-Begin Halo Legends Original Soundtrack: Cairo Suite 1-
A̶u̶g̶u̶s̶t̶ ̶1̶7̶,̶ ̶2̶5̶1̶7̶
9̶3̶0̶ ̶h̶o̶u̶r̶s̶
R̶e̶a̶c̶h̶ ̶F̶l̶e̶e̶t̶c̶o̶m̶ ̶M̶i̶l̶i̶t̶a̶r̶y̶ ̶C̶o̶m̶p̶l̶e̶x̶
-(David's Pov)-
"...And that completes this morning's class material. Candidate Zero-Zero-Three, do you have any questions on what was covered?" In front of me, the blue form of Déjà, Halsey's Artificial Intelligence, shimmered as it peered down at me whilst I finished taking notes on the lesson. The program took the form of a woman with dark hair wearing a white toga, whilst also barefoot.
I was a bit perplexed by the avatar, 'Dr. Halsey said her form was based on a 'Greek Goddess.' But I still have no idea what that meant. She looked like some random lady with a white dress and no shoes.
"No, ma'am," I responded evenly. The material being covered has been slowing down considerably lately..
"Very well then. The time is currently 930 hours Eposz Standard Time (EST), your morning physical training session with Chief Petty Officer Franklin Mendez will begin in approximately 30 minutes at training ground Delta," she routinely informed with her same, even, unchanging, and monotone voice that she was always using, "Additionally, Dr. Halsey has notified me that she requests a video call tonight,"
I perked up hearing about the chance to talk to someone besides the chief, as I had heard him referred to, and Déjà. Catherine had been gone since about mid-May, along with Lieutenant Keyes. She didn't tell me what she would be doing, and I didn't ask. If I needed to know, then she would tell me; otherwise, it would probably be best if I kept my nose out of certain things.
But if I had to guess, then I'd say she would probably be meeting other candidates or at the very least, observing them. Which made sense, there would be no other reason for her to be out of her laboratory going on 4 months at this point. And if it were the case that she would be out in public, it would also explain the Lieutenant's presence. Knowing the doctor, his attachment to her was probably forced by her bosses in ONI which she mentioned before.
"Understood," I acknowledged to the construct before it disappeared into motes of light that fluttered back to the base of its projector.
Grabbing my supplies, I made my way back to the barracks that I was put up in. After dropping all of it off, I immediately proceeded to the training ground where my instructor awaited.
Along the way, I glanced into the reflective metal wall and couldn't help but run my hand over my newly bristly hair, courtesy of the chief. Thinking back, I couldn't help but recall my first day of training…
…
..
.
(Flashback Start)
I yawned, holding my hand to my mouth as I stretched my jaw. To my left, the sun was just beginning to rise from behind the mountains. Shedding a bit of light on the beaten dirt pad that I stood on at 5 o'clock in the morning. Stretching my arms above my head, I couldn't help but look around in anticipation.
'I was told to be here at five. So why isn't anyone here,' Yesterday, I had been informed that starting today, I would begin physical training ahead of the rest of the class. Catherine had said that I was underdeveloped physically compared to most of my peers. Therefore, she had arranged for the head instructor of the program to 'acclimate me to standard'.
From everything I had heard about military officers from Lieutenant Keyes, they hated when people were late. So as I continued to look around, I began to get a sinking feeling, "Don't tell me I'm at the wrong place," I muttered to myself. And just as I turned to leave, I heard a loud shout-
"CADET! WHY ARE YOU AT THE WRONG PLACE!" I jolted in place, almost falling over as the voice startled me from the spot. Whirling around, I found a tall man with a black mustache and a face littered with small scars from chin to forehead. He wore a green combat cap and complementary green combat attire with black boots.
'That is a big guy,' I thought promptly upon seeing him. The man looked like he ate nails for breakfast; he was even physically broader than Lieutenant Keyes. 'Mendez' was inscribed on a nametag placed on the left of his chest. He approached me with a passive expression, walking with a posture that I had seen from Keyes but with a more pronounced upright posture.
"I-I thought I was supposed to be at training ground Bravo-"
"CADET, DID I GIVE YOU PERMISSION TO SPEAK!" he shouted once again, cutting off my words. His face betrayed no emotion even though his voice was so loud, "I am Instructor Mendez, and that is the only way you will refer to me. From this day on, you will do what I say, exactly when I say it and how I say it. Insubordination will not be tolerated and will be punished. Am I clear, cadet?"
"Yes, instructor!" I replied quickly
"Then let us begin," he said, and what followed was the first of many days that I would finish collapsing into bed. I did exercise upon exercise, all with the weirdest names, but managed to burn my lungs or muscles. I ran until I threw up, dragged myself through mud until I looked like a swamp monster, and much, much more.
(Flashback End)
Continuing to observe myself in the reflection, my eyes studied everything from my head to the clothes I wore. My torso was covered by a clean black tank top fitting snug to my chest with what was my candidate number, '003', in white on the left edge of my pec, nearly the same place that instructor Mendez's name tag was. The tank top made things breathable and was light, but offered no protection to the environment.
I winced slightly as I felt my side brush up against the clothing. I clutched my right lat with my left hand as I felt it burn. My side looked like it had been ripped apart by a cat with deep red blistering scratches running down it like a cutting board. A consequence from sliding down ropes and general chafing from the rubbing of the top.
Besides that, the pants were rather unremarkable. Simple two-pocket army green camouflage pants that were tucked into my black boots. Both of them became incredibly difficult to move in when wet, and I have found my calves exhausted from trudging around with them on. My feet have also peeled from the water blisters, not just from training in the water but from the sweat that pools in the bottom of the soles.
I exhaled sharply, pulling my hand away, and stretched my neck as I approached the door leading to the outside training grounds. The blisters, the soreness, and the scratches would heal. They always did, and besides, the day was just beginning, and there were bigger fish to fry.
'I wonder if the doctor will be returning soon,' I thought before I jogged quickly to the training ground as I saw that the chief was at his spot early.
======================================================================
A̶u̶g̶u̶s̶t̶ ̶1̶7̶,̶ ̶2̶5̶1̶7̶
1̶1̶3̶0̶ ̶h̶o̶u̶r̶s̶
E̶r̶i̶d̶a̶n̶u̶s̶ I̶I̶
E̶l̶y̶s̶i̶u̶m̶ ̶C̶i̶t̶y̶
-(3rd Pov)-
While David pushed himself through another brutal training session, Dr. Halsey and Lieutenant Keyes had just arrived in Elysium City-unaware that they were about to come into contact with a future legend of human history…
"I feel like a damn fool wearing this again." Walking through the streets of the urban center, the undercover Jacob Keyes roughly yanked the tie around his neck forward to breathe. He stood wearing a grey business 3 piece suit with accompanying red tie and chestnut dress shoes.
Outwardly, he appeared as a sharply dressed businessman, but underneath his clothing, he was sweating buckets thanks to the particularly hot day Elysium City was experiencing. He gritted his teeth even as he felt small blisters being rubbed into his heels.
"You look like a father trying to get his daughter into a decent school," Catherine snapped back as she walked beside him. She wore a white cardigan with pink accents that matched the pink sundress she had on beneath it. Along with them, she wore a pair of pink heeled shoes and a pink sunhat.
[Author's Note: No shit this is what she wears during the Fall of Reach Movie. Don't shoot me, I thought it looked dumb too, but I also don't know what women wear]
"Yet, I don't have a daughter," the man felt the need to point out, staring at the bags underneath Catherine's eyes.
"And I don't have a pony. Focus," she sarcastically responded whilst still leading them to Elysium City's Primary Education Center.
They walked in silence for a couple of moments as Jacob silently studied the woman in front of him. He'd noticed it about a week ago. The dark circles around her eyes, the sudden short outbursts she occasionally had, and the copious amounts of coffee he had seen her digest were enough to guess that something had gone wrong enough for her to be this sleep deprived. It was a far cry from the usual pragmatic and collected scientist, but it wasn't any of his business.
'Stay out of her way,' he clearly remembered being told, and yet he still couldn't help but feel frustrated. After finding out that all of the observed subjects happened to be children, he wasn't buying the cover story he'd been fed about the creation of an intergalactic academy for the 'best and brightest' or whatever bullshit he was told.
'I bet that kid, David, is part of it,' it sounded like a guess at first, but with each visit, it felt more and more certain.
Ahead of him, the doctor was seething silently, 'I can't believe they cut my damn funding again,' she couldn't help but think about, 'I proposed 300 to begin with, and was met with promises and guarantees. Then they halved my budget, and I didn't say anything then, and went along with it. And now, after finalizing the 150 candidates, they cut my legs out from under me again,' Her eyes were filled with an icy glare as she continued to walk.
…
..
.
In the middle of Elysium Academy's playground, a child no older than 6 stood atop a small mound covered in green grass. The boy was wearing a green and white horizontal striped t-shirt and a pair of dark shorts with a pair of sneakers. He stood in a defensive posture with his back to a flagpole and an attached flag placed at the center of the hill. Below him were 4 kids at the same age as him with similar casual wear.
With a smug smile, the boy at the top of the hill looked down at the others, "I am the King!" he shouted with excitement, looking at his opponents.
The boys at the bottom were all sweating, watching his display of dominance, "How is he so good at this?" one of them asked in general.
"I have no idea, but he can't fight all of us on at once, can he?" One of them offered as an alternative.
The boy standing at the top of the hill heard them and snorted with a smile, "Bring it on, guys!" he called out, and so they all began to run up the turf.
"Hyah!"
The first boy, upon reaching the peak, was kicked in his stomach before he could bring his hands up to defend himself, "Agh!" he wheezed before falling and rolling backwards down the hill.
The other three made sure to attack in sync. John immediately took action. The first boy to make it to the top went to grab the current king, but John smirking reached into a pocket in his shorts and splattered a mixture of dirt and sand into one of the boy's eyes, "AHHH! What the heck John. We said no cheap shots!" he screamed before also being kicked after he went down to his knees to wipe his eyes.
"There are no cheap shots in a battle!" he yelled back before taking a punch to the mouth for getting distracted, but the smile was still prevalent on his face.
Turning to face the final two opponents, he dodged another fist before landing some sloppy punches to the kid's stomach. Another wild punch flew in, and again John evaded before stepping into the other kid's space and headbutting him sharply into his nose.
From the pained cry and the trace amount of blood smothered onto John's forehead, the kid might have just broken his nose. John, unfazed by the yelp, grabbed him and shoved him into his teammate before both fell and rolled down the hill together.
"Nice try, but I've got the high ground," John gloated as he stood atop the mound, the victor and the king for this session of recess.
…
..
.
"Well, what do you think?" Catherine asked as she, along with Jacob, sat on a bench observing the King of the Hill match that had just taken place.
Inwardly, the Lieutenant was surprised to hear her ask for his opinion, 'She hasn't asked what I'd thought before,' he remarked to himself. He played it cool not letting any change in expression appear on his face.
A moment of thinking later, Jacob spoke his mind, "He's brutal and ruthless, but other than that, he seems like a regular 6-year-old boy," he said with a calm tone.
"Regular?" Halsey asked with slight exasperation, "That boy just took on four of his classmates at once and won. Though he is undisciplined, he has the potential for greatness," she said as if pointing out the obvious.
For most of the past conversations, the Lieutenant, after getting push back from the doctor, would drop the topic and change the subject, but not this time. This time, the man wanted to say what he'd been holding back for months, "Catherine, we have been observing children. What kind of potential are you talking about-"
"That boy could be worth more than an entire fleet of destroyers, Jacob," Catherine cut in, "He could be worth more than a thousand Lieutenants, and far more than even me. Any of these children that we have observed would be, and they might even be the difference between peace and an unwinnable war," she spoke, keeping her voice low but her tone became increasingly more strict, as if what she spoke was fact.
Finally Jacob decided to rip off the band-aid that had covered him for the past couple of months, "What are you talking about? They're just kids, they shouldn't be part of this war at all. Maybe, when they're older and can make the decision but not now," he said slamming his fist down on the edge of the bench beside him.
But instead of pressing on and getting the answers he wanted about the true nature of the program he had been helping, he stopped. Keyes knew the implications of what the program might be about, and he couldn't help but hesitate, 'I am treading on dangerous ground,' he told himself before mentally sighing, 'Even if I change her mind, I cannot stop ONI. Once they set their eyes on something they'll get what theywant eventually,' even with his limited knowledge he understood that ONI wasn't something he shouldn't cross-something he couldn't cross, 'And if the doctor were to leave the program would they push ahead uncaring about the program's increased possibility of failure?' he asked himself unsure of what he should do.
In just a mere moment, his resolve began to wane.
"You don't think I understand that?" Halsey snapped, "Over the course of twenty-three years, approximately seventeen million four hundred fifteen thousand sixty-five people have died during the war with the insurrection, and there is no end in sight. My project, though not perfect, is our best chance at true peace, a victory to end this civil war. And you know, just as well as I do, that victory requires sacrifice. We cannot have our cake and eat it too. I will do what is necessary to ensure prosperity to humanity, and I trust that you will do the same," she finished.
Jacob sat staring at her for a minute, silently as he brought his hand to cover his mouth and rubbed his lips with his palm, a sign that he was thinking. His eyes gleamed with uncertainty as they darted around, trying to find something to outright refute what he'd just been told, to find some hole in her argument, but a part knawed at him, wishing he'd just accept what had been said for once. To acknowledge that the woman in front of him held the better moral position and just drop it, going back to the lighthearted banter they'd engaged in for most of the trip.
After what felt like a century, the lieutenant stood up, sighing, "I am going to prepare the ship," he said quietly before walking away. He couldn't say that the doctor was wrong, but he wouldn't say that she was right either, 'The whole situation….tastes like shit,' all of it was rotten to the core, and just when it felt like there was a right way to do something. Another dilemma popped up to throw a wrench into the mix.
Catherine sat watching his back as it slowly left. 'He's a good man,' that confirmed a previous observation she had, and it was something that she admired in the man. Sure, he was brave, intelligent, and charismatic like most other officers in the UNSC, but what set Jacob Keyes apart from anyone else in Catherine Halsey's mind was that he would stand up for what he felt was right. Something that had become uncommon in this age, where people would prefer to just put their head down and skate by.
Sighing lightly to herself, Catherine turned to face the playground again. The boy John was still there, sitting on top of his hill. It seemed that the boy had chased away any potential attackers with his previous demonstration.
Seeing this, the doctor stood up and slowly made her way to him. She secretly powered on a recorder before speaking, "Hello, what is your name?" she asked politely
"I'm John," the boy said straightforward enough.
"Nice to meet you, John," Halsey spoke kindly, "I saw you playing a game with your classmate earlier; war was it?" she asked as a type of formality.
"King of the hill, but mom says I am too rough," he said proudly before turning a bit embarrassed as he finished the statement.
"She's just worried about you," the doctor reassured him. Before reaching into her thin coat, "So you like games? Well, I have a game for you," she said, drawing a small coin from her pocket.
==================================================================
And the rest is history.
There'll be a small intermission chapter before we dive head first into training. That'll come out this week, prolly wednesday.
That's all I got for now hope you enjoy it. Drop any questions or comments I always like reading them.