The Shadowy Past of Matthew Davis, Spartan

Eighteen years earlier, after augmentation...

=I look at myself in a mirror, dressed in my uniform=

So this is me...I still don't look half bad for a supersoldier

=I look around and see my new teammates, and smile with pride=

There's Nick on heavy weapons, Josh and Joey as my CQC guys, Sakura as our resident vehicle specialist, Dan--my second in command--on comms, Alexis as my scout, and myself in command--and the team marksman. Couldn't have asked for a better bunch of Spartans than my team here

=The ship commander comes in=

Me:=authoritative= Attention, Officer on deck!

=My team snaps to attention=

=We see an ONI officer with him as well=

Sooooo, my first mission with Gold Team is a spook job. Wonderful.....

Captain: At ease, Gold Team. May I introduce your new ONI liason on the ship, Commander Mays.

Mays: Pleasure to meet you, Spartans. I'll breif you on your first mission in half an hour. No later.

=Mays strolls out of the room=

Captain: Well, seeing as you're getting aquainted with your quarters, I'll see myself out.

=The Captain walks out=

Nick: Well.....That was interesting, to say the least.

Joey: It shouldn't be all that suprising ONI is here. We are ONI's pet project, and they're holding the leash.

Josh: Don't put it that way. It makes sound like we're mindless robots. Which we're not.

Me: Cool it, you three. Last thing I want is for our first time as a formal team to start bickering.

J,J, & N: Sorry, sir.

Alexis: We still have to get used to you being a commander, sir. It'll be hard, and the enemy won't be going easy.

Sakura: Yeah. It'll be live rounds, real conditions, and real risks out there. So, we have reason to be concerned...sir.

Dan: Just remember, boss. Whatever goes wrong, we got your back.

=I smile and shake hands=

Me: Thanks guys. Now, let's go see what ONI has in store for us today.

All: Yes, sir!

=We head out of our quarters and head to our mission breifing=

Here we go...showtime

To be continued...

=My Squad and I make it to the briefing room=

Wait on Commander Mays. But don't draw attention.

=I look at Nick the instant I finish that remark=

Nick: I'll keep my opinion I check, sir.

Good. I thank you for your restraint.

=Commander Mays enters the room=

Attention, officer on deck!

=The squad snaps to attention=

Mays: At ease, Spartans. As I'm sure you know this by now, the Covenant keeps kicking our asses in our naval engagements and the top brass would like to trim down the casualty lists. To do this, the brass wants to hit the Covenant where it hurts; and sending convetional Marine force, or even ODSTs is suicide. Which is where you come in Spartans. You have the armor,tech and training that these guys just don't have.

=I raise my hand=

What exactly is our mission, sir?

Mays: =Starts up the holoprojector= ONI has gleaned from recent intel that the Covenant have a forward staging area in what was the Charbidys system. We have tried to find out whats happened, but our forward scouts have encountered heavy Covenant resistance in that area. Shining Moon?

=An A.I., with a Native American appearance, appears on cue=

Shining Moon: Yes commander. One of our ships, the cruiser Lancaster was destroyed on patrol in that sector. We can assume that the Covenant found it and summarily destroyed it. All hands were lost.

=The A.I. then vanishes=

Mays: Your mission is to destroy a groundside staging area on Charbidys VIII, and gather any useful intel as well. Is that understood Spartans?

All: Yes, sir!

Mays: Your mission starts in 30 minutes. Dissmissed.

=We salute and head out for our first team op=

=Debreifing Room, UNSC Destroyer Waterloo=

Mays: (Irate) Captain, Do you have any idea how much trouble you are in?!?

(composed) Slightly, sir.

Mays: ONI is going to have your ass, Captain. They'll have your head.

We accopmlished part of the objectives, sir. I just wanted to have at least a slight victory.

Mays: (tired) But at what expense, Captain. At what expense.

At ANY expense, sir. There were Brutes at the facility when we hit it, and I couldn't pull out without a large amount of risk during an exfil.

Mays: Tell that to your board of inquiry then, Captain. But ONI and the Admiralty will have your head.

=Mays then leaves me and I head into the room where I was to have my trial=

=I enter the room and am surprised at the amount of top military brass here=

Hood, Stanforth, Parangosky, Ackerson...I'm going to my crucifixion

=I give a sharp salute, acknowleged only by Hood=

Parangosky: (Glowering) You know why you're here, Captain?

Vaguely, ma'am.

Ackerson: You failed to follow orders, even after you asked to pull out. Leaving a facility like that intact...what were you thinking, Captain?!?

I had to use the explosives to take out the Brutes assaulting the facility, sir. I was trying to keep my Spartans alive, sir.

Ackerson: (Under his breath) Typical Spartan...

=Stanforth shoots Ackerson a look, shutting Ackerson up=

Parangosky: What Ackerson was trying to get you to understand, captain, is that there is a facility with hugely classified data still intact, and that what you did has severly compromised that intel. Am I clear on that, Captain?

Crystal clear, ma'am.

Parangosky: Ending on that...You also defied strict operational orders to pull out if the facility was already compromised. You remember those orders, yes?

To a 'T', ma'am.

Ackerson: Then why in the hell did you continue despite repeated orders for you to pull back?

(Resolved) I believed that the op was still somewhat salvageable, sir.

=I stare hard at Ackerson, unfased by his penetrating glare=

I'm going to have my head on a pike...

Stanforth: Son...even with the Elite alliance, the fact remains that you defied orders, and we can't make that encouraged as a positive idea in the UNSC.

=I'm then sent to a waiting room to await their decision=

=Wallace then pops up on the holotank next to my seat=

Wallace: They're going to want your head, Matt.

Spare me that fact, Wallace. ONI wants my head on a pike.

Wallace: I can't image what your punishment will be.

=I shudder slightly= Don't give me any unplesant image.

=And aide pops in and Wallace dissapears=

Aide: The board has their decision, sir.

=I then follow the aide back into the room, feeling the gazes bore into me=

=I salute once again, once again acknowleged only by Hood=

Hood: We, as a group have come to our decision, Captain.

What exactly is the decision, sir?

=Parangosky answers for Hood, knowing he wasn't exactly on board with it=

Parangosky: As of now, we now strip you of your Captain's rank, Lieutenant. Do you understand that?

=I stand for a few moment, speechless and angry=

(Resigned) Understood ma'am.

Parangosky: Dismissed.

=I salute and leave, my footfalls the only indication of my anger=

Why didn't you just bust me down to Petty Officer, you bastards...

=I head back to my quarters, naval personnel clearing a path as I head there=

ONI Operative: We're just asking you to help get these Spartans into fighting shape.

(Angry)You're asking me to do in a week what took me almost a YEAR to do with Gold Team!

ONI Operative: (Annoyed) We know...

(Angry) That, and the fact that most of this group shouldn't even be Spartans. You're handing me damn psych cases!

ONI Operative: Their 'commander' should be easy to deal with. He's the best you're going to get to 'sane' on that team.

(Sarcastic at first) Well whoopdie-fucking-do. At least he doesn't need happy pills to talk to me.

ONI Operative: (exasperated) Just get these guys into fighting shape, Lieutenant.

Well, at least you're addressing me by rank. It not just 'Spartan', or '120', like you did a month ago.

ONI Operative: (exasperated) Just get them ready.

Will do. Just don't expect me to grateful for the job.

=The operative leaves the room, rubbing his forehead in exasperation=

If you wanted me to be cheery, you should have let me keep my captain's rank...that, or joined the marines...

=I then head out of the room to meet the brain cases I would be making into a coherent Spartan team=

Well, at least I don't have to be nice...

=I smiled, knowing it would be fun to vent my frustrations out on them=