something big is rocking the ship, you didn't happen to trip Jorge, did you?"

Blaine chuckled before responding. "No, but don't ever let him catch you saying shit like that."

"Too late barat." Jorge sighed. "The damage is done."

Three COG, three sprinkler system valves. The Spartans covered the Gears as they turned the wheels, the sprinklers suppressing the fire.

"Hey, get the hell outta there!" Jace yelled to one of the civilians with the balls to put out a gas fire with an extinguisher.

As was expected, the gas fire spread to a propane tank, and the civilian was no more.

"GOD DAMN IT!" Jace roared, as the deck shuddered again.

Suddenly, over the port side of the boat, a giant yellow fish emerged from the water. A row of sharp teeth clamped down on the boat, as Imulsion flowed through it's veins. A single yellow eye popped out of the right side of it's head, while the other eye resembled that of a fish, only yellow.

"It's lambent!" Marcus roared. "Get that bitch off the deck before it sinks Sovereign!"

As if it was listening, the Leviathan lashed out it's tentacles, striking the floor beneath them, as they all cascaded down into engineering. For Blaine, everything went black.

----------------------------------------

The Elevators stopped at the top of the Stadium. The zip-lines were still there, but not the cable cars themselves.

"Well shit." Clayton sighed.

"Uh, anyone afraid of heights?" Cole asked, as Baird and Josh raised their hands.

"You were a fucking Helljumper!" Phil roared at Josh, who shrugged.

"Just because I dropped from orbit doesn't mean it didn't royally scare the shit out of me. You heartless prick!"

Behind them, two Stalk erupted out of the floor beneath them, taking the Elevators with them. Baird gripped the back of his head, as he paced back and forth.

"Er, not anymore. Love heights. Fucking love 'em."

"Well c'mon then!" Sam smiled, tossing everyone a hook from a rack nearby. "The bridge is on the other side."

"Then that's our stop!" Cole replied, pulling his Boltok off of his hip, holding the hook with his left hand, he slid down the rope, the others following his lead.

"WHOOOOO!" He cried, as everyone but the Spartans pulled out their sidearms.

Lambent covered the roofs of the buildings they approached, Cole's perceptive eyes catch a glimpse of some explosives.

"Let's blow these bitches to high hell!"

Everyone unloaded into the explosives, as the Lambent chain reacted all the way down. To Cole, it felt like a home warming display of fireworks. To everyone else, it was a nice change of pace.

"I think I just invented a new sport baby!"

"Yeah, but hopefully not." Baird replied. "We DON'T want glowies, remember?!"

Landing on the bridge, they were unsurprised that cars littered their path every way they turned. Josh, Phil, Scott, and Kayla made that they could continue onwards by moving some cars out of the way.

Beneath them, the old mega bridge shuddered, it's age finally catching up to it.

"Y'know, I'm more nervous about the stability in this bridge than I am of some trigger happy Stranded!" Baird shook his head.

Poking his head off the side, Cole put a finger to his ear as he peered down into the water ahead.

"Cole to Sovereign, Cole to Sovereign, come in Sovereign!" Cole barked, but to no avail. "Damn it, comms. are down and I can't see a damn thing. We NEED to get to the center of this bridge."

"You heard the lady, there are Stranded on this bridge that don't want to share a beer with us. But might share a few pieces of lead to our brain." Josh replied.

"My unique charisma should do the job." As Baird patted his Lancer.

Tapping the tattoos of Anthony and Benjamin on his arms, Clayton approached Baird.

"Yeah, I'll have to lend you some of ours."

Walking their way towards the Stranded's encampment, Phil stopped them for a second.

"Something doesn't feel right here."

"So I'm not the only one that could feel the crosshairs about to here." Baird replied, pointing to his temple.

"Movement, top of the barricade. Stay frosty." Kayla tensed.

"Hello!" Cole yelled. "Knock, Knock?! Anyone home? We need a hand to get back to our- SHIT!"

Bullets filled the air as everyone dove for cover. Sam raised her Longshot sniper rifle, getting a bead on the movement's head.

"Hey." Sam replied grimly, shivers were sent down the back of her neck. "Those aren't Stranded.... their LOCUST!"

"Oh great!" Baird scoffed. "Look who's back in town."

"I was wondering where they got too." Phil replied. "Guess a little bit of familiarity is good every now and again."

"Well, we did flood them outta their tunnels."

In front of the gate, a piece of metal fell down, as a turret consisting of four Assault rifles with bayonets on the front revealed itself. The occupant looked like a Locust, only it's head piece had goggles covering it, and it seemed thinner, almost hungry.

Josh produced a standard issue UNSC frag grenade from his pouch. Pulling the pin, he threw it over cover and into the toll booth where the turret was positioned. There was a satisfying detonation, as the turret was decommissioned.

"Keep the change." Josh grinned.

"Turret to our right!" Kayla barked, as Scott, Kendra, and her took fire at it.

A red laser aimed itself at Clayton's head, as Phil stood, producing a Hardlight shield. A giant round richochet'd off of his shield, the bullet hitting the second turret gunner. The impact was enough to blow the Locust target to pieces.

"ONESHOT!" Baird roared, as Sam took a bead at the Sniper's head.

Phil took cover beside him, gazing at Baird.

"What the hell is a Oneshot?" Josh asked.

"You saw what it did to that turret gunner. That gun is strong enough to blow a Boomer, y'know, those big guys with rocket launchers, to tiny bits of flesh and bone fragments." Baird pointed to Josh. "You should stand up, see if your overshields can withstand it."

"I could throw your bitch ass out there, and you could dance for them." Josh retorted, cracking his knuckles.

"KNOCK IT OFF AND TAKE THEM OUT!" Phil barked, aiming his Hammerburst at the Oneshot sniper.

Once the last of them were finished off, they continued through the main entrance.

"D'you see that Cole. They're using old Lancers." Baird quipped

"Give them A for creativity." Josh replied.

"That isn't creativity. Take a look around."

"It's crappily made. These are the Locust, after all." Phil and Sam replied.

"Actually no. Cole and I went down to the Hollow. They were more organized, things actually looked halfway decent. Their style has become more survivalist in nature. Savage, even."

"Guys, it's the Sovereign! She's under attack!" Clayton roared, pointing over the edge.

Cole looked over the edge, as a giant Leviathan appeared over the side of the giant ship.

"Whew Marcus, that is one big, UGLY motherfucker!"

------------------------------------------------------

"Whew Marcus, that is one big, UGLY motherfucker!" Cole's voice chirped in their comm.

"Cole, are you seeing this?" Marcus replied. "Where's your bird?!"

"We're on the Centennial Bridge overlooking the ship."

"Well, tell Baird to think of a way to get rid of this thing."

"Uh, putting it scientifically? We gotta blow his brains out his ass!" Cole replied. "Is there a way you can lead it to the front of the ship, so's we can give it a head-ache?

"Animals just love me Cole. Stand by."

"It's a miracle that thing didn't kill us." Dom replied, as everyone stood up.

"Cole this is Admiral Blaine, how are my Spartan's doing?"

"Admiral, one of your boys is being a big pain in the arse. But that's okay, Baird and him make a cute couple." a woman's voice answered.

"Blow me." Baird replied.

"Only in your wildest dreams, Blondie."

"Tell Phil to keep Josh outta trouble. First chance I get I'm sending a Pelican to come get you guys outta there. Stay safe folks."

"You got it Captain- er Admiral! We'll keep your guys safe, Cole Train's becomin' a baby sitter. WHOOO!"

"That never gets old." Blaine chuckled, as the group worked their way up the stairs back to the upper deck.

"How are we gonna push that killer fish to the front of the ship?"

"We bring in the Mantis'." Blaine nodded. "I've already made the request from the Aura."

"There might be some Silverbacks upstairs too." Dom replied. "Might be good to use too."

--------------------------------------------------------

"Goddammit, that ship is gonna be twenty-klicks away by the time we cross this bridge!" Clayton grimaced.

"You seem like a glass half-full kind of guy Carmine." Sam replied.

"Buy me a beer when this is over, see for yourself."

"She won't buy you anything." Baird scoffed. "Your name isn't 'Dom'."

"Oooh." Josh grinned. "So you were the girl Dom was looking for, eh?"

Sam slapped Josh across the visor, as everything got really quiet.

"What happened?" Phil asked.

"His wife was captured by the Locust about two weeks after you guys left. What's worse, they tortured and brain-washed her. Essentially, she wasn't there anymore, only a shell of a person. Dom and Marcus found her when they were in the Hollow." Baird replied, clenching his fist. "Needless to say, Dom had to do what was right and... he hasn't been the same since."

"That's horrible." Kayla replied, glaring at Josh. "Good going jackass."

"Shut yer hole, Baird." Sam replied darkly, unlike her usual self. "You're no better than him."

Lowering themselves down onto another platform, there were two paths available.

"Okay, lower decks or catwalk?"

"Sam, Kendra, Phil, and Kayla are with me. Scott, you, Josh, Baird, and Carmine take the lower decks."

"Yeah, that's the only catwalk Sam's ever gonna be on." Baird grinned.

"When this is over, Baird, I'm gonna raise your voice an octave." Sam growled.

Working their ways around their separate walkways, there was little activity amongst the Savage locust. Meeting back up with one another, they found themselves on the last stretch of the bridge towards the center.

There was a whining noise in the air, unlike the Covenant ships. Instead a ball of light shot through the air above them, arching down.

"MORTARS!" Cole barked.

"Will that work Blondie?" Sam asked.

"No, it needs to be higher grade ordinance!" Baird scoffed. "I need a bunch of Tickers. Mortars would only piss that thing off! Trust me, I've killed one of these before."

"Yeah, one!" Sam replied. "You also took out the entire dock, and it was a damn baby! This one is an adult!"

Rushing the Mortar pit, the Spartans made short work of the Locust, as the COG took the Mortars. Planting one onto the sidewalk, Cole twisted the handle as the barrel lowered.

"BARGE!" Baird growled as something that resembled a blimp approached them, only it was breathing.

"Take that bitch out!" Sam barked, as Cole released the Mortar round.

Arching high above the beast, the explosive detonated, multiple rounds splashed along the beast barge's back, causing it to deflate, floating off into the desert in the distance.

"Can I please have my tickers now?"

"Hey Baird, we're looking?" Josh spat. "WE'RE LOOKING!"

"Shut up you two." Phil barked, pointing a little further ahead. "Are those things Tickers?"

"Yeah baby! Good eye son!" Cole Train cheered. "Marcus, what's the sit-rep?"

--------------------------------------------------

"Fan fucking tastic Cole!" Marcus growled as Blaine's Pelican lowered, dropping off a pair of Mantis walkers.

Blaine himself and David hopped into the mechs, while Dom opened a service hatch, two similar mechs as the Mantis' stood at the ready. Only they were shorter and fatter. Marcus and Dom hopped into one Silverback a piece, as they approached the Lambent Leviathan's location on the ship.

"Is Baird ready yet?" Marcus growled. "This thing is eating the fucking ship!"

"We've met a tight spot, hold on baby!" Cole replied.

"God dammit! Tell Baird he's killing a fish, not writing a damn symphony!" Blaine barked. "The eye looks like a weak spot, open fire!"

David and Blaine charged their rocket launchers while they opened fire with their chain guns, the Silverbacks following suit with their chain guns. Unleashing two salvos of rockets towards the Leviathan's eye, it exploded, a giant yellow webbing splashed out of it.

"Ew, that's just nasty!" Jace roared as Polyps seeped out of the hole.

"Just get it off of the deck!" Jorge roared, opening fire with Betsy.

"AIM FOR THE MOUTH PEOPLE, LET'S GO!!" Marcus roared, firing his Silverback rockets in sync with Dom, at the Leviathan's now open mouth.

The Mantis' followed suit, as the Leviathan inched it's way closer to the front of the ship.

"There Cole, one fish in position!" Marcus said. "Let's go!"

"Need more time Marcus!"

"Cole! You're gonna be picking us up in a bucket if you don't get a move on!"

-----------------------------------------

"Find some cover fast, or your ass is gonna be swimming in glowie gravy!" Cole replied, finishing off the last of the Savage Boomers and Drones.

Nodding over to the crate filled with tickers, Kayla and Scott pushed the crate forward.

------------------------------------------

"Yo! Bombs away!"

"Baird's dropping tickers!" Dom roared, as the mech warriors jumped out of their rigs, running for cover.

"What the hell is he thinking, RUN!" Marcus roared.

"WHERE?!" Blaine growled. "That's one big ass explosion, and us Spartans don't really swim!"

"TIME TO LEARN ADMIRAL, LET'S GO!"

Dom, Marcus, Blaine, and David ran towards Anya, Jace, Naomi and Jorge. But one of the Leviathan's bigger tentacles blocked their route, splitting them from each other.

"Hey, I thought you'd enjoy the witty irony of grub on glowie violence!"

"Yeah that's real fucking hilarious!" Blaine roared.

"You're gonna blow up the whole ship genius!" Marcus growled.

"Get clear, JUMP!" Blaine barked, as the four of them jumped over their side of the ship, the other four following suit.

The Leviathan glowed white and yellow, before exploding, taking Sovereign with it.

--------------------------------------------

"You're gonna blow up the whole ship genius!"

Their brief moment of celebration ended as a pair of the Leviathan's tentacles wrapped around the Centennial bridge, crumbling it's support.

Everyone fell to their stomachs, as Cole looked at them all.

"Jump for it!"

"There is a lot us Spartans can do, but swimming ain't one of them!" Scott replied. "We wear a ton of fucking armor!"

"Doesn't matter anyways, we're so deaaaad!" Baird yelled as they slid further down.

Kayla, Scott, Josh, and Phil slammed their hands into the ground, allowing themselves further grip. Reaching out, Kayla took Sam's hand, as she clutched Baird's.

"I bet this is the part you want me to say I always loved you." Baird replied. "But I don't, I really, really don't!"

With that, the bridge shook one last time, as they all lost their hand holds, and fell into the surf below.

Holy shit, I thought Cole died in the last chapter when the bomb went off! Whew...

The Cole Train goes WHOOOOOOOOOOO!

Chapter 22: Washed up.

For the COG, the current pushed and shoved them aside, worse than a blood thirsty Bloodmount during the hunt. For the Spartans, however, they watched it all happen. Dragged down by the immense weight of their suits, they were helpless by every sense of the meaning.

Phil, Josh, Kayla, and Scott stared at the COG, as the current through them further and further away, most likely to shore. At this rate, if they waited any longer, they'd run out of oxygen supply. Pressing a few buttons on his Tac-Com, Phil pointed towards the surface of the water.

Above them, weapon pods jetted through the water, and, thanks to the Spartan's suits dragging them to the bottom, landed right beside them. Splintering open, the weapon pods held mini armor mods ripe for the taking.

"Well." Josh replied. "Congratulations Spartans. This is the first Spartan underwater op. Grab a Jetpack, and let's work our way towards our old pals, yeah?"

Acknowledgement lights filled Phil's visor, as the four Spartans jet forward through the water, leaving behind their hard-light shield mods. It was hard going at first, but after acclimating to the groove of motion, the Spartans were finally able to breach the surface.

Stumbling forward, the Spartans collapsed right next to the COG soldiers they had accompanied. There was a silence for a bit, as all the soldiers relished in their brief victory. Clayton breathed heavily, the only one of them wearing a helmet. Glancing over his shoulder, he shook his head.

"Uh, I think you got it Baird."

"'Got it' was an understatement, Clay." Josh growled. "Admiral Blaine was on that ship, as was many other Spartans. As we said before, SPARTANS DON'T SWIM!"

"What my brother means to say is, you might have just single handedly killed not only Admiral Blaine, but numerous other Spartans. Our friends in the Covenant might be jealous."

"Yet you continue to make jokes about it." Kayla grit her teeth, on her hands and knees. "You guys got each other, but Blaine was MY family."

"If I know the big guy, and trust me, I do." Scott replied. "He's fine. He'll have found a way, just like Phil did."

"Marcus?! Dom? You guys okay?! Speak to me! Where are ya'll?!"

"Yep, that's reassuring. Nice try though Scott." Josh sighed.

"Look sharp people, that isn't search and rescue!" Clay barked, pointing up towards the hill ahead of them.

Ahead of them, a Brumak trudged down the way, heading further down the coast line, towing what appeared to be a catapult along with it.

"Great, you guys got T-REXES?" Josh growled. "The worst we got are Guetta."

"Heh, Guetta vs. Brumak wrestling, I can see it now." Scott chuckled.

"C'mon!" Cole barked. "We gotta go find the others before that freak parade does!"

The Spartans hoisted themselves up, charging along the shore-line in search of the remnants of Sovereign. Armed only with their respective pistols, their rifles and shotguns being swept away by the surf, everyone tensed at the sound of clicking. Checking around the minor wreckage before them, tickers scuttled around, but something was off about them.

"Woah, these guys are new." Baird quipped.

"Congratulations Baird, you made an explosive so massive, Tickers don't even need to be fitted with explosives anymore!" Josh replied sarcastically. "I wouldn't let that thing bite your foot though, might be radioactive."

Instead, however, Clayton approached the Wild Ticker, as it swung it's claws at him. Rather than fuss, he reached down for the Lancer assault rifle beside it. Before he could make contact, however, the Ticker gobbled up the weapon, and scuttled off, leaving nothing but dust in it's wake.

"Revision from earlier-"

"WE GET IT!" Josh growled. "Jesus fucking Christ! When we get some spare time, I'll tell the Aura to send down fresh diapers and bacon!"

Almost as if on cue, the ground beneath them rumbled, as dust plumed into the air, Savage Locust troops burst from the ground, their weapons at the ready.

"What, no E-holes?!" Phil asked.

"We flooded them outta their home, there ain't no way these grub ass-holes can tunnel anymore." Cole replied. "Twenty bucks if you can shoot one outta the air!"

Phil pulled the handle of his pistol, as metal appeared from seemingly no-where, the weapon forming around his hand.

"Well isn't that some sci-fi bullshit." Sam smirked.

Squeezing his hand a few times, bolts of light surged forward, piercing the Locust Drone's think hide, dismembering it's right arm in two or three shots.

"Phil, duck!" Josh barked, as Phil swiveled on his feet, ducking his head.

Holding his palm closed, the weapon's pistons started running overdrive, as a ominous orange glow flowed from the weapon. Pointing it at the Savage Grenadier's face cowl, Phil released the bolt, as it splintered, like a shotgun, into the beast's skull, exploding it in a mixture of bone fragments and brain matter.

The ground shuttered beside Kayla, as a Drone burst from the ground, nearly kicking her in the helmet. Lashing her hands out, she grasped it's ankles, slamming it down in the ground. Before it could try and crawl away, however, she slammed her boot down on it's neck, effectively snapping it's neck.

"Kayla, you okay?" Phil asked, as the Spartan tensed, her fists clenched.

"I'll kill 'em all." She replied darkly, charging into the mini horde of remaining Locust troops.

"She really cared for that Admiral Blaine guy." Kendra said, slightly nervous of the raging war machine.

"It doesn't really help when the entire beach is layered with dead bodies, even if they aren't your own people, it bothers you." Phil nodded. "Poor girl hasn't seen much real action. Most of her training has been in simulation rooms, in controlled spaces. Everything down here has been F.U.B.A.R from the get go."

"And I thought I had problems coping with death." Clayton shook his head.

Without another word, the rest of the group caught up to Kayla, as she made mince meat out of the remaining Grenadier.

Cole turned to face the waterfront, sighing as an explosion riddled the hull of Sovereign.

"Poor ol' lady. Not looking too good."

Breathing in heavily, everyone crowded around Kayla, making sure she was okay. Pausing momentarily, her helmet deconstructed itself as she charged towards the water-front. Confused heads turned to face their comrade. Seeing what she saw, they charged after her, sliding across the sand.

------------------------------------

Things were blurry, and he was sick to his stomach. Never before had he been tossed around this much. Even in combat with Elite Generals, or Hunters, for that matter. The sun flowing in from his visor contributed to his helmet, as did the annoying banter that sounded muffled, not too far away from his location.

He felt himself going out again, as hands planted themselves on his shoulders. When he opened his eyes again, he saw Mendez holding his head under water, as was customary for Spartan recruits. He tried to fight it, but no matter how much he did, there was little he could do to combat the man.

Slamming his head above water, he smashed Mendez straight in the forehead. However, his vision cleared up, and he found Kayla sprawled out on the sand. Beside him were Marcus, Dom, and David. Blaine sighed in relief, everyone had made it off Sovereign in one piece.

"Sorry about that lassie." Blaine said as he helped Kayla off her feet.

Before he could react though, she wrapped her arms around him and brought him in for a brief hug.

"I thought you were dead." Kayla sobbed.

"I'm not goin' anywhere." Blaine replied with a grin, brushing her hair. "You're one of my own, and I protect my own."

Scott, Phil, and Josh approached David, as Scott formed a ball with both of his fists, striking down at the Spartan's chest.

"OW!" David growled, sitting upright, as he punched Scott directly in the helmet. "WAS THAT NECESSARY?!"

"No..." Scott grumbled. "You just weren't moving."

"YOU SHOULD LISTEN FOR BREATHING, YOU MORON!"

"I DIDN'T KNOW, OKAY!"

"SHUT UP, BOTH OF YE!" Blaine barked.

Cole and Carmine flipped Marcus over, as salt water flowed out of the Sergeant's mouth.

"That's it baby, cough it all out."

Marcus rolled on his side, as the rest of the water streamed out onto the ground. Grasping his gut, he reached out towards Dom's still form.

"Dom! Is he okay?"

"C'mon Santiago, breath!" Sam replied, a tear in her eyes, as the bearded man coughed for a moment.

"Damn it!" Dom spat, water flowing out of his mouth too. "Oh god."

"He is now." Sam replied with a cute smile, gazing down at Dom.

"Jorge, Naomi. Can you read me?" Blaine replied, clutching his head.

"Anya, Jace, respond! Come on dammit! ANSWER ME!" Marcus growled.

"We're here barat. With Jace, Anya, and Naomi by the ship. We found Darryl and Prescott, but we're gonna need some help. Otherwise he's not gonna make it."

"I'm sorry, did I just hear Prescott." Cole asked. "Or was that my ol' head injury?"

"Prescott." Baird muttered.

"Prescott." Clayton growled.

"Prescott?" Phil looked around, confused.

"Prescott?" Josh smirked, as Blaine lashed his hand, hard, alongside the back of Josh's helmet.

"Jesus, we got a fuckin' echo in here?!" Blaine barked, his head-ache acting up.

"Prescott's back, Captain Michaelson's dead, and my Father's alive, film at eleven." Marcus replied.

"There is other wounded coming ashore Marcus!" Anya cut in. "We need help with the life-boats here."

"Alright, we're sending Sam and Carmine." Marcus replied.

"-And I'll be sending Scott and Kayla."

"What about me?" Kendra asked.

"Come with us." Sam replied. "We'll keep you safe."

Blaine, Marcus, Dom, Baird, Cole, Josh, Phil, and David watched them head back along the shore. Taking a brief minute, the group caught up after many years.

"So, Admiral huh?" Cole smiled. "You're like the Steam Engine baby, WHOO!"

"Yeah, you get promoted from Captain to Admiral like that." Baird snapped his fingers. "But no-one here's gotten a promotion in... years."

"You forget the COG is disbanded, Baird." Dom. "Rank means almost nothing anymore."

"We went through some tough shit after we left last time. No doubt you guys did as well, but it's understandable why Blaine got his promotion." Phil replied.

"Look, I don't like Prescott either." Marcus replied. "But the longer we stand here and shoot the shit, the quicker he's gonna die, and I need to 'speak' with our old friend."

"DIG!" A voice echoed through the air, as the soldier all turned towards the canyon ahead of them.

The ground in front of them tunneled out, as a tiny worm like object sprung from the ground. Exploding like a grenade, everyone took a step back, as Blaine raised his DMR. Cole, Baird, Josh, and Phil all scooped up any weapons scattered on the beach, as a pair of oddly dressed Boomers stomped ahead of them, roaring loudly.

"Nasty! Those little shits can dig UNDER cover!" Baird exclaimed, as they all charged the pair of Diggers.

Chapter 23: Rusty old Gear.

"Well, this thing'll do." Blaine chuckled, clipping his Lancer to his back.

Hefting the Digger worm Launcher off the ground, he kicked the Digger Boomer's still form. Reaching down towards it's ammo pouch, he lifted four football sized worms, which slept cozily, waiting for launch.

Placing them in his ammo pouch, he met back up with the others. All of them reloaded their weapons, glancing around the bend. A good portion of shipping crates littered the water-front in front of them. In the distance, they could see the muzzle-flash of Jorge, Naomi, Darryl, Anya, and Jace's fire.

The horde of Savage Locust continued to advance on their position, gaining important foot-holds. Blaine glanced around, a flanking maneuver would be somewhat effective, but they'd need much more than seven Assault Rifles and a Digger to take on a mass of that size.

"Hey Admiral!" Cole cheered. "Have a look at this thing!"

David, Blaine, Baird, Dom, Marcus, Phil, and Josh all trotted over to Cole's position, a massive beast was perched there, abandoned by the Locust troops they had just dispatched. It was a bulky creature, it's abysmal maw gaping, its long fangs were easily a foot long, snapping at anyone that got too close to it.

"Ya'll see this damn thing's throat?! It's got a goddamn gibblet!" Cole laughed. "I'ma call this thing a turkey!"

"I don't want to be there on Thanksgiving when THAT is served." Josh sighed.

"Heyy!" David grinned. "This thing is a trebuchet!"

The Spartan stood on a platform at it's back end, the creature becoming rigid and attentive. Twisting the lever in his right hand, the beast turned to the right, a twist on the left made it turn as well.

"Good discovery Cole. Alright David, you rain hell on those Locust, the rest of us'll flank. Phil, Josh, you guys will be his spotters."

"Of course you'd leave me with the big scary beast."

"I remember getting a comm. chat with Cole earlier about your behavior earlier. You're lucky I'm not washing your damn mouth out with soap and sending your ass to bed without dinner." Blaine growled. "Stop your bitching, keep David safe, or you'll have an even BIGGER monster to worry about. Am I clear Spartan?!"

"Yes sir." Josh moaned, as Phil and him stood behind the Siege Beast.

"Look at you!" Baird snickered. "Showing off your dominance to your subordinance. You kinda remind me of Colonel Loomis."

"You're in hot water too. I know being a smart ass if your forte, but I had Spartans on that boat. Your arrogance, and complete and utter ignorance nearly killed me, your fellow squad-mates, and most importantly you killed several able-bodied men today." Blaine barked. "You may have won the battle, but you just made it a hell of a lot harder to win the war. I didn't come back here to die on YOUR Planet, especially to my own allies. Pull a stunt like that again, and I'll feed you to the goddamn Wretches."

"Yep, a lot like Loomis."

"Yo Blaine man, you alright?" Dom asked, pulling Blaine aside while the others moved into position.

"No, I'm not particularly alright. You weren't there when I became a Spartan. My superior, in an attempt to train me to fight for my life, would stick my head underwater, and practically try to drown me."

"Jesus Christ."

"It gets worse though. When I first got a model of this power armor, we were told that underwater ops would be impossible, that we'd be trapped within these suits, slowly waiting down the hours until we ran out of oxygen and drown." Blaine grimaced. "I just relived that entire fucking experience not even ten minutes ago. I don't fear the water, I just sure as hell don't want to DIE in it."

"Baird was just trying to do some good, Admiral." Dom replied. "Part of the reason he acts like that, is because I think he wants some reassurance, that he's scared of the worst possible outcome, and wants to feel appreciated for whatever action he takes. He has the best intentions, and really knows how to dig people out of a tight situation. He just always gets shit on in the end."

"Still, what he did was reckless."

"You're not so cautious yourself, Admiral. Don't let your past control you. You aren't some rigid, rule abiding super soldier. You make the rules, and you are not really that strict, which is what makes you so charismatic. You'd die beside your squad, not sit behind a desk while everyone else dies on the battlefield."

What Dom said made Blaine pause, his training was slowly leaking into him. He was becoming more and more of a hardass as time passed on. Sure, what Baird did was reckless, and yeah, Josh was a jerk, but he shouldn't be so hard on them. They were raising spirits, one sarcastic comment at a time.

Shaking his head, he and Dom moved into position, waiting for the right moment to strike. When that motion came, he gave David the order. Launching a steaming ball at the Locust Horde, it splashed down on their heads, taking numerous of the soldiers out.

"OH MY FUCKING GOD BLAINE!" Josh growled in the comms. "YOU JUST HAD TO CHOOSE THE CATAPULT THAT USES IT'S OWN SHIT FOR AMMO!"

"They're having a shitty day." Phil replied, as Blaine slapped his forehead.

"I don't pay you to tell jokes Phil. You're the normal guy, not the comedian. Keep his ass covered and leave the joking to Josh."

Another ball of fecal matter flew through the air, sailing down and striking a group of six Grenadiers, the weight and velocity of the raining excrement enough to break every bone in their bodies.

"I don't know if this is sick humor, or just sick." Dom replied, legitimately feeling sorry for the Locust troops.

"Well, we always did tell them to 'eat shit and die'." Marcus scoffed. "Now I guess our dreams are really coming true."

"Yeah, should've brought an umbrella. What if one of those balls aren't solidified when it sails over us."

Blaine shook his head, as they all stood, opening fire on the now aware Locust brigade. Another salvo flew overhead splashing down on yet another squad.

"GOBBLE GOBBLE BABY! WHOOOOOOOO!" Cole cheered. "Stank asses getting shit rained down on them. The Cole Train digs it baby!"

Blaine's digger fired, as the worm inside burst into the ground beneath his feet, digging in a straight line down the hillside. Jumping out of the ground at the feet of a Savage Drone, the worm burrowed it's way into the Drone's chest. The beast wriggled with pain as the worm tried to burrow in it's chest cavity, as the timed explosive in the worm's stomach detonated, blasting the entirety of the Drone's torso off of its legs.

"Explosive diarrhea anyone?!" Phil called down to them.

"Phil, I swear to god I will come back there and smack you so hard." Blaine sighed. "Now is not the time for jokes about this!"

"Y'know, I've heard of getting shit on as a term for getting royally ass-kicked. But this is honestly the funniest thing I've seen all day." Darryl spoke in the comm.

"Whose launching that?! It's disgusting!" Naomi barked. "Better not be David. "

"Your husband." Josh laughed uncontrollably.

"Aw c'mon honey!" David replied. "I always wanted a catapult!"

"Sorry to break up this touching moment, but Prescott is DYING!" Anya barked.

The Spartans and COG stopped their laughter, finishing off the rest of the Locust before reuniting down at the waterfront.

Prescott lay there, a giant hole in his armor, blood squirting out at anyone unsuspecting.

"It was terrible." Darryl scoffed. "Son bitch tried to stand after the ship started to rock, fell on a broken pipe. Which reminds me, what exactly caused that?"

"A giant fish." Blaine replied with a sigh.

"Look, I know you're envious of my fisherman skills, but don't josh me like that. What was it."

Blaine placed both of his giant paws on Darryl's shoulders, his helmet disassembling as he glared into Darryl's visor.

"A GIANT- FUCKING- FISH!" Darryl stifled a chuckle, before laughing completely hysterically.

"This planet truly IS fucked. Giant fish?! Are you kidding me?!" Darryl paced around, before looking directly at Blaine again. "It was lambent right? Did you at least say 'smile you sunnova-' before it exploded the ship?"

Before Blaine could speak, however, Josh slowly raised his hand, not able to make eye contact with Blaine. Phil, David, Naomi, Jorge, and Darryl roared with laughter, as the Admiral shook his head.

Meanwhile, Dom held pressure down on Prescott's wound, while Anya tried her best to keep him stable, Marcus walking over to Prescott's side.

"Can you hear me?" Marcus growled.

"I hear you... Sergeant." Prescott replied weakly, one lung collapsed, the other failing. "Wheres that- chat, you promised me."

"Where's my god-damn father?"

"The disc...! Azura!" Prescott coughed, blood spattering his chin.

"-And I'm supposed to know what that means?!"

"-NO!" Prescott replied quickly. "It's a research facility. He's been there. Queen.... Myrrah captured it days ago..."

Marcus clasped Prescott by the scruff of his armor, pulling his face to the old COG Leaders.

"GOD DAMN IT! WHERE'S AZURA." Prescott flinched like that of a little kid that had just been bullied in school.

"Marcus." Anya replied, gently placing a hand on his chest. "Come on."

Prescott produced a small cartridge from his ammo pouch, handing it to Marcus.

"Encryption..." Prescott coughed, his face void of all color. "That old bastard... he'll be.... furious."

With that, Prescott's body shuddered momentarily, before his head rolled to the side, his eyes growing fainter and fainter, his soul passing on.

"He's- he's gone." Anya frowned.

"Good riddance." Blaine scoffed, walking over. "Find out anything interesting?"

"Not much." Anya replied, turning back to Marcus. "Maybe there is more to your father's message. We have Baird here now, we could get some more information. We just need a data reader."

"I think there might be one in one of these crates." Dom replied. "I helped the Steward load these things months ago, I know I saw one kicking in them."

"Is it anything like that console from C.E.C?" Blaine asked.

"Yes." Anya nodded.

"Then leave finding it to me." Blaine nodded, tapping a few keys on his Tac-Pad, a weapon pod splintered in the ground beside him, as he grasped a armor mod. "Spartans, you stay with these guys, we don't want any ambushes from Locust."

"Too late." Baird puffed. "There's a god-damn Brumak coming. Cole, Jace, and I took out a bunch of the infantry, but we're going to need some help."

"Alright then." Blaine growled. "I'll find your data reader, keep me covered and get that thing dispatched before it destroys these containers. If that data reader is destroyed, we stand no chance!"

Everyone split apart, while Blaine used his Promethean vision to scour through the walls of the containers, looking for a machine similar to the one his mission camera had recorded in C.E.C. Making it his priority target, the vision would highlight the item red when he found it.

In the distance, he could hear gunfire and the roars of something big. He didn't know what a Brumak was, but it sounded big, like a dinosaur, and the ensuing explosions meant it probably had rockets available. The ground beneath his quaked with the creatures motions.

Glancing over in the direction of the others, a giant plume of fire erupted, nearly blinding him for a brief thirty seconds. To him, it reminded him of a nuclear explosion, only not radioactive. Returning to his objective, he scanned the final container, the Promethean vision highlighting the data-reader.

Punching his fist through the metal, Blaine tore himself a Spartan sized hole. Hefting the machine, he dragged it out into the sand, hooking up the cord to an output on his thigh.

The other returned, as he pointed towards it. Baird set immediately to work with the message to Marcus.

---------------------------------------------
Sam, Kendra, Scott, Clayton, and Kayla joined the group, just as Baird finished tinkering with the data reader.

"This is all I could recover Marcus." Baird replied, backing off.

Blaine placed a hand on his shoulder, looking into the blonde genius' blue eyes.

"Well done Baird, you did good."

"Thanks, you over-sized robot." Baird joked, walking away.

"I've been trying to contact you for years." Adam Fenix continued. "I've been held and working at Azura, ever since Prescott abducted me-."

"Keep your mind about the Imulsion counter-measure-." Adam continued. "That's all that's important-"

"-at Azura, ever since Prescott abducted me at the estate-"

"Prescott abducted me- Prescott abducted me- Prescott abducted me-"

Blaine stared at Marcus for a time, as Dom clenched his fists in fury.

"FUCKING PRESCOTT!" Marcus roared. "GOD DAMN HIM!"

Slamming his fist down on the monitor, the video frizted out completely.

"I ROTTED IN THE SLAB FOR FIFTEEN YEARS BECAUSE PRESCOTT NEEDED MY FATHER TO HOLD HIS FUCKING HAND?!!" Marcus vented. "FIFTEEN YEARS I THOUGHT HE WAS DEAD, GOT COURT-MARSHALLED, AND ROTTED IN THAT FUCKING HELL HOLE, AND FOR WHAT?!"

Marcus continued to breath angrily, Baird walked forward, completely serious.

"So... what do we do now?"

"Now we go see Hoffman." Marcus sighed, looking over at Blaine.

"Oh this'll be fun." Blaine shook his head, unplugging the cord from his output.

"Sam, you're from Anvil Gate. What's the quickest route?" Marcus asked.

"Across the Deadlands." Sam pointed to the desert in the distance. "It's going to be a bit rough, but I can take ya straight there if ya like?"

"Just give us directions, Sam." Marcus grunted. "You, Carmine, Kendra, and Anya will stay here and supervise the salvage and treat the wounded."

"Same with Kayla, Scott, Jorge, and Naomi." Blaine cut in.

"C'mon Delta." Marcus said to Dom, Cole, and Baird. "We got a long walk ahead of us."

"You guys will join us at Anvil gate when all is set, alright?" Blaine replied to the guys staying behind. "Have Jorge call for some troop transport Warthogs. See you Spartans soon."