Halo: Equestrian Campaign

You examine the four soldiers standing at attention in front of you. All of them are ODST’s, each one armed to the teeth with weapons, explosives, and medical supplies. Going down the line Calvin had introduced them as Chris, the teams long range weapons specialist. His armor shone like the sun when the light hit it, as if it had been polished several times a day for the past week; and looking into his visor was like looking into a mirror.

Second is Tyler, heavy weapons and demolition expert. He’s a large man, nearly as tall as yourself. His armor is a dark grey with several plates shaded orange, and strapped to his chest is a sapper rack that’s missing half of its contents.

The third is Brendan, close quarters combatant. He is shorter than the others, but what he lacks in height he made up in his physical build. His tight-fitting CQB armor is a charcoal black, except his visor which is a light blue.

Last comes Daniel. He is the medic, but he looks more like a fighter than a healer. His armor, which at one time must have been a dark green, was scorched an ashen grey in several spot. Plus, his helmet was ‘decorated’ with several carvings that consisted of two X’s where his eyes would be, and five vertical lines crudely scratched into his visor where his mouth was.

They, along with Calvin and yourself, are the best soldiers on the “UNSC Thermopylae,” and you are all ready to risk your lives on a mission with only a thirty-three percent chance of success. You're desperate, and most likely going to die. Everyone knew that the chances of success were slim, but did they know it was this bad. Suddenly, Calvin answers your question.

“Alright gentlemen, time to get saddled up for one hell of a ride!” He booms, “We’re flying head-on into that Covenant carrier, set on taking it out from the inside. We all know the risks, and its most likely we wont even make it to the ship. On the off chance we do make it inside we’re going to split into two groups; group A, that’s us, will head for the engine room while group B, which consists of everyone else, will head towards the bridge. Group B will act as both a second demolition team and a distraction for us, they‘ll get the crews attention while we set the charges by the engine. If they make it to the bridge then they’ll set charges there as well. None of us plan on getting out of this one alive so remember. jumping feet first into Hell isn’t our job today, making sure its crowded when we get there is. Am I right?”

“Sir,  yes sir!” the other ODST’s shout in reply.

“Of course I am,” he yells back. “Now lets get going!”

With that, the four special operatives climb into the Pelican. Leaving you and Calvin alone. A minute of silence passes by before you speak.

“Orders, sergeant?”

He looks at you. most likely rolling his eyes, but his expressions are hidden beneath his helmet.

“Solus, you know I’m not authorized to give you commands. Plus, you’re the one who’s leading this op. Me, I’m just piloting the shuttle.”

“Not true,” you reply. “You’re a SPARTAN too, we’re on the same level. Don’t forget that.”

Calvin throws his hands above his head as he gives an irritated groan.

“Fine! Here’s an order for you if you want one so badly. Get the ships main battery online, just shut up with all the mushy stuff!”

You couldn't stop yourself from laughing a bit at Calvin’s outburst. Before boarding the ship you shoot Calvin a smart salute in an attempt to annoy him further. You know your successful when you hear him mutter a few curse words to himself.

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You flip another switch on the pelicans dashboard, causing a holo-screen to flicker into existence. It displays a diagram of the pelicans 40MM rotary cannon which is positioned beneath the chin of the shuttle. After a few button presses you hear a light *click* and a notification appears in front of you on the transparent screen.

It spells ‘main battery armed’ in bright green.

“forward gun is running green, Calvin.” you confirm to your teammate who is sitting next to you in the pilot seat.

“Good,” he responds as he fiddles with the piloting controls. “Danny, status report on co-pilot systems.”

The other ODST slides out from beneath the control panel. His helmet was smothered with a thick, dark liquid, that contrasted perfectly with his silver visor.

“Just finished, the co-pilot is now fully functional.” replies Daniel as he wipes the greasy substance off of his headgear.

You open up the ships report, and verify his statement.

“The whole shuttle is running green. All systems are a go, we are ready to take off.”

Calvin nods, and signals for everyone to strap in to their seats. In a few moments everyone is buckled up and ready to go.

“Countdown initiated,” booms Leon’s voice over the intercom. “Opening haul door in five…. four…..three ……. two…….one.”

“Haul door released.”

You witness the massive docking door in front of your slide open to reveal the dark void of space. Time seems to slow down as the Pelican's engines roar to life, and you cant help but feel a chill run down your spine.

This is it.

As Calvin and Daniel guide the shuttle through the massive exit you get a strange feeling in your gut, a feeling that your life is about to change forever.

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The Zealot knelt before the altar he had erected in his cabin. Several candles and a bowl of incense were spread out on top of the religious table with great care.

“-and welcome us into your divine kingdom at the end of great journey. So let it be.”

After his prayer had finished he shifted into a sitting position. His black eyes slowly shut, and his breathing slowed as he relaxed his mind. Too many things had been troubling him; the prophets, the humans, this new planet. It was all so much to take in, and it was moments of tranquility such as this that that had to be taken advantage of. Used to reflect on troubling events.

His meditation was cut short as the door to his room slid open.

“Ben-Hassrathee!” came the voice of a squeaky voice of a Unggoy minor. “Human shuttles are charging the ship, we need you on the bridge!”

The Zealot jumped to his feet and sprinted past the Unggoy. This was something he had to see with his own eyes. Human shuttles assaulting his vessel? It was wither an alarming display of bravery, or desperation.

A moment later he arrived at the ships command center. Every pilot, engineer, and technician was working furiously.

He ran forward to the large glass window that dominated the other end of the room. Through it he could make out the distant image of the human Frigate, but several other shapes caught his attention. At first they were no more than tiny specs, but as they grew closer the Zealot could identify them. They were human ships, dubbed ’Pelicans', and there were dozens of them.

The sangheli didn't know what they were planning, but he imagined it wouldn’t be good for his ship.

“Turn the ship!” he shouted “aim our starboard turrets at the incoming star-crafts, and fire at will!”

The assault carrier gave a sudden jolt as it made a sharp turn on its axis. In a matter of second the vessel had made a ninety-degree turn so that the right side was facing the incoming Falcons.

Then a great boom sounded as every single cannon on the covenant ship fired into the oncoming mob of human vehicles.

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