- CORTEXIA SATELLITE FACILITY
APRIL 29TH 2558 12:24PM
ODST: Samuel Cross

I brushed my hand through my light brown hair remembering how my mother always loved to count the golden strands of hair hidden between the brown. A soft smile broke out on my face, but was soon replaced with a uncomfortable look of shock and pain. I had to sit and watch. Why? Why me? She was innocent and she never did anything wrong! I grabbed my head and sharply scolded myself, "stop it Samuel, focus on the fight, that's why you started all of this! She will be avenged just like you promised yourself."
I heard Vexis's voice echoing its way to me through the halls, "hay, Sam where are you we need you over here."
I stood up and replied, "I'm coming, I'm coming don't worry," just as he walked around the corner with his pistol drawn and pointed straight at me. My eyes shot open in shock, "Vex? What the hell are you doing?" Vexis's visor glinted into my eyes blinding me. That's when I heard the shot. He looked at me and grinned as I heard a loud thud behind me, "your brother owes me an expensive cold one for keeping your ass alive." I looked behind me and saw a minor elite on the floor with his energy dagger gripped in his hand. I turned back and nodded to Vexis in gratitude, "so any word from HQ? What's our next move?"

Vexis placed his pistol back into the holster, moved his hand to the window and looked out over the view of the Zero Michigan's crash site, "that right there is our next order Sam, KC said that we have to secure and protect the Zero Michigan until they send transport pelicans."
I looked to the sight in pure shock. We were only a group of four, how can we secure and protect a battle cruiser the size of the Michigan. I turned as I heard George and James walking towards us down the corridor. James stood next to George, "so Sam what's the call, should we follow orders or stay here and defend?"
I shook my head in disappointment that he would even ask such a ignorant question, "what vehicles does the facility have around here?"
George instantly spoke before anyone else, "well they have one standard machine gun warthog, two troop transport hogs and one falcon." My mind slowly grew together a plan that was fool proof, I knew it would work, or I more or less hoped it would, "George you and Vexis inside the falcon, get someone to fly it for us, James and I will take the MG warthog and take the far east road then meet up with you two at the Michigan. Clear?" They all responded with a simple, "yes."

Our team broke apart after those final words. I walked off towards the garage of the facility and got in the driver seat of the warthog while James climbed up to the gunner position on top of the turret at the back, we all arranged a time of launch for our rescue mission which was at exactly 13:00. As soon as the clock struck one I floored the pedal and James almost fell off of the stand, the road I had to drive wasn't very even since it was a dirt road leading towards the excavation site of the research faculty; the place where they found the artifact. It didn't really matter to me, all I wanted to do was what I was told to. I used my earpiece to communicate with the other two, they where a little late since the pilot of the falcon didn't want to allow us to use even though it was military fitted. Vex had his sniper reloaded and so did George with his shotgun, they were ready for war. I don't blame them anything could happen and it might turn bad at any moment. As I drove, a lot went through my mind, I had no control over my thoughts but it was all bad. I wasn't focusing on the road, that's when it happened. I drove over a security mine and it flipped our hog into a barrel roll. The momentum threw James off and I was knocked unconscious against a tree, the windshield was completely shattered, my face was badly bruised and full of cuts from the glass and the rest of my body was bruised but not cut. Blood was streaming down my face.
When I woke up I was tied with a black rope like material and with an elite standing in front of me fully unarmed. I looked at him in total disgust and even my tone said I wasn't happy to see it's face, "what do you want?"
It looked down at me, "to help you defend your planet human." I was confused. Was this the same elites that killed their own kind back at the facility? Are they rogue or is there something more to it, I had to know. I looked around and it was definitely some covenant thing I was in, "who are you and where am I?"
It replied sternly, "I am Èra, I am the leader of the Heritage, my co commander Ikal is currently on guard position with your human kind and to answer your question, your in the underbelly of a scarab." After that he cut me loose and helped me up. His skin felt like burnt leather, rough, almost lizard like. 

He walked me out of the scarab and that's when I saw it, the Zero Michigan stripped bare and ruined.
I felt my forehead, looked at my hands but both were fine. I felt the blood running down my face and I heard the sound of the bones in my hands breaking before the crash ended. He looked down at me, "I was the one that healed you, your team is waiting for you in the main hull of the ship with its captain, they asked me to accompany you so I shall." He said it so boastfully.  The scarab soon lowered it's rear body and a unarmed revenant was waiting at the bottom. I honestly didn't like this idea but I went with it and got into the passenger side and let him drive.