Halo: Ghosts of Onyx (28 page)

Kelly looked between them, caught in a conflicting web of loyalties.

Dr. Halsey stood. "I have already explained my actions," she said. "And the discovery of this new Forerunner technology should outweigh any so-called breach of military protocol that may have been committed."

A frosty silence filled the hollow.

Dr. Halsey had no official rank, but had always wielded considerable influence over her

Spartans.

That had to end.

Kurt valued her scientific expertise and intellect, but he couldn't have her issuing

confusing or conflicting orders.

"Since you mention protocol…" Kurt deliberately turned his back to her and faced Blue Team. "1 want to clarify our chain of command. I understand Lord Hood gave you command of this mission," he said to Fred. "But I'm in charge of all USNC personnel on Onyx."

Kurt activated his friend-or-foe electronic tag, on extreme low power—just enough so they'd pick it up. On their displays appeared his green color-coded military ID number as well

as the bars and star insignia of a UNSC lieutenant commander.

The Spartans straightened, their involuntary response when in the presence of an officer.

"I am therefore assuming command of this mission," Kurt said.

No one said a word for a moment… and then Fred snapped off, "Yes, sir."

Something was different in Fred's voice. A bit of the familiar-ity was missing, but there

was something else: respect.

Kurt gave Blue Team a quick nod, and then turned to Dr. Halsey. "Ma'am, I want you to continue your analysis of the Zone 67 documents on the Forerunners. I expect an update on your progress in two hours."

Dr. Halsey arched an eyebrow. She said nothing and slowly sat down, returning to her

computer.

Kurt inwardly sighed. That was one battle won today.

Olivia's green status light flashed twice—the signal for "friendly approaching."

A ripple crossed the entrance to the hollow, part shadow, part rock, and then the SPI

camouflage resolved into Olivia. "Sentinel pair," she whispered. "Half a kilometer south, sir. Moving this direction in a search pattern."

Kurt said, "Everyone, get ready to move out. Kelly, limber up; you're our rabbit."

"Happy to oblige, sir." She made the two-fingered signal over her faceplate, the traditional Spartan smile.

The others nodded.

Kurt knew they'd follow him, into battle, and right to the gates of hell if he ordered it. He had a feeling it might come to that.

CHAPTER

TWENTY-NINE

1810 HOURS, NOVEMBER 3, 2552 (MILITARY CALENDAR) \ ZETA DORADUS SYSTEM, PLANET ONYX \ NEAR RESTRICTED REGION ZONE 67

Kurt had seen snipers zero their instruments before, but never for an extreme-range, near-vertical target.

Linda took the task as seriously as a surgeon preparing for a heart transplant. She cleared a patch of rocky ground and laid out a camo mat so dust wouldn't foul her SRS99CS2 AM rifle. Next she opened a kit that contained tools, bottles of cleaner and lubricant, several magazines for her rifle, a box of 14.5x114mm ammunition, and a tiny datapad. She selected one of the magazines and inspected it; satisfied, she opened the box of ammo and removed one of the rounds: super-hardened red polymer petals surrounded a finned tungsten dart. She spun it around and looked at the cartridge base. Opposite the legend "51" it bore the winged hourglass headstamp flanked by double "X"s—signifying that it was hand-loaded match-grade ammo from Misrah Armories on Mars. She slid the magazine into the rifle.

Next she linked her Oracle scope to the datapad and made microcalibrations. She finally sat, butted the rifle to her shoulder, and then leaned back flat and sighted up at the sky.

"Ready," she said over single-beam COM. Her voice was detached and trancelike.

"Eyes sharp," Kurt told everyone.

The Spartans had moved from the rendezvous hollow to the

high ground among broken canyons and mesas where Team Saber had first encountered the Sentinels. Kurt had them spread out along both sides of the valley.

Kelly stood in a gravel wash in the center of the valley and scanned the horizon, waiting for the double Sentinel to spot her. The sun was high and her shadow was a wavering spot at her feet.

For someone who was bait, she looked perfectly at ease.

The tunnel where Dante had rigged the opening and exit with charges was a quarter kilometer away from her position. Just far enough.

The tricky part of this plan would be to get the Sentinel pair
into
the tunnel, instead of staying high and blasting Kelly while she was inside. Would they continue their "game" of cat

and mouse, or was the data-collection phase of their operation over?

Either way, Kurt had placed his friend in grave danger.

Kelly looked up to Kurt's position and activated her single beam. "I see it," she said. "Two

khcks away. I'm going to tap its shoulder."

"Go, Blue Two," he said. "Keep your head."

Kurt held up a hand, made a fist, and pumped it twice—the "get ready" signal for the rest

of the team. Kelly took a shot at the drone pair with her MAB5—an impossible target with an assault

rifle, but it wasn't meant to hit, just to get the thing's attention.

The Sentinel turned to the report of gunfire and accelerated toward her.

Will reported over single beam: "Overwatch spotted, eleven o'clock, elevation twenty-four

hundred meters. Wind is three knots from the northwest."

Kurt relayed this to Linda.

Her status light wavered amber as she made a slight adjustment in her position, angling

her rifle up, and then frozen. On

either side, Tom and Lucy hefted missile launchers, waiting for her order to fire.

Meanwhile, the combined Sentinel pair plunged toward Kelly.

She stood there, watching it.

Holly moved close to Kurt, her assault rifle uselessly aimed at the incoming drone. "Is

she fast enough?"

"Kelly's the fastest Spartan," Kurt whispered.

That didn't answer her question, though: was she fast
enough.
Kurt didn't know.

The Sentinel pair was half a kilometer away. One of the spheres heated and light

flashed. Kelly took three sidesteps as the ground where she had been standing vaporized.

Globules of molten rock spattered off her MJOLNIR armor's energy shield.

She made an ancient and arcane gesture at the machine with one finger.

Mark joined Holly and Kurt. "No way," he breathed.

Kelly turned and ran, leaving a plume of dust in her wake.

The diving Sentinels accelerated to two hundred kilometers an hour. A golden lance flashed from its center of mass— detonating the earth under her feet.

Kelly tucked into a ball, tumbled, and came up running without breaking stride.

She sprinted straight into the tunnel.

The Sentinels' hexagonal geometry fluttered along its drive trajectory. A mere five meters over the gravel wash and screaming toward the tunnel—it had no time to pull up.

It chased her down the hole.

Kelly appeared silhouetted at the mouth, golden illumination blazing behind her—

—and the tunnel exploded.

Cones of fire shot out both ends. The superheated overpressure wave blurred the image of Kelly as she was propelled through the air, end over end.

The hill collapsed, and a hundred tons of earth crushed the Sentinel pair. Sand, stone, and dust blasted out in feathery jets.

Kelly's body impacted a rock wall, and fell limp to the gravel wash.

Kurt signaled Team Saber to get down there and help. He wanted to rush to her side as well, but he had to stay here and ensure the long-shot part of their operation succeeded. Or, failing that, devise a retreat.

Linda was still locked in place, tracking the overwatch Sentinel. Tom and Lucy knelt on either side, missiles ready.

Kurt squinted along the angle of their aim. Hanging in the air, over two kilometers away, was a single dot, their target.

They had to get it or the Sentinel would report their position and send for reinforcements… which wouldn't fall for this trick again.

"Target off-center, starboard boom," Linda whispered to Lucy and Tom. "Forward point,"

They adjusted their aims. "Locked on target," Tom replied.

"Fire," Linda said softly.

Twin plumes of exhaust washed over them as the missiles screamed into the air.

The overwatch Sentinel turned toward the incoming projectiles and its energy shield shimmered golden.

Linda's rifle muzzle flashed. Without seeming to move a molecule she fired until the magazine was empty.

The missiles impacted—smoke and flames ballooned about the Sentinel.

A heartbeat later, the winds blew the discharge cloud aside… the Sentinel jerked, and plummeted.

Linda got to her feet.

The Sentinel scattered as it fell, center sphere and three booms spinning out of control until they impacted.

"Go," he told them. "Make sure it's dowm."

Kurt didn't waste another second on the Sentinel; he turned back to the ravine and ran— toward Kelly.

He scanned Kelly's bio signs: erratic heartbeat, falling blood pressure, low body temperature. She was in borderline shock.

Kurt skidded to a halt in the ravine as Ash and Holly propped her up.

"I'm sorry, sir," Ash said. "The Sentinels were three meters from the exit. If I had waited any longer it would have cleared the trap. It would have shot her. I couldn't take that chance."

Kelly shook her head—not to disagree, rather to clear her senses. Her bio signs perked.

"He's right," she whispered and coughed. "The kid did good." She gave Ash the thumbs-up signal.

Ash bowed his head.

Kurt breathed a sigh of relief that Kelly had survived. He'd risked her life to gain a slim advantage over the enemy—he now had to use it wisely.

"What's next?" Fred asked.

Kurt told them, "Now we have an opportunity. If that over-watch Sentinel didn't get a fix on our position we'll have some room to maneuver and take the initiative."

"Maneuver where?" Holly asked.

"Zone 67," Kurt said. "It's the center of everything. If there's any technology to be recovered other than broken Sentinel parts, it's going to be there."

"Patrols get denser the farther north we've gone, sir," Dante noted.

"It'll be dusk soon," Kurt said, "enough time to circle back to Blue Team's dropship. The sun will be setting and we'll fly it in low, get some camouflage from the long shadows. The rocks in these canyons have been baking all day and we'll have thermal cover, too."

Kurt surveyed his team. "Unless there's a better idea?"

His gaze fell on Dr. Halsey as she and Chief Mendez made their way down the valley

slope. She stared at him as if she could see through his mirrored faceplate.

"Okay, stay sharp. Olivia, Will, Linda, scout ahead. No COM chatter. Let's get this done."

Dr. Halsey watched Kurt give detailed instructions to the Spartans.

She didn't care what his orders were so much as how he was saying it, and the effect it had on them. He spoke with confidence, but there was also warmth and pride in his voice. She'd never heard any Spartan so demonstrative. Certainly Kelly would crack the rare joke, but that was just a layer of emotional armor.

Kurt was different.

The Spartans, young and old, responded to him. There was the usual Spartan stoicism and no questions asked, but there were also nods, slight tilts of their heads—the involuntary indication of rapt attention. Kurt was their leader now.

That fact might serve her well in the upcoming crisis.

Of course he was hiding something about his SPARTAN-IIIs. If the mute psychologically damaged Lucy was any indication of what this secret was, Dr. Halsey could only guess at its horrors.

But as the end neared, she would have no choice but to trust Kurt. She would have to trust them all to forgive the lies she had told about the treasure trove of Forerunner technologies.

CHAPTER

THIRTY