Chapter 8 NAME "Shit Happens" Part 3

(Dormii)
Not if you knew what they did to me, would you say that. But it's unimportant. Let's focus on Haven first.

[Note: The Prowler is currently entering the space-region of 'The Point of No Return'.]


The personnel aboard the Prowler were quiet folk. They seldom spoke but went about their duties without the slightest err. I was most shocked by this. They all walked in the same manner, they even did other trivial things the same, such as the wringing of the hands when an anomaly popped up on screen. I observed them in a most sullen-like manner, for they certainly brought no misgivings into their job for ONI or the UNSC. They barred me from the Control room, but I was free to roam the rest of the ship. Every cell at ONI has it's own attributes. I concluded that the cell running this operation was particularly partial to silence. Or perhaps they didn't want the covenant picking up on their chatter. That seemed a very likely scenario.

I traversed the halls of the ship remembering the details of all that I passed. We had been in slip-space for about 146 hours. Sometimes we had to do mini-jumps of only 1-3 hours, I stopped getting in the cryogenic tubes for slip-space, as I believed I no longer need to get in one. I was right, of course, but it was an eery feeling, being alone on a ship, no lab to distract me. Of course, during this time I went into the control room, there was nothing special about it, it was a control room. No coordinates were to be found on the screens, which made sense, we we in a slip-space jump. I left the room just as I had found it. I awaited the arrival out of slip-space through meditation. Meditation made the time seem to fly by, when I came out of my meditative state not only had we arrived at the location they had been planning to get to, but that jump was actually longer than I expected. We had been in slip-space for more than a weeks time, I hadn't realized how long it had been until I 'checked'. I could feel the area around me, time had progressed, even if these humans had not aged.

Time is a funny thing. I asked a ship-mate where we were headed. He looked at the captain, who had been passing by, and the captain replied, "The Point of No Return." I believe he was expecting me to know the name of the ship. I didn't, but I didn't let him know, or show it. Sounded like a name a pirate would give his ship. or a Jackal. Jackal pirates were interesting, but that is a subject of another matter. We approached the ship slowly, I could feel it's mass closing in slowly. A couple meters a second. It would be a few hours before we arrived.

=He lays on the bed=
=Still within his coma=

-Zayne's realm-

Draco-Well...come on...

=He coughs=

Draco-If I am...going to die...I am taking you...

=Zayne laughs=
=He takes a step forward=

Zayne-You die in here. I take over.

Draco-Then. I will continue to fight here.

Zayne-You mean it!? =He smiles= Yay. I finally have someone to play with.

=Draco staggers forward=

=The Eirav Wing comes out of slipspace over the grassland planet. Xazhi pilots it down to the surface. He gets his armor fully on, and heads out for what appears to be a nearby base. After identifying it as UNSC, he decides to approach. To his surprise, he was welcomed into the camp. He talked with the man in charge about what had happened recently, and was told of how the UNSC Flying Fortress went missing. He asked about the purpose of the base. He was told that it was to be a trade port between the UNSC and their outer colonies, and that they had signed a peace agreement with the Trophaeum and agreed to share the planet. He asked about a specific group of Spartans, and was told that they hadnt been heard from since around the time the Trophaeum had left, and it was assumed that they went with it. He stood and shook the captain's hand before leaving the camp and heading back to the Eirav Wing, where he sent a message to Delta=

Quote :

>Private Message
Recipient: X No Delta
From: Xazhi
Subject: Report 1
--------------------------
I have learned that there was recent activity between the UNSC and Trophaeum on the grassland planet, and that they had signed a treaty with eachother. The Spartans we seek have gone missing, and it was assumed that they left with the Trophaeum. I believe that what we seek may lie on Olympus.

>End of report<

=Grace begins to monitor his mental activity=

Grace-Hmm...mental activity has gone down...

Lynn-Is that bad?

Grace-For him, yeah.

Lynn-Hmm...

=She sighs, placing her hand on his=

-Zayne's realm-

=The walk seemed endless, the pain he was feeling would not cease=

Zayne-Someones about to pass out. =laughs= Perfect.

Draco-Not...going...to happen...

=Zayne walks up to him=

Zayne-Cmon, drop.

=He activates the blade. Stabbing him=

Draco-You...drop...

=The end of the blade pierces through to the other side=

(Molly)
=Three hours later, we dropped out of slip-space in orbit over Haven. Immediately, we were hailed, and Silver's voice crackled over the speakers=

(Silver Light)
Where is the Inheritor? My scanners show that he is not on board the ship.

(Molly)
Silver, Jason was kidnapped. It's a long sto--

(Argo)
=I cut Molly off=
Allow me to explain. It will be faster.

=I relayed the information to Silver Light=

(Silver Light)
Ah, I see. So, I suppose this mean we must marshal the fleet?

(Molly)
Yeah. Alert the fleet, and have them assemble in orbit. We're going to wait for these guys.

(Silver Light)
Done. I assume that we are not going to outright destroy these newcomers?

(Molly)
No, we still need to rescue Jason, and we have a good idea where he is.

(Dormii)
=i stood up in the middle of the messhall, after feeling the ship exit Slipspace, and started practicing a few of my more basic combos=

Zayne-It hurts. So good. =He laughs as he steps back from the blade= Hmm...

=He feels the wound with his hands, blood covering his hands=

Zayne-That, was not nice.

=He readies his blade=

Draco-Come on then

=He swipes the blade at him=
=Zayne activates his, blocking the attack=

=Draco's eyes flutter as he struggles to hold on=
=He faints=

=Once Silver Light sent the alert to the Council and the fleet, they immediately mobilized. Within a half hour, the whole fleet massed in orbit over Haven, though it was only the twenty ships, with the Silver Hawk at the head of the battlegroup=

(Silver Light)
Fleet assembled. May I ask what orders you have?

(Miranda)
=I was already on the elevator to the bridge when I commed Silver=
Silver, our target is a stealth ship, called the Point of No Return. We cannot destroy it: Jason could be aboard. Have the fleet attack any other ships that may arrive, but leave the Point of No Return alone. If they try to escape, disable them if you have to, but we're going to try and board them, and get Jason out.

--Point of No Return. Still in Slip-Space--

(Jason)
=they left me on that table (was it even a table? it was vertical) while they made the jump. It was dark in the room, and I knew it was empty. So, imagine my surprise when I heard a voice. A very familiar, child's voice=

*Adam*
So, I guess they just left you hanging?
=Adam, the kid I had shot in the head, stepped out of the shadows of a dark corner. Oh, and he was also Miranda's brother=

(Jason)
=I groaned=
Aww man, I thought I was rid of you.

*Adam*
You were. But I guess being tortured like this finally drove you to the point of insanity.

(Jason)
That really does not make me feel any better.

=The eyes open=
=Not his own=
=Eyes of the devil=
=Eyes of evil=

=Lynn had fallen asleep=
=Grace was away=

=He smiles, quietly removing her hand=

Hmm...Ill make yours. Nice and fast.

=His smiles grows=
=He takes the sunglasses from the table and puts them on=

=He cracks his knuckles and neck=

Ah.

*Adam*
=he walked closer to me=
So, been a long time since we talked. Last time, we parted on very good terms.

(Jason)
I knew you weren't a ghost.

*Adam*
A ghost? Please. Hallucinations are much more fun. And best of all, they speak the truth about you.

(Jason)
Well, isn't that good to know. So, what are you here for?

=He looks at her sleeping figure=
=Taking a scalpel from the medical tray=

Its gonna be nice.

=He walks slowly to her=
=She stirs, but he continues walking=

=Feeling the end=
=He gets to her and slides the blade portion under her neck=

=He begins to tremble=

Draco-Fuck...off...

=His hand retreats from her neck, laying the scalpel on the table=

Zayne-What.

=The pelican lands in the Night's Calm hangar bay. The doors to the pelican opens and Torres and the ODST emerge from it=

Welcome back sir. I hope all went well.

It did Tiberus. What is the status with the ship. It seems to have died a little outside.

At the moment sir, we have been able to drive back the opposing forces. Uh excuse me sir. Where is the one you rescued.

When we regrouped with Lance and the others, after some heavy resistance. We traveled back using a pelican to a safe are where we dropped him off, safe and sound. Everything went well, beside we have a more daunting matter at hand. ONI has given us our next mission. We are to take off soon.

I have just received the data on it. Heading as soon as we are ready.

Understood. I will be getting some shut-eye wake me up when we arrive.

Draco-Place one single finger on her. We die.

Zayne-That is funny, you wouldnt.

Draco-I will sacrifice myself to let her live

Zayne-Just like you would sacrifice yourself for Ash to not be harmed

Draco-Shut. Up.

=He had managed to take some control. He begins walking out of the medbay=

=We start our search, looking through the not so obvious places=

Well, now I know one thing...he isn't hiding in plain sight, well...not yet at least

=I find a spot to sit and think=

Where the hell is this guy?

= I look at his profile again=

Come on out, you sneaky little fox...come out and play

= I look up from the picture and I see someone pass by=

No need to pay attention to me, not at all...wait a minute

=I do a double take=

Is that the rat I'm looking for?

@Diana *Tell me you got a good look at the guy who passed me.*

Diana: *I did. Face looked like the man you're chasing.*

@Diana *Was it a match?*

Diana:*Wait a sec. Got it. 100% match...that's your boy.*

@Diana *Now we wait to get him. We let him get comfortable, then we strike.*

= I chamber a round into both my pistol and my sniper rifle=

For those 'just in case' moments...

= I grin, knowing this man's time is short=

Zayne-I want blood. She's just sitting there. Sleeping. The perfect target

Draco-I repeat. Fuck you.

Zayne-You shouldn't say such things.

=He exits the medbay, half staggering=

Draco-I do not care. Fuck you.

Zayne-I was going to make it fast this time. Next time. I will make it slow and painful. Making sure that you are not in the picture.

=He feels a pull as Zayne exchanges control=

I am not stable..

=He looks back to the medbay=

I am so sorry, Lynn.

=He goes back into the medbay, standing over her=
=He picks her up and heads out to their room=
=She stirs a bit, but quickly returns to her sleep=
=They arrive and he pushes the door open=
=He feels another episode begin to go off, quickly placing her on the bed=

Night...Lynn...

=He goes for his pills=
=Failing to get them in time=
=He drops and begins to go into convulsions=

(Dormii)
=I kept practicing my combos, waiting until I was needed=

(Lana)
=I'm currently eating with Kurbis in the Trophaeum's messhall. Things may or may not be getting a bit heavy. It was hard to tell under all the giggles and kissing=

(Dylon)
=the upgrades to the remaining Longswords and Pelicans were still under way. It was hard work adding extra layers of armor and ammo. Well, hard, yet boring=
If my brother heard me think like that, he'd make a totally immature joke...

=The episode had stopped=
=Lynn was still asleep as he got up and checked the clock=

Hmm...

=He looks to her sleeping form under the blankets=

I cannot risk harming you, but either way I handle this. I will.

=A few tears escape=

If I break up with you again. You will be harmed. If I stay with you. You may be harmed. This time. I dont think I can protect you...

=He slams his left fist into his head=

What do I do...

Scythe:

just another great day huh honey?

Tar:

tch, for you guys maybe...


good to be back!

=He shakes his head=
=He goes up to her and pulls the covers up a little further=
=Placing a kiss on her forehead=

=He heads out to the messhall=

Zayne-Tick. Tock. Time is ticking away

=He looks down, still walking=
=He enters the messhall and goes over to the counter=

=His mind running so fast; he can barely think about food=

=The Eirav Wing arrives over Olympus. Xazhi pilots it down to the surface, near a small town/village. He departs from his small vessel and heads toward the town=

(Lana)
=i giggle some more=
Yes it is...

=i kiss him again and hold him close, extremely happy for a reason I can't figure out=

(Silver Light)
=I monitored Haven's defenses, including the sensors. A small group of ships was nearing Haven through slip-space, ten minutes out. I alerted both the fleet, and the Serenity=

*Adam*
What am I here for? To be honest, I'm probably your guilty conscience. After all, you did just give up Haven's location.

(Jason)
In case you forgot, I was under torture. They put a fucking collar on me, and set my nerves on fire!

=i kiss her forehead=

i love you...



(be on tomorrow, i'm fooling around with some mods)

*Adam*
And when has pain ever stopped you? You kept fighting most of your old team, after sustaining injuries that would have crippled most people. You kept fighting, after you shot me, in the head. Sure, you may have drank yourself to sleep for a month, but you never let that stop you. But now? Now, you've endured maybe a day's worth of torture, and you're just giving up.

(Jason)
What do you suggest I do, huh? I'm chained up, surrounded by enemies, four of whom took me down without breaking a sweat. What the fuck do you expect me to do?

*Adam*
=his form changed. He grew, and I recognized who he looked like: me, before I had found Haven=

"I've lived in darkness for so long, that it's all I've known. Now, I've found my light, and my world's not so dark anymore."
=He changed back to his child form=

You once said, that you'd die for her. You always thought of her, when you were at your lowest, darkest day.
=he stepped closer to me=

Find your light Jason. Find your reason to fight. To live.
=and just like that, he faded=

(Dormii)
=i kept practicing, pushing myself to do more. I stopped and immediately started doing pushups. I counted out loud as I dropped and rose from the floor=
1....2....3....4....5....6....

=His arm begins to shake=
=Feeling another one=

=He focuses on Lynn=
=Nothing=

Why...

=His arm begins to stop shaking=
=He turns away from the food and goes over to a table=

=He sees other people, but does not make a connection to who they are=
=His mind is slowly slipping from him=

=Destroying himself=

(Silver Light)
=I hailed the fleet and the Serenity=
Attention. Enemy fleet will be exiting slip-space in 60 seconds. We are free to engage any ships that fire on us, however, the small ship known as Point of No Return, is to be left unharmed. They have a hostage onboard, and a team is already set to retrieve him.


(Miranda)
=I was on the bridge with Molly. She had moved the ship close to ONI's expected arrival area, and the stealth systems were already active=


=60 seconds later, ONI's small little group of ships exited slip-space, the Point of No Return at the rear=

=Parangosky stood on the bridge of the Point of No Return (PNR), and gazed at Haven through the view screen. She also saw the ships that had massed in front of her small battlegroup, and they were neither Human, Covenant, or Forerunner. Of course, they could have been the ships that the Humans on Haven built. Either way, they were an obstacle, and they had to be removed=

*Parangosky*
Have the others open fire on those ships.

*Comm Officer*
But, aren't they UNSC colonists?

*Parangosky*
Not anymore. They had the choice to return to us, and they refused. They had the opportunity to bring the UNSC here, and they let it go. As far as I'm concerned, they're traitors, and they will be dealt with accordingly.
=she walked over to the comm station, and hailed the other ships=

Open fire.

(Dormii)
=i commed the bridge, still exercising=
Anything happening?

(Miranda)
=I watched as the UNSC ships, destroyers, frigates, and corvettes, all opened fire on Haven's fleet=
The UNSC just opened fire on Haven's fleet. We're going to try and get close to the PNR. Silver located it.

(Molly)
=as Miranda spoke, I piloted the Serenity closer to the ship at the back of the UNSC. I almost didn't see it, it was as black as space=

(Dormii)
=i got up and walked over to an airlock, slowing my heart rate with slow, deep breaths and focusing=
Lemme know when we get close. I'll try to board it.

(Miranda)
=I was already heading for the airlock. I had my armor on, and my SMG was slung over my shoulder=
I'm coming with you.

(Molly)
=I got us alongside the PNR, and managed to align the airlock with one from the PNR=
Alright, we're good to go.

(Dormii)
=i waited for Miranda before stepping into the airlock=
You sure? I might not be able to control myself if I lose it.

(Miranda)
These guys kidnapped my fiancee, and I'm not going to sit in some ship, waiting to hear if he's okay. I'm going with you, end of story. And if you do go berserk, then I'll know which direction to run in.

(Jason)
=I dimly heard a clanging sound, like a ship attaching itself to the PNR. I felt hope=

(Dormii)
Okay, don't say I didn't warn you.

=i opened that airlock and ran into the ship. I immediately started hacking into the ship's network, trying to find Jason=

(Argo)
=while Miranda and Dormii were busy breaking into the PNR, I contacted Silver Light=
Silver Light, I have a request.

(Silver Light)
What do you need?

(Argo)
Can you hack into the PNR systems? Specifically their files?

(Silver Light)
I'd have to plug myself in through your ship.

(Argo)
=I opened the door for him=
Done. Just mine their data archives, and copy it all. Then, delete the originals on their ship.

(Silver Light)
=I went through the connection, and began my own hack of the ships archives. It didn't take me long, they were very.....crude, and primitive=

(Dormii)
=I managed to get into the UNSC servers just as everything was deleted=
Damn, looks like they deleted their files. I can't find Jason.

(Argo)
=it took me a moment before I realized that by deleting the files, I had robbed Dormii any chance of finding Jason's location=
Silver, do those files show anything on where Jason is being held?

(Silver Light)
Yes. He is being held in th--

(Argo)
Don't tell me. Send the information to Dormii and Miranda. I'll patch you to them.
=I patched Silver Light to Dormii and Miranda=

(Dormii)
=i held up my hand when I saw a new comm line appear on my HUD=
Wait one.

=i patched into it=
This is Dormii.

(Silver Light)
=instead of saying a thing, I sent the location of the Inheritor to his friends=

(Miranda)
I just got info on where Jason is. Let's move.
=I moved forward, slowly with my SMG held up=


*Parangosky*
What the hell just happened?

*Officer*
Our files just got erased. We're also detecting a small ship docked with us.

*Parangosky*
Shit. Have security teams mass near Jason's holding cell.



=as all this went on, the battle over Haven was waged. The UNSC's opening salvo of MAC rounds bounced off the shields of Haven's fleet. They returned fire, a mix of smaller MAC rounds, and plasma beams crossing the gap in seconds. Three frigates were destroyed, while one destroyer took severe damage. At the same time, the fleet deployed their fighters=

(Dormii)
=i nodded and activated my two arm blades, the one integrated into my right arm and the plasma blade on my left wrist, given to me from Senox. I kept them low and ready. I followed behind Miranda, keeping an eye behind us=

=Garuda Team was assigned to the security team outside the holding cells, but they didn't mass with the others. Michael sent Jane ahead to intercept the intruders, while he and Zoe stayed with the security team, along with Alan, seeing as there was not much use for a sniper on a ship=

(Miranda)
Okay, we just have to go through here. According to the schematics, it's the mess hall or something.
=I entered the room, and saw a giant inside. He was a Spartan, wearing massive armor, and he hefted a Gravity Hammer=

*Jane*
Howdy.
=he charged at Dormii and Miranda=

(Dormii)
=i, as gently as I could, shoved Miranda out of the way=
Stay back!

=i ran at the Spartan, careful of the hammer, and sent a blade at one of his legs, hoping to at least knock it from under him/her=

*Jane*
=he saw the blade, and made a small jump, avoiding it. He spun, and brought the Hammer down=

(Miranda)
=I didn't even say a word. As soon as I regained my balance, I aimed my gun, and fired. The rounds didn't penetrate, but they sure as hell distracted the guy=

(Dormii)
=i deflected the hammer as best I could to the side, but it still knocked me over. I quickly stood up and faced him=

Not bad. Most would be dead by now.

=i silently started a wireless hack of his armor systems=

*Jane*
=The armor's systems detected the hack, and its defenses kicked in=
Sorry about that, Dormii Fortuni. But me and the rest of my teams armor was made to combat your tactics and weapons.
=I reached out and grabbed him, lifting him off the floor=

After all, we wouldn't have made such good Spartan hunters if we couldn't counter you.
=I threw him=

(Dormii)
=i impacted the wall and rolled up into a staggering stance=
Spartans hunting Spartans. What next, Spartan baseball? Little more than tools under ONI and the UNSC.