Chapter 8 NAME "Shit Happens" Part 5

=He runs at him, stopping to bring the blade close to Zeru's neck=

What I should have done long ago.

=He delivers a right hook with his robotic fist=

(Jason)
Fuck. Take cover!
=we all ducked behind whatever boxes or crates we could find. Once we did, we returned fire, plasma bolts flying through the air, and melting through the Marines armor=

Keeping her fist in my hand, i sweep my foot to take her legs out from her. As she falls to her knees i twist her arm up and behind her back, placing my foot onto her free wrist.

Guard? You wanted the kill right?

=He takes the blow, remaining silent=

Z- Now what..?

=Syaa begins to cry quietly both in pain and shame=

(Jason)
=It didn't take us long. Most of the marines were cut down by our weapons, while others retreated, whether from cowardice or to a better position, I did not know=
Move up! Check your corners!

=I walk up to Syaa and I point it at her head=

This.

=I close my eyes and pull the trigger multiple times, the hot shell casings hitting my foot=

=Zayne's voice takes over for his=

Zayne: Aww this isnt fun! Atleast fight back!

=He laughs=
=He brings him against the nearest console. Left hand around the neck=

=His right continues to punch him in the head region and the stomach=

I feel every shot ring through her body and i turn my head away and pull a frown.

Draco. Situation.

=Zeru also lets a tear fall for Syaa. He looks to Draco=

What have i done to you..?

=He turns his head to face her=

Under control.

=He looks back to Zeru=

You breath.

=He takes the blade and shoves it into Zeru's gut=
=Slowly withdrawing the blade=

=He looks at him with a scowl and tosses him onto the floor=

=One of the Herac on the ceiling drops down on top of Zeru, and begins spinning him up in a web. Just as soon as it is done, it and the others rush back to the hanger with great haste. They climb back up into the Colony=


=Just then, the entire XNNO fleet, minus the Mahogany Star, comes out of Slipspace over Haven. They begin moving toards the Trophaeum=

=He watches as the spiders take him away=
=He turns around to the other two and nods=

It's done.

(Jeremy)

=I reach the viewing deck, and saw the Captain staring out at the battle=

Come here you asshole!

=The Captain turned around and laughed=

(Captain Fledgers)

You really think you can storm in on my viewing deck? Boys we have a party crasher!

(Jeremy)

=I look to my sides and see a group of soldiers come out, I have never seen them before. Must be elites=

Damn!

=I messaged Jason again, this time without letting them hear me=

Jason. They have elites at the viewing deck, im having Andrea cut the lights. Be careful.

=I message Andrea=

Shut the lights now!

(Andrea)

Yeah yeah. I'm on it.

(Jeremy)

=The lights cut off, and I turn on my night vision=

Alright bastards! I'm not done yet!

=I started to shoot them, it was funny, they were shooting randomly. The Captain was using sound to shoot, until I grabbed him and used him as a hostage=

Stop the battle! NOW!

(Captain Fledgers)

I'd rather not, it's fun being in charge. Elites, kill the traitor!

(Jeremy)

Traitor?! Your the traitor!

=I throw him on the ground and I duck behind cover=

=I look at the body on the ground and I kick the shells aside=

=I shoulder my weapon, waiting to see what is to become of the ship Captain=

(Jason)
=we pressed forward, guns sweeping corridors. Any non-combatants we came across were either left alone, or were knocked out. We moved towards the front of the ship, for the bridge. The lights went out, and we quickly switched to thermals=


=Haven's fleet immediately readied weapons in response to the XNNO fleet=

*Officer*
Uh, Commander? We have a situation.

Draco, want to say a few words to your new crew and ship?

(Jason)
What now?

*Officer*
An XNNO fleet sir. They're heading towards us.

(Jason)
Awww, come on! Hail the ships! Give them a warning, not to come any closer, or we will consider it an act of aggression, and we will respond accordingly.

=the officer sent the message to the XNNO fleet=

=He lets out a heavy breath=

=Going up to the console=
=Pressing a few keys and entering the comm system=

This day has come.
It's been brought to us by valiant heros.
The days are done under him.
The fall of Ishtar has passed.
A new time has begun
I will take full command of this vessel.
May we perservere in the bleakest of times.

This is Dante Draco Faulkner.
Welcome to the new age.

=A message was sent to the XNNO fleet. It read as followed=

Code:

Attention XNNO fleet. Do not come any closer, or it will be seen as an act of aggression, and we will respond accordingly.

=By the time the message was recieved, the fleet was already surrounding the Trophaeum. Xazhi was just leaving the bridge when one of the crew yelled to him that a message came in. He sighed and went back over to the Console=

Xa- What do you want, Inheritor?

(Jason)
=The fleet patched me through to the leader of the fleet=
Okay, whoever this is, listen up! .......please. We currently have a situation here, that I am trying to deal with, and your presence here is not helping. I request that you please retreat to a more appropriate distance, while I sort this whole mess out.

=I look up=

So.. now what?

=He continues the message=

Teams. Capture the remaining loyalists those who surrender will be taken in. Those that resist. Kill them.
Once this is all sorted out I want teams working on the inside of the ship.

=He ends the comm and sits down in the chair=
=He looks back to the two and sighs=

It's only begun, hasnt it?

=He smiles as he removes his helmet=

Xa- I regret to inform you, Inheritor, that we are on a mission of the greatest importance. It appears that War has begun again between our peoples, and i am leading a fleet to put an end to it once and for all. We will be out of your hair shortly.

=Xazhi heads down to the Hanger. He loads up into a transport and takes off for the Trophaeum's hanger=

I smile at him.

Yes it has. Let's get those spiders out of here and find a refitting yard.

I realise i'm still holding Syaa's limp body and i drop it in disgust.

=I lower my weapon and sling it over my shoulder=

I hope my relatives done hear about this.. if I know where they are...

=I turn around and sit in a chair=

I walk over to Draco.

So....Picking up from earlier?

(Jason)
Xazhi, I'm warning you! My people are still afraid of you, of what your kind did. If you provoke them, I don't think I'll be able to stop them.

=He comms back through his helmet=

Xa- We make war so that we may live in peace. If the people of Haven were to go to war with the XNNO race, all of its people, and the people of the Di-Lumnis Belt and Srevaera would answer. With the firepower we both posses, it would mean nothing but total obliteration for us both. Would your kind risk that?

=They land in the Trophaeum's hanger. Squads of SS began pouring out, and attacked magnetic grappling cables to the ceiling to climb up. They quickly began removing the Herac nest, and loading it onto the large central transport=

(Jason)
If they were afraid? Yes. Your people scarred them, burned their worlds, and tortured them, sold them into slavery! There are a few that just need an excuse, and if given one, they will attack, no matter the cost, so long as they make you pay.

=Xazhi snapps back=

Xa- I DIED fighting Delta to end the genocide! Have you ever died before!? I have! Ive been flung into a lake from low orbit over Olympus, bashed, impaled, shot, and de-limbed! When you know the pain of multiple deaths for a cause you believe in, talk to me then!

=The SS finish moving the nest onto the Transport, having almost all of the Herac, other than the Spiderlings, evicted back into the hanger. They took off again, and began heading back to the Comet=

(Jason)
You're right. I haven't died. I've lived. I've endured. I've changed, changed everything that was human in me. Submitted myself to pain beyond imagining, just for the safety of those around me, for the survival of those I risked everything for.
=we kept moving towards the bridge=

=The transports land in the Hanger. Xazhi stepps out, and has the crew unload the nest. They begin opening it, taking the Spiderlings they find to the proper holding area. Xazhi goes back to the bridge=

Xa-I fight for freedom, Jason. The freedom of my people, and of those that would call me their own. And ive died a dozon deaths because of it, no different than Delta. He wishes for nothing more than to see a time when his people will no longer need him to shield them from the dangers that have plagued them since the beginning of their species, and i fight at his side for it. Can you truely say that we are evil? Let me ask you something, Jason. What do you fight for?

(Jason)
=The question struck me as odd. I had never been asked that before, except, by the hallucination of a little boy. Miranda's face, with her warm smile, filled my thoughts=
Her. I fight, for her. I fight to earn that smile, that warmth, that love.

I fight for the safety of these people. Their safety, leads to so much more than I could have imagined. I know there has been blood between us, and in many ways, both sides are at fault. To be honest, I have been trying to find a way to build peace between our two peoples.

(Captain Fledgers)

Now come out Sargent. Your out gunned and out manned. Give me the A.I. For the better of both of us.

(Jeremy)

=I came out of my place and raised my hands, the lights came back on=

Fine.

=I hand him the empty A.I. Drive.

(Captain Fledgers)

Hmm..? It's empty Sargent. Where is the A.I.? Does one of your friends have it?

(Jeremy)

No. You wanted it I gave it to you.

(Captain Fledgers)

Tsk Tsk. Guards. Beat him until he begs for mercy.

=The guards surround Jeremy=

(Jeremy)

=There wasn't much I could do until Jason got here, so I just need to hold my bearings. Eventually blood slowly started to come out of my mouth, it's not fun when you taste your own blood=

You assholes aren't getting anything from me!

(Captain Fledgers)

We won't stop until you spit out the answer, Sargent.

(Jeremy)

=I choked and coughed, blood splattered on my VISR, so now I look like a mess, and beat up. I felt a strange warmth in some areas of my body, blood. If Jason got here I could manage to at least get to transport without falling over myself=

Xa- True or not, Inheritor, Delta's blood is still on your hands. Nobody believes in this mysterious 'Flood' creature. Alpha nearly ordered my to unleash Hellfire upon Haven when Sigma had to put him into Cryo. He couldnt be saved, not even by out top men. Sigma still works, day and night, trying to find a way to bring him back.

(Jason)
Then let me prove I mean it, when I say I want peace. When this is done, bring Delta here. If the power of the Forerunner can't bring him back, then nothing will.

=I stopped talking, as we kept moving. One of my squadmates had the bright idea to home in on Jeremy's signal, and we found ourselves outside the viewing deck, split up outside the door=

Xa- Good luck, Inheritor.

=With that, the entire fleet opened a massive slipspace portal, and jumped in. They were gone just as quickly as they arrived, and for a purpose that was apparent only to them. Their next destination would be the Obsidian Wolf. Xazhi waited anxiously to see the new Herac spawn=

=as soon as the XNNO fleet left, the Haven fleets' weapons cooled=

(Jason)
=we waited outside the door, then on my signal, Blue Team and I rushed in, guns raised. We didn't go all the way in (I just know there's a dirty joke in there), but we edged closer inside, weapons aimed at what were clearly hostiles=

(Jeremy)

=The elites turned around, it was Jason. Right on time. The Captain was distracted so I barely managed to take him hostage=

It's... over... you...

=I was starting to get weaker=

lost... Asshole, call.... them off... and the fleet...

=I held a gun to his head=

(Captain Fledgers)

Never you scum! I'm gonna-

(Jeremy)

=I shot him in the head, and I let go of his body. My life signs were starting to slow down, and my knees were about to buckle=

Jason, kill them. Kill all... all of them....

(Jason)
=we opened fire, short bursts of plasma flying from our weapons, melting through the armor of the Elite Soldiers. They fell to the ground. I rushed over to Jeremy, and checked his vitals. Not good=
Just hold on Jeremy. We'll get you to a medic.

=I motioned to two of my squad mates, and they picked up Jeremy, one under each shoulder. We began to move back to the hangar=

(Jeremy)

=I pulled out the A.I. Chip and remembered=

Jason... Get Andrea for me...

=I hold out the chip=

I can't... Leave her here... Just, answer her questions... Listen to her... she has things to say...

(Jason)
=I took the chip=
Alright. Just hold on man, we're going to fix you up.

=We had reached the hangar, and piled into the boarding craft, taking off from the hangar=
Silver Hawk, this is Admiral Shepard. You are clear to fire on the ship. Make it go away.


=plasma beams and gauss rounds tore into the massive ship, tearing it to shreds=


(Jason)
=We boarded the Silver Hawk a minute later, a medical team waiting for us in the hangar. I still held the chip in my hand though=

(Jeremy)

=By the time we left the ship, I was unconscious. I was alive, I knew that because I was in that giant white room again. This time nothing happened, I was in control=

(Jason)
=we got Jeremy loaded up into the med bay, and the group returned to the fleet. We had no real response from the Trophaeum, so for the time being, the fleet formed a wall, between the Troph, and Haven. I took a transport down to Alpha Base, and from there, a teleporter, with special clearance from Silver, to the Control Room. I wanted absolute privacy for this=

(Silver Light)
Are you sure about this Inheritor? Such a low level construct, is not allowed access to the core. It violates several protocols.

(Jason)
Silver, believe me, I know. But right now, I need answers, and this A.I. can give them to me. As for plugging her into the core......just block her from accessing the Archive, the grid, or any other essential hubs.
=a minute later, once that was all done, I plugged the A.I. into the core of Haven, for a private little talk=

(Andrea)

=I was put into another... slot. As I could put it, there was another A.I. in here, blocking me from plenty of things. So I did the only sensible thing, speak to the person I was looking at=

Jason... I didn't expect it to be you. I wasn't exactly paying attention, I was... Stealing things from that ship. Information. Where's Jeremy?

(Jason)
He's wounded, and being taken care of. He told me to talk to you, that you might have some answers for me. Well, can we talk? Please?

(Andrea)

Well it's the only thing I really have to do. Unless you get on my nerves, yeah. If you do ill probably go sorting through all that info I have. Ask me a question.

(Jason)
Okay, let's start with something basic: What was the nature of your original mission? What were you created for?

(Andrea)

Originally I was created for holding all of the information we found on the planet. Until we found the database, I was the one researching. Then I was turned into a massive database.