[Halo] Fireteam Eclipse [IC - II]

[Erasmas]

FIRETEAM ECLIPSE

After contacting UNSC Command, the Fleet Admiral allowed a pitstop so that you could jettison your fallen members and say your final goodbyes. And then it was time to get back to work. With Oenomaus having been glassed, Crixus Station was entirely destroyed. So, the plan was to have you dock with the UNSC super-frigate the Prevailing Winds of Fortune, where you would be returning the Fleet Admiral to his duties and figure out where humanity now stood against the onslaught of Covenant forces that appeared to be tearing through your little corner of space. It was now clear that their intention was to obliterate your entire species from existence. The only mystery was "why". But, in the end, that didn't matter very much to the men and women of the Spartan Program - so why should it matter to you?

You finally re-converge with the major portion of the UNSC fleet, docked in deep space just outside of the Amayand Nebula.

Spoiler

Show

[darklink_shadow]

Feeling fairly antisocial at the time, Vidarr parked himself by a panel looking outside and gazed at the surreal beauty of this part of space. The Amayand Nebula... what makes it so beautiful anyways? Why does it feel so moving? It's just light... and yet I can't be the only one who doesn't want to look away. Vivian chimed in wordless agreement.

Lost in thought, Vidarr thought he knew the answer to his own question. Maybe because so much of the universe is so ugly, and smeared with the blood of the fallen. We kill those bastards by the dozens for each fallen brother, but there seems to be no end to them in sight. Either their numbers aren't important to them, because they are boundless or death has no meaning to them. But we will survive. This isn't Ragnarok, so this isn't the end of mankind. But it was the end for so many brave men and women already. I'm going to personally kill 20 for each fallen brother before I give up my ghost. Gods damn those monsters.

[Erik Vale]

Argyle has withdrawn further than usual. He's also spent more time than normal in the armory, looking at armor modifications for integration... However were one to ask Gnomere, she'd state that he's barely talking to even his AI's while doing so.

[DoctorFaust]

Volsung is standing in his medbay, his gloved hands covered with blood. "... and that concludes the autopsy report of Spartan Gunnar-G527, declared MIA. Medical Officer Lieutenant Colonel Volsung-R36 officially concluding after action report of Operations Silent Derelict and Reclamation Castle, pending approval by Commander Valen-V21."

He steps away from the gurney, shucking off his gloves and throwing them into a nearby airlock for the disposal of biohazards. "Rho, I'm shutting the lights and putting instruments into sleep mode to try and keep it cool enough to preserve the corpses, and then I'm going to get some shut-eye. Feel free to go into power-save as well."

[moomoo]

No-one seemed particularly talkative on board, neither Anex, who picked his on place to gaze on the nebula, thinking about what happened, and wondering what might be next, and who might be the next.
Even though our missions are successful, it still feels that the Covenant are winning out on us on every one of them. I hope when we return in our next mission, the atmosphere will be better as it is now..

[Erasmas]

You land inside the Fortune, and are told where you will be quartered for the duration of your stay here while onboard. Fleet Admiral Harper informs you that you will have a day or two of downtime before he will be looking to reassign you to your next mission. For that time period, you are left to your own devices, though your access to the ship is limited. Since you technically don't exist... the standing order when among other UNSC personnel is that you simply do not disclose anything about your identity to anyone. However, there was no question in anyone's mind that laid eyes on you that you were Spartan - your height, build, and demeanor alone gave that away.

And as such, other than a few "way to go"s or "holy sh!t, a Spartan"s, everyone stayed out of your way. In your downtime, you all noticed that Valen had a new massive batch of callsigns added to his ever-growing list of a tattoo.

FU23
X696
G426
T97
X666
P24
OT34
G527
E507

After a while, you just found yourself waiting. War had been beaten into you so successfully, that you didn't feel right when there was nothing to fight against. Your steps felt too light without your armor... your hands empty without your weapons. Finally, the frigate's AI - a mousy little runt of a green guy called Aiden with a sweet disposition - put in the call into your quarters.

"Excuse me, Fireteam Eclipse? Fleet Admiral Harper would like to see you now. He's in the New Paris War Room on Deck 37."

[moomoo]

About time, the looks the people here are giving us freak me out.
Anex says as he prepares himself to appear before the admiral.

[darklink_shadow]

Vidarr stayed at the window for a few moments longer, then pushed himself up with a sigh. Finally. Back to work.

Ding! Good news! I have successfully repaired the damaged subaudio pathways to the...

You can sing again, got it. Anything else?

I managed to restored the corrupted backups to the knowledge database I was building.

I thought you said that was impossible.

It was.

Oh. But then... how?

Woman's got to have her secrets.

I probably wouldn't understand if you told me anyways.

There's that too.

Is this deck 37?

Yes. Paris War Room is on your left. First door now.

Sorry. Updating HUD now. Olivia apologized as a waypoint appeared before Vidarr. He prepared to mention that it was too late, and he'd already found it, but he had missed Olivia, and he decided not to say anything.

Vidarr walked into the room, the heavy stomp of each footfall a welcome feeling. He knew today was the day they'd have this meeting. Certain signs told him it would be soon after his last meal, not much more than two hours ago. The old ways, long forgotten by most but practiced by a few still worked. Sometimes. He had already suited up, and he was ready. Olivia's low, barely audible hum felt so refreshing to hear. The distinct whirl she produced while she constantly checked and updated his HUD was just like the sound of rain on a steel roof: familiar and comforting, despite the noise. Now all he needed was his gun, and target.

[Erasmas]

You walk into the War Room to find that it looks much like every other that you've ever been in before. The typical stark decorum of UNSC military installations - form and function being the rule of the day. Hard lines and dark grays dominated the space, accented only by the glows of various digital components that were essential to whatever operation it needed to fulfill. The room was not overly large, but the raked seating that surrounded the main floor showed that it could fit a fair number of people into the space... all with a good view of what was happening down in the middle. In that portion of the room was a massive hologram table, easily three meters long by two meters wide. It was dark at the moment, its flat surface a matte bluish gray and expansive. Against the wall opposite the auditorium-styled seating was a huge display screen, set a few centimeters away from the dark wall behind it so that what was illuminated on the screen stood out in bold contrast - right now, the clear glass only displayed the name of the ship in tall blue letters that bathed the entire room in their light.

The Fleet Admiral stood near the front row of seats, in a leaning sit against the situation table, his arms folded across his chest. He was back in full uniform and the stubble that had accumulated on his face during the stint of his capture had been removed. He looked like his old self again; for better or for worse. Seated across from him were Valen and a woman - a Spartan from the look of her. Neither were currently wearing their armor, just their black skintight undersuits.

As you all entered, finding some place to stand, the three occupants of the room looked up from their conversation. The Fleet Admiral stood up but kept his arms folded.

"Decided to suit up early, Vidarr?", Valen asked Eight. He walked over to the sniper and patted his armor's shoulder. "It does start to become a second home, doesn't it?"

The door hissed shut behind the last of you and Harper moved to stand at the far side of the table.

"Alright. Introductions are in order; I'll keep them brief. Fireteam Eclipse, this is the newest member of your team... Loki. Her fireteam designation will be Eclipse Five, as that is the first available number on your team.", he takes a moment to look at each of the existing members in turn. "It isn't anything personal, gentlemen... I trust that it won't become that way. She is a demolitions expert and has tactical awareness of your next destination that could prove valuable in this mission. Now, without getting any further, I want to say one thing. I know that you all have experienced heavy casualties during these missions and for that... you have my condolences. Sincerely. But this is war. And we are fighting for the very survival of our species, boys and girls. This threat is unlike any we have ever seen before and it means to wipe us from this universe. But I'm not going to let that happen. That's why I rely on you. To do the things that no one else can. To be my sword... and my shield. You are instruments of war. And there are times when you must be the first line of defense against this threat, just as there are times where we take the offensive to them. This is one of those times."

The Fleet Admiral unfolded his arms and leaned forward onto the edge of the table. "Aiden. Load Operation: Depth Charge." The hologram sprung up out of the table to show a metropolis that some of you might recognize as Arcadia, located on the planet by the same name.

"This is Arcadia, New Mombasa's sister city. The Covenant have established a blockade of the planet and are holding millions of civilians hostage on the surface below. As unfortunate as that is, our real problem only begins there. There is a top secret ONI facility located within the heart of the city. We have reason to believe that the facility has either been compromised, or it may be so shortly. The information that the Covenant could find here would give them the secrets to the Spartan Program. I don't need to tell you why this is a bad thing. An attack battalion of ships is set to attack the blockade in less than twelve hours. While we are fighting outside of the atmosphere, you will be delivered planetside as a contingency plan. Your mission will be to destroy the ONI facility - White Glove Protocol.", he paused, giving you all time to absorb the information thus far and to give you a chance at input.

[theskorpionking]

Loki's conversation with Valen ended as the Spartans entered the room. She eyes each one of them, giving the one in armor a bemused look. When Valen said the Spartans name she said, "Vidarr? Is that a common name where you're from? I only ask because I once knew someone by that name."

[DoctorFaust]

Volsung, having occupied his regular spot near the back of the squad, raises a hand to interject. "Sir, with all due respect, is there a reason that the ONI staff doesn't have automated procedures to destroy sensitive data for situations like this? And furthermore, how come the base personnel didn't have time to wipe it themselves? The Covvies aren't known for their subtlety when it comes to arriving in system."

[darklink_shadow]

Vidarr nodded to his commanding officer when the man approached him. Yes, sir. It is like a second home. Though I'm not sure where my first home is anymore. After a pause, he shakes his head. Perhaps my station with your team will be a bit more permanent.

During the briefing, he remains silent, but the new member is familiar. Something he remembered, but vaguely. Something that was once very important, but he had forgotten since then. Loki... Loki... Loki... who is Loki? His conscious mind couldn't figure it out. He knew that when he was younger he tried to remember the names of his friends and family, and things his mother had told him were important. That's how he found out the religion of his family, Neo-Nordism. So, was Loki friend or family?

To his surprise, she approached him. He removed his helmet, and held it, allowing her a chance to see his face. No one that I can remember. Though it was quite a long time ago. Your name also sounds familiar. Something I had tried to remember, but clearly have failed to do so. Welcome to Fireteam Eclipse. I'm Vidarr, your friendly neighborhood sniper. I'll keep the fleas off your ass while you bring the fire.

[Erik Vale]

"Because ONI thought it would be more entertaining if they had to draft soldiers from more important stuff, so the got their contractors to skip that step. Also prevents accidental or malicious activations of it."

Argyle stares at the map from his position.
"Given we're being ordered in, that means the troops already on the ground are to busy with the covenant, if they still exist in numbers, so I would presume we'll have our usual amount of support? And what's exfil looking like?"

[Erasmas]

The Fleet Admiral waited as the pertinent questions came in. He then set about addressing them.

"They had procedures in place to wipe all sensitive data from their computers before they evacuated the premises. However, we have no way of knowing it they were fully enacted or not, since communications was one of the first things the Covvies took down when they hit dirtside. And besides that, data isn't the only thing that we're afraid of falling into their hands. As much as I hate the damn bastards, I'll give them this much - they are crafty. Crafty enough to possibly reverse engineer any tech that they might find lying around. You will be bringing down the house on this one - I want that facility reduced to nothing more than rubble and a puddle of unidentifiable materials. Now, I can't send you in with the kind of payload necessary to do the job - it's too big, too heavy, too risky, and too easily detected coming through the atmosphere. You're going to need to raid one of our bases on the outskirts of the city, commandeer a tactical nuclear warhead, and deliver it to the ONI target - designated as codename Jericho. The status of that military base is unclear... but since it's got our name stamped real big on the outside, you're likely to encounter some resistance. Which brings me to O23's next point.", Harper had been showing you the location of both the ONI facility as well as that of the UNSC base by manipulating the holographic image throughout his briefing. He know zoomed back out to the whole city of Arcadia and looked Argyle dead in the eyes.

"We have no idea what the status of our forces in the field are at this time. There have been scattered reports from broken battalions and random soldiers from all over this damn place. We are doing our best to organize what firepower we've got down there in order to formulate some kind of strategy against this invasion. These boys and girls simply weren't ready for an assault this big. As for exfiltration... that isn't on your docket, Spartans. I need you there for this purpose and this purpose only. We've got other people working on that. Any more questions?"

[Erik Vale]

Argyle frowns as he thinks to himself.
'Going to wipe out a facility potentially already data-wiped, on foot with a nuke we have to find, instead of orbital bombardment, and no plan for exfiltration or support except what is made on the ground... We really are the sacrificial Spartans... He doesn't want 'Are you Insane?' or 'Were you dropped on the head as a child?' as far as questions go... I'll want the over-shield module.'
Argyle shakes his head, trusting his face to display his thoughts about the plan, even if it only made it to his fellow Spartans. That Valen was here before them meant it likely that some sort of 'all due respecting' had already gone on.

[theskorpionking]

Loki had a smirk on her face. "Sir. Get me the nuke. Get me close enough and there won't be nothin' left for those covie bastards to use." She then beamed a cocky smile to the other Spartans, "Just like that time I took out that covie cruiser."

[DoctorFaust]

"Actually yeah, one more question. Why aren't we just mounting a MAC cannon onto a ship we can afford to lose and hitting it from orbit?"

Volsung bristles up at Loki's statement. "Well that's just dandy for you, isn't it. Not all of us have had the opportunity to just blow up a target with potentially important information aboard like that."

[theskorpionking]

Loki stood up so fast that the chair she was sitting in had fallen backwards. “You’re one of those science types aren’t you? All you seem to care about is potentially important information. Some say that all I care about is the boom, well that ain’t true. I do what I do to save lives, not information. Was I supposed to ask the thousands of evacuee’s if it was okay to let the covies slaughter them just so Oni can get some precious information from their ship. No! Should I have told them that their lives weren’t important? No! The All-Father believes that all lives are important and have meaning no matter how small or insignificant. So yeah, it was dandy for me.”

She quickly realized that her little tirade was a foolish thing to do, then turned to Valen and the Admiral and said, "Please forgive me. My outburst was out of line. You see sirs, I take pride in what I do. And sometimes my pride gets the best of me." She then turned and faced the others, "I also apologize to all of you. I know we've all be through all kinds of Hell. And that we've all lost brothers in arms. I will understand if any of you think very little of me right now and I will not hold it against you." She then picked up her chair and sat back down, her eyes staring intently at the floor.

[Erasmas]

"Because, Lieutenant Colonel R36, we have no ships that we can 'afford to lose'. That blockade is directly over the city, which is precisely where Jericho is situated. There is near constant traffic going to and from the planet. What happens when that ship doesn't have the proper time to fire a MAC round? Or if it misses? Without precision targeting being painted on the ground by our usual guidance methods - there no telling how far off the mark it could land. I, for one, don't want any more civilian casualties than we've already got on our hands planetside. Now, if the two of you...", Harper looked from Volsung to Loki. "... are finished, then we can get this plan underway. Unless, of course, there are any other questions aimed at undermining my tactical approaches."

The Fleet Admiral seemed especially spunky today. Maybe he was still getting used to having coffee in the mornings again, after having been held prisoner. However, the look you all got from Valen told you that any further questions had better be about the mission specifics - of else you were likely to catch hell later.

[darklink_shadow]

Vidarr stifled a laugh with a fake cough. Excuse me. I do have one question. If we are able to recover the data, and bring it off the planet, would that be of any interest? I can foresee that being an argument later. The merits of keeping sciencetific knowledge versus the risk of our squad being captured or killed and thus losing the data to the enemy.

Also, if there are civilian researchers alive, should we move to rescue them? Covenant torture methods might not work on a hardass like yourself, fleet admiral, but most civilians are much more tender. If the Covenant get their hands on a few of the science types, they might be able to get a decent amount of knowhow outta them. I suppose that was two questions. A third would be, if the Covenant are about to escape with science types, should we prevent their torture by giving them the blessing of a swift and merciful death?

[Erasmas]

Harper listens to Vidarr's inquiries, then responds, "No. All of the intel onsite is either redundant with data at our other facilities or has been backed up elsewhere. Furthermore, I don't want that data walking around Arcadia... just in case something happens and your team becomes compromised. Likewise, this is not a rescue mission - we have other people taking care of that. You are to engage any hostiles that stand in the way of you accomplishing the perimeters of your mission, but that is all. I don't need you going around kicking down as much of the hornet's nest as possible... that's for another day. If you see any high-level clearance ONI personnel begin taken hostage... you have my permission to put them down - both out of respect and to keep what they know a secret. Every last one of them signed on knowing the potential risks of their job."

He then looked around the collective of your fireteam and asked once more.

"You all understand the mission? Anything else?" When no one else spoke up, the Fleet Admiral said simply, "Dismissed."

Valen snapped to attention and saluted Harper, before turning and walking out of the War Room. He headed straight back to your quarters.

[moomoo]

Anex likewise salutes and follows Valen to the quarters with a slight smile on his face.
It was nice to be of use again. He didn't ask a lot of questions because in his mind, the situation on the ground could always turn out differently as expected anyways, as they had encoutered during previous missions.

[DoctorFaust]

Volsung stands and salutes, approaching Loki after she does likewise. "Hey, I want to apologize. What I said was stupid and, well, stupid is really the best way to describe it. It's just... we were deployed to a covvie ship for our last mission. Five of us didn't make it back."

[darklink_shadow]

Vidarr saluted the fleet admiral as he left, and then followed Volsung. Putting a hand on his shoulder, Vidarr was careful to remember that his friend was not wearing his suit, and a rough pat in suit was shattered bones out of suit. As careful as his touch was, his voice was less so; straight forward and impartial. The doctor is a sensitive man; very caring. You'll want him to be the one patching you up, from what I've seen. But he rants a lot, don't you, doc?

Vidarr gave the man another gentle pat before moving to hand to help put his helmet back on. Don't hold it against him too much. He's a good man. Short temper, but very loyal to his comrades in arms. And he's bad a few bad days. Vidarr turned his head to look at Volsung. But seriously, stop snapping at people all the time for coping with things differently than you. It doesn't come across very well the first dozen times.

[DoctorFaust]

Volsung snorts and shakes his head. "Yeah, caring and ranting. They're my superpowers."

[theskorpionking]

Loki lets a hint of a smile cross her face, "Yeah? Well mischief and mayhem are mine. For what it's worth, caring isn't a bad thing. I lost a....friend when he had gotten between a Hunter and a baby that it was trying to step on just because it was crying. The fool got the baby away, but he didn't get out of the way of the Hunters foot. It snapped his spine in half, it was up to me to end his suffering. I didn't get much sleep for a few days after that."

[Erasmas]

Valen slowed down a bit and let the rest of the team go on ahead a ways, holding Loki back with him. Once the others were out of earshot, he spoke to her in a lowered tone.

"Listen, I know where you're coming from and all... but you have to understand that you are filling some big boots here. Harper may see us as just numbers and that's fine - for him. That's how this kind of operation works. But to us, those numbers mean something... someone. A brother or sister that has had our back when we needed it, or took a bullet or a grenade that was meant for us instead. I don't get a say about who's put on my fireteam, but that's where my influence begins. I'm sure that if the Fleet Admiral tapped you for this that you're capable for the task... I'm not doubting that. All I'm saying is that you need to be aware of whose place you're taking. Be worthy of your number. We clear?", Valen said, making sure that the new recruit was looking him in the eyes. When she made it known that he was understood, he nodded. "Hooah. Welcome to Eclipse, greenhorn."

Once back in your fireteam's personal quarters, your Commander addressed you collectively.

"Alright, everyone... let's huddle up. I know this isn't the most popular mission plan that we've been handed, but it's got plenty of stuff that'll excite you boys and girls. We're gonna start from the beginning, with all of the details left out by our dear, sweet, man-in-charge. Now, a portion of the fleet is going to engage the split-jaws in orbit outside of Arcadia, directly above the city like Harper said. Here's where the fun starts. We gotta go in hot, so as to avoid detection... super hot. Even the drop pods are big enough and slow enough to alert the planetside atmospheric scanners of any incoming projectiles on entry. So the Dawn Evader is going to fire us out of the MAC cannon... two at a time. Now, this will only be at only 10% power, so relax. However, that is still over 6,000 mph… and we have to be fired close enough to the battle in orbit as to pass as stray munitions fire. We will touch down in the ocean, approximately one klick outside of the city's port. There, hidden far beneath the surface of the water, is a Sting Ray that was dropped in several days ago by our boys dirtside. We recover the Sting Ray and use it to get us to the nearest saltwater filtration hub, which feeds fresh water to the city via a big pipe that runs along the ocean floor. We gain entry into the pipe through the facility, and ride that all the way into Arcadia."

[darklink_shadow]

You let him die in the heat of battle, where adrenaline and honor dull the pain. Much better than forcing him to linger. I need to go and carve some runes into the bullets I'm bringing with me. With any luck, this mission will go smoothly. While there will be a lot more enemy forces, we can avoid them and let the boots already on the ground do most of the grunt work. At least until the bunker is busted... then I'll be aiming to drop all my bullets into the skulls of murderers. Vidarr waved once, and headed back to their own ship, ready to take his knife to the bullets and carve out the tiwaz rune on each of the rounds he'd bring ready for his sniper rifle.

By the time Valen had called them together, Vidarr had already marked the t-like shape into almost half his bullets. He came to the briefing with two bags of bullets, one full of bullets with rune scratched into the lead, and another he fished uncarved bullets from before taking his knife to them and slowly, and silently marking them with the symbol for the God of Heroism and Glory, a recognized symbol of strength and honor in his culture. He didn't even look at the bullets, going off of his sense of touch to bless the lead, while paying close attention to his commanding officer. The plan was simple enough, it even sounded like a bit of fun. Any idea on the pairing?

[Erik Vale]

Argyle looks at Valen like he just said he heard the moon was blue cheese and he planned on eating all of it... This look slowly morphs into one of concentration as he speaks.
"I'm not sure who I wish to submit for psychoannalysis first, you or Harper... Spartans have survived and fought post High orbit drops but... Really we'd be wanting to go solo with reinforced insertion pods if just to equal the normal high orbit drop casualty rate... Preferably while utilising single use overshield modules and modifying our armor for 'Armor Lock' which would limit us tactically, and then..."
Argyle shakes his head.
"Sir, this is the sort of mission they'd send a group of twos for after making absolutely sure they're armor was as reinforced as possible, and still loose one or two on landing with the rest likely injured. If this is the only workable plan it's the only workable plan, but... Well, as much as they may have better planners than Gnomere and I, it sounds like someone's decided it's our turn to go MIA unofficially as well and skipped most of the thinking, especially with our extraction plan currently being titled 'Try your best'."

[darklink_shadow]

Vidarr waited for Argyle to finish his rant, then listened to Vivian talking in his helmet. We're dropping into water. Our casualty rate will drop sharply. We can expect zero losses if we all enter into deep enough water. Vivian would like to point out that while landing in undisturbed water is nearly as dangerous landing on land, it's easy to disturb the water. Shoot it before you land, and it'll stay disturbed for ... almost a minute based on the salinity of the water we're dropping into.

But, as for extraction, that's clearly not part of the mission. Maybe you forgot, we are soldiers. It's not our lot to die of old age. Besides, being trapped landside will give us plenty of time to settle our debts with the covenant bastards.