M5: Rumble in the Jungle

[TinCanHitman]

M5: Rumble in the jungle

NOTE: The UNSC deployment zones have been cleared out via orbital bombardment so troops can be deployed with relative ease. From the basecamp and ODST drop zone out though is thick forest until you reach the swaths of land cleared by covenant debris. 

Fleet Admiral David Vardy
Bridge - UNSC Kilimanjaro
Exiting Slipspace around unknown planet.

Ships winked into existence above the unknown planet, the angular UNSC ships rumbling out of their scar like slip space holes. The two fleets had merged before jumping from the covenant super carrier. The reinforcement fleet had significantly added to their numbers in case the Covenant managed to receive reinforcements. Years of experience had taught the Humans that every ship would count in a prolongued fight. However, they hoped to not reach that point, instead opting for a quick OP. Move in, take the HVT and mop up before any more uglies arrived. It was simple in thought, but not in execution, as the planet itself would hinder the most basic troop deployments. The giant trees gave a formidable shield to them, bringing to mind the Vietnam war. Guerrilla tactics, dense jungle fighting, the American forces using primitive helicopters to land, fight, and escape. It was a hectic war, and this battle was not looking to be any easier. In addition, the covenant had an impressive array of defenses that rendered any kind of orbital bombardment impossible.

At the head of this formidable UNSC force was the cruiser Kilimanjaro, a massive warship that was armed to the teeth.

"Calculations complete" announced Lambert, the shipboard AI.

"Good. Status of ship that escaped?" David replied, looking at his TAC PAD.

"Near full capacity. It appears that it has landed on the surface and been made a temporary base of operations." replied Lambert, his eyes streaming with calculations.

"Hmm. And likely constructing a beacon." David mused. "Time to send in the marines I think. I think they could use some exercise after being cooped up all this time."

Looking at OPS, David nodded at Kim. "Whats the topography of the area where the Covenant are? Are there any sites that we could construct a base at that is well defended yet easily accessible?"

Nodding, Kim's fingers danced across his terminal. "Yes sir, I think I have a couple of sites in mind."

Nodding with satisfaction, David then consulted his TAC PAD again, and called up the resources he had available to him. He had the marines, he had the weaponry, he had the resources available.

Looking at Lambert, His face grim, David got up and walked to the viewport. "Send in the marines. Send in ODST advance scouts, This isn't a blowthrough OP. Lets do this right. Once the ODST's are in place, start sending down pelicans to start setting up a forward base. Once deployed, the marines will start scouring the place for useful resources and scouting the base."

Nodding, Lambert started calculating and Kim at OP's started sending the necessary calls and orders.

Striding over to the Holotank, David nodded to Lambert to initiate a fleet wide broadcast.

"This is Admiral David Vardy." David began. "We have found the Covenant ship in question. It looks as if they are setting up a temporary base and looks as though they are wanting to set up a beacon for re-inforcements. I'm not about to let that happen. You will be receiving encrypted orders. Lets do this right. Vardy out."

Nodding, David signalled for Lambert to close the connection. Walking back to his chair, David sat down and started typing up his orders. Turning back to Lambert, David nodded. "Compress, Encrypt and send to all Commanders. I want to see boots on the ground within an hour."

As he digitally sent off the information, Dave once again switched his attention to looking out the window. As he stared at the planet, he couldn't help but wonder what would be in store. Although twenty-four vessels was far more than enough to take on the Covenant garrison, he couldn't help but feel that things wouldn't go exactly to plan...

---

Covenant Crash Site
Unnamed Planet

R'ha 'Katolai, Field Marshal and commander of the disastrous mission that had brought them to this gods' forsaken world had stood vigil over the Imperial Admiral for almost a day now. As the highest ranking warrior on the planet, it would be his duty to do so until the inevitable battle came. As he contemplated, the dull thud of Sangheili boots on Covenant steel broke him from his reverie. A flash of gold caught his eye as someone walked into the chamber. It was either Sorsa or Til, as no others bore the armor of a zealot here.

"What is it that is so important as to disturb me, Field Master?" he half-growled as he turned to face the intruder. Surprise and recognition lit up his face as he noticed the runes and cloak. Immediately he bowed, a sign of respectful greeting, but not of deference. His well practiced eyes had seen these runes before, and they signified an equal.

"Forgive me, Battle Priest. I had assumed that the only Zealots present were myself and my Legionaries."

"No offense is taken, Field Marshal," replied the Zealot, not returning the bow. Odd that he would break custom in that manner. He was significantly smaller in stature than R'ha, but commanded an aura of respect that could almost be felt. "The mistake is understandable. Now, call your officers. I have need of you."

"Why do you choose to reveal yourself at this moment?" queried the R'ha, mildly incredulous. Where had this Priest come from?

"That is hardly important. I have seen your men, Field Marshal. Their moral is failing. They need a leader who can restore faith in the Covenant and in themselves. With the impending Heretic onslaught, I will rally our forces while you yourself may focus on battle. Now, call your field masters."

"You would give me orders?" growled the Field Marshal. The zealot gave a somewhat forced smile, before responding,

"I do apologize. It would please me if you would call in your officers. I intend to make a transmission to your warriors."

---

Electricity was alive among the covenant horde. The ranks sat in the muggy heat of the forest, the local wildlife even seemed muted by the silence. It was the sound of the primitive engines that the humans used was deafening, as they swooped over the covenant crash. The few banshees that the covenant had immediately took flight, preparing for the incoming offensive. Ultras shouted orders as they dug into their defenses. 


Covenant Yanme'e buzzed as they flew around the camp, the high level of oxygen giving them added strength. All the covenant were energized, as Kig-yar and sangheili alike tightly gripped weapons. Unggoy barked with anticipation and Lekegolo rumbled as they bore their shields. This was not an ordinary fight for the covenant, as a matter of fact, it was the opposite of what they were used to. They were not the hunters, they were the hunted. To many it was a sobering fact as they watched the human ships breach the atmosphere and fly over head, the canopy having guarded many of them. 


"Brothers! In this darkness let the light of the prophets guide you in this trying time. Their light eternal! The Forerunners guide us on these eve of battle! As the blood red light of the coming star lights this planet's shade, the Forerunners are with us, in everything. If the gods are with us, who could possibly side with the heretics?" A voice suddenly cried out across the battlenet. Suddenly all active monitors began to show a gilded Zealot, wearing holy runes on each shoulder pauldron. Along with this he also wore a cloak, bearing the holy symbol of the minor prophet of Anger. Beside him stood three other Zealots, each one several steps apart.


"Brothers! Fear not! In this moment allow me to bless you all so that we may be of unity! I am the Battle priest Yinji Ra'ha Torai! I have spent much time among you as a soldier under the honored soldier Ekdo Vo'ha Sausamai. It is under him that the minor prophet of Anger's fears were validated. We have strayed from the path! Honor has blinded the command, and because of this, from here forth I will be using my holy rank as battle priest to work in conjunction with the ranking officers! We will lead with holy fire! We will triumph with righteous fury! 

For Honor!

For faith! 

For the great journey!"


The covenant forces let out a massive, cacophonous battle cry, shaking the leaves themselves, and for the time being, they were invincible.

---

NC = Not Completed
S = Successful
F = Failed

Current UNSC Objectives

1) Establish Base Camp (S)

2) Scout Enemy Base and strength (S)

3) Capture enemy Leader and extract to UNSC Kilimanjaro (NC)

4) Destroy Covenant Beacon (NC)

5) Destroy or Capture enemy base for tech and supplies (NC)

Current UNSC Military Strength

Vessels:
- 2 Carriers
- 3 Cruisers
- 5 Destroyers
- 7 Frigates
- 12 Corvettes

Ground Forces:
- 200 Mongooses
- 60 Warthogs
- 20 Gauss Warthogs
- Marine Battalion (~700, all mounted)
- ODST Company (~100)


Current Covenant Objectives

1) Prevent the capture of the Imperial Admiral (NC)
2) Make contact with Covenant reinforcements (NC)
3) Protect the beacon (NC)
4) Drive the humans from the planet surface (NC)
5) Keep corvette's weapons and shields systems operational (NC)


Current Covenant Military Strength

Vessels:
- Crashed Corvette
- 15 Seraph Fighters
- 30 Banshees
- 10 Phantoms
- 5 Phantom Gunboats

Ground Forces/Fortifications:
- Pulse Laser Array
- Plasma Torpedo Array
- Shielding System
- 40 Ghosts
- 15 Revenants 
- 9 Shade Turrets
- 6 Makeshift Walls
- Covenant Sect (~300, partially mounted)
- 2 Mgalekgolo Pairs
- Yanme'e Swarm (~150)

Reminder

(What to expect on this thick jungle planet)

Thick Canopies- If you are a pilot, unless you are moving too and from starships, going into areas where trees have been cleared, the thick canopy will be impossible to get through. Also remember that thick canopies tend to block out sunlight to the forest floor below. 

Thick Forest- If you are moving through uncleared areas, remember that these areas are heavily forested and it will be hard to get through it all. 

Wild Life- This jungle planet is heavily oxygenated, meaning that the insect species that reside on this planet are massive, you will encounter these creatures during your time here. 

Thick Atmosphere- Because of the heavy oxygen content that allows the trees to be so massive and the bugs to be so large, the atmosphere is naturally thicker, meaning there will be turbulence entering and exiting the planets atmosphere. 

Large Trees- These trees are god damned gigantic, you will most likely not be climbing them anytime soon (unless you're a Kig-Yar). 

[Arbiter124]

Skirmisher Commando Rex

The male Kig-Yar Commando let out a bloodcurdling roar to his men.

"This is our time for triumph! It is our time to slaughter these pigs! Set up a defensive position in this area!" Rex snarled, Loh, Lun, Dom and the rest of his team setting up defensive positions. He himself hopped on top of a log, loading his needle rifle and scanning the brush with his HUD and eagle like eyesight.

The humans would come at any moment.

And they would be crushed like bugs.

Arbiter Tibur 'Muramai

Tibur's massive body clambered into the front defensive lines. He clutched his Concussion Rifle, awaiting the soldiers that blocked their path to salvation. His sleek, metal armor shined brightly in the sunlight, almost blocking out the vision of nearby soldiers. He pushed past and Ultra and a Minor Elite, walking straight up to the front lines, next to an Unggoy Heavy who was manning an MG turret.

"Let this finally begin." He growled, squinting at the forest with his one blood red left eye. He flashed on his energy sword.

It was time to spill blood.

Elite Minor Kalos 'Lorahee

The Minor paid no attention to the screams and bloodcurdling cries of nearby soldiers as he sat next to the Skirmisher Ultra, talking. However, a pair of Skirmisher Minors had come and urged Pik to join them. The Ultra denied the offer, and hissed them off to their standard positions. He had decided to stay with Kalos.

He was being quite friendly to the Elite. Perhaps Kalos had found a friend amongst the blood lust.

And now, his first mission began. He clutched his Carbine tightly, ordering his men to set up, PerPer on the MG turret, the rest of them behind cover, watching the Jungle with intense focus. Silence had taken the field of battle.

For the time being.

[Daenerys Targaryen]

Dani-047
UNSCS Kilimanjaro
HEV Bay 3
Gold Intro 

This one was a bit different, Dani had to admit. Chasing a damaged Covenant ship to a heavily forested world was something she, and most likely few other Spartans, had done in their many years of service. It was different, but challenges were something Dani thrived on. Silas had been shipped off, Gold Team was hers now and she would lead it just as efficiently as her former superior. "Spartan Gold Team, prepare for deployment." Announced the crisp robotic voice of the dumb AI over-seeing their marked HEV Bay. Soon after its words, Dani felt her pod swing outwards into the empty void of space. Far below lied a planet that seemed to be completely covered in forest, green on green from every angle, the amount of trees was astonishing, and from briefing, she knew them to be quite large. The Spartan took this moment to turn on her comms and speak to the other members of Gold Team. 

"Spartans, we are hot dropping into a heavily forested region, keep an eye on my pod." She reminded them, knowing that they didn't need it. They were not dropping into a clearing like most of the ODST's where planned to drop in, they'd be dropping right into the jungle below, closer to Covenant wreckage to assess Covenant barricades deployed and to find creative ways to destroy them. 

"Prepare to drop in 3... 2.... 1..." Clink. The last thing anchoring them to the gigantic hunk of metal floating above the planet was released, and Dani found herself falling toward the jungle below with the rest of Gold Team. The quick trip through the void of space was uneventful, the only things hanging in the sky were the rag-tag team of UNSC ships deploying their forces to the cleared spaces below. As they hit the thick oxygenated atmosphere though, things got turbulent. Dani's pod began to violently shake and shudder as it tore into the atmosphere, fire erupting around the metal coffin as it plummeted. 

"Spartans, atmosphere is rough, try to stay on course." Dani ordered as the planet below came closer and closer. Before she knew it, her pod smacked right into the green canopy and the view screen in front of her was immediately blocked by hundreds of thick leaves. The sound of leaves and smaller branches of the canopy snapping into her pod would have been deafening if she were not sealed tightly into her armor. The pod shook violently as it slipped down through the trees. Eventually, the tree canopy has left her, and she found herself falling into a whole other world. it was darker down here, the thick canopy blocking light. An unconscious shift of the eye switched on different imaging through her HUD as she scrutinized the area she was falling into. The descent was steady enough until her pod smacked into one of the trees thicker branches in its midsection, sending her pod into a violent into the thick bark of another tree. Thankfully, the pod bounced off yet again and clattered against more branches before smacking into the moist forest floor. On her side, the door was partially buried into the mush of the landscape. The landscape outside was cast in pitch black shadows and some spots of twilight. Today was going to be a long night... 

[Deleted]

Admiral Eric Klix
UNSCS Sratoga
Marathon II Super Heavy Guided Missile Cruiser

"Sir, twenty seconds until slip-space transition is complete!" The navigations officer reported. The Sratoga didn't jump with the rest of the fleet that had been assembled. High Command needed the Admiral at the last moment, providing a lapse within the time the fleet got reinforced to the time they slip-spaced towards their target. Fortunately, the Sratoga was already in route to the objective location when the fleet slip-spaced away from the SuperCarrier, meaning they'd arrive at roughly the same time if the calculations were correct. It turned out they were as the Sratoga tore into normal space, blue rippling as the exit matter from the slip-stream transition burned like a glowing eye in the darkness.

"We've arrived, sir!" The navigations officer chimed. While the Sratoga had managed to accurately hit the same time table, they were rather far away from the rest of Fleet Admiral David Vardy's fleet. Eric has slip-spaced in as a single unit, his fleet consisting of simply a Marathon II Cruiser. The rest of the fleet that was assembled was under Vardy's command. Truth be told; Eric didn't know what was happening. Was he under his own command, being that Vardy was a temporary Fleet Admiral, or was he under the TFA's command. Regardless, he would find out soon.

"We are roughly three and a half hours away from the main fleet at maximum sublight speed. We jumped in according to the time table we were given, but we were largely off course by over twenty thousand kilometers. Orders, sir?" The navigations officer asked. Eric thought for a moment before looking at the holographic table. At the distance, the long range scanners were providing an excellent picture for the HighCommand Brass member.

"Set a course for the fleet; maximum sublight speed." Eric ordered, satisfied that the space around the crashed Corvette was completely void of Covenant warships - which meant that the UNSC had a clear advantage over the Covenant. Thousands of human troops would be launched to the surface quickly, or so the Admiral assumed. With an overwhelming military advantage over a weaker enemy, you did the only thing logical. Overpower them. It was the exact same thing the Covenant was doing to humanity as the operation started.

"Course plotted, sir."

Eric nodded at the Navigation Officer's notification. Good he thought. As a battle experienced Admiral, however, he knew that they should be prepared; "Weapons. I want the MAC Systems warmed up at fifty percent and all ARCHER systems unlocked and prepared to fire. Disengage SHIVA safeties and MLA safeties, too."

"Si-"
"Just do it, Lieutenant. It's better to be prepared than not at all, no?"
"Yes sir."

[BasedGoody]

Unggoy Ultra Yaddap

The Ultra whipped his head to the side, and watched as guns got loaded, and soldiers got ready. This was it. The Ultra picked up his Plasma Pistol, and shoved himself off the ground. Turning his head 90 degrees, three other Unggoy looked up with wide eyes, scrambling around for weapons. Yad held out a hand to help Judded up, and he replied with a grunt. Slowly the Ultra opened his mouth, trying to find the words to say. They came to him automatically.

"Guys, we have come far. We have come long way, but we're'nt dead yet. So we keep going. We keep going, and we will win." He said, and sort of pumped his fist in the air. Three small cheers erupted, and they hopped around, finding a place to dig in. Yaddap followed the eager Unggoy, happy that he made a speech.


Unggoy Major Japkip

The Major's eyes snapped open to an orange Unggoy staring into his face. 

"You okay?" Japkip put his hand up to his stomach, and coughed deeply. "I thought you dead. Come on, hominids are here!" The Major nodded, and stood up, feeling dizzy. What had happened? Oh, yeah. Memories flooded back to him, the marines, and, Yidded. Wabip. And... Oh Styub. His file was all gone. Then what? He got to the hanger with a big guy Major's help, and then met up with some other Unggoy. After that, the General killed himself, and, wait... The General! His hand dropped to his waist, to find nothing. The sword! His eyes swung from place to place, and then back to the Minor who had resurrected him. He was eyeing some object, a shiny one. Kip wobbled over and snatched it out of his hands.

"Don't touch that!" He yelped, and the Minor gave him a confused look. "It's er, a present... From a friend." 

"That's a shiny present!" He said, still eyeing it.

"Yeah, well... Shuttup." Japkip mumbled, and walked away to look for some file to join.

[Deleted]

Major Johnathon B'Sheau Killinger
Pelican Foxtrot Two November
Leaving the Kilimanjaro UNSC Warship

The Major strapped himself calmly behind the pelican's pilot. As the Major of Task Force Seven Seven, and so far, as of what he knew, the commanding officer of the battalion; it was his duty to be on the field first - and if he survived long enough, be the last one off the field, too. The operative word being he survived long enough. Seven hundred soldiers lives were weighing his shoulders down significantly, but the Veteran Marine Officer had gotten used ot the responsibility and expectations of being relied upon. Hopefully the Major could lead the Marine Battalion to victory - hopefully.

"Foxtrot Two November ready to depart. Fight path filed, pre-flight checklist shows all systems green and operating within optimal perimeters, ordinance is fully loaded and the tank is full. Permission to depart." The pilot said as he put a manual back into a holder by the pilots dash. The pre-flight check. The response was muffled, so the Major couldn't hear it, but when the Pelican's engines begun to rumble he knew the pilot had received clearance to depart. The pelican glided into an airlock where the atmosphere cycled as the rear airlock doors closed and the forward airlock doors parted. The pilot jammed the throttle forward.

"Major Killinger. I thought you'd like to know that the Sratoga just dropped out of slip-space." The Pilot said over the comm channel. The Major clasped his hand on the Lieutenant's shoulder and shook lightly so he would avoid breaking the concentration the pilot needed to fly the Pelican Drop-Ship.

"Thank you," The Major said. "Hopefully I'll see her again."

The Pelican speed through space. Within a few minutes, the pelican's frame was vibrating as the pelican entered into the atmosphere of the planet. "Preparing orbital decent towards Landing Zone One." The Pilot informed. The Major unstrapped and grabbed support where he could. He moved into the 'blood tray' of the pelican - a fully loaded pelican with thirty five soldiers. The pelican was equipped with a troop deployment pod. A Platoon of Marines would secure the immediate area before more pelicans from the fleet landing with more troops. The Major suspected that the fleet was also using Albatross Dropships to land the vehicles and more marines.

He made his way, slowly, towards the back of the pelican and prepped his gear. He was outfitted with a MK280 Light Machine Gun and a BR55HB Service Rifle with a fore-grip; a weapon that he acquired from the SuperCarrier that matched his weapon loadout he used to use a while back - specifically an operation on a planet called 'Zenith', or perhaps that was the systems name. The Major couldn't remember, but he was glad to have it back.

"Five minutes!" The pilots voice came over the P.A.

The Major strapped a few more pieces of his armor on. He was wearing a standard Marine Battle-Dress-Uniform, identified by the brown coloring on the shoulder plates - compared to the Army's green. John took a steady breath in and closed his eyes, mentally preparing himself for the drop. He ran through a quick check list for himself. Everything was okay. While it would be a while for the full battalion to be set up, the forces he had at his command would have to be enough - and more than that, he'd have to set up a deployment zone using the surroundings he had available. The UNSC fleet bombarded the landing zones with MLA fire, but that left a question for the Major. Why didn't they just bombard the Corvette?

He knew the answer. The UNSC wanted this Imperial Admiral alive, not a smoldering corpse of gore, bones and blood.

The Pelican's forward velocity stopped as the aircraft begun to hover; the ramp opened up. They were roughly fifty feet above the ground. Smoking trees, creators from the MLA impacts and massive holes dug into the surface of this unnamed planet. While it wasn't the most... Leveled base of operations, it would have to do. The forest was too think to use tanks, unfortunately, which means they were restricted as an asset for the mission - or at least what the Major understood during the pre-operation briefing.

"Touch down. Hit it, Marines!" The Pilot said.

The Major was the first Marine on the planet and half way to his destination when the other Marines begun to unload. The Majors goal was to see how many pelican's were inbound. He looked up and squinted passed the suns glaring brightness to acquire his answer.

A crap load of pelican's was the answer. The UNSC was force deploying their troops. The Major spun around and examined the field of operation. "Major Killinger to all deploying marines. I was a eight point perimeter around the deployment zone. We need to secure the area before more Marines come. No point in setting up a F.O.B if it isn't secured. Killinger out." The Major said.

The eight point perimeter put the defensive Marines into the corners and middle of a square F.O.B. A Marine Team would be at each of the for corners while the other four teams would be in the middle, between those four corners. It was a good tactic that worked numerous times on the field.

"This is it..." Killinger muttered. "Let's go get us a Imperial Admiral."

[TinCanHitman]

Roy-001

Gold three

Roy sighed as he sat there in the pod, his eyes closed as he just sat and tried to not thinking of the metal coffin he had climbed into.

"Spartans, we are hot dropping into a heavily forested region, keep an eye on my pod."

Roy flashed his green LED light twice, signaling he understood. He gripped the inside of the pod as it unlatched and he felt his body hurtling at the surface. He felt the atmosphere as he punched through it, flying faster and faster until he hits the canopy above. His entire pod his, his teeth rattling in his head, as he tore through the branches and leaves, until finally he hits something. He was surprised, instead of sticking into the muddy earth he was skidding, then he hit a hard surface, like a wall.

He groaned and pulled the lever, his door blasting off and hitting the wall in front of him. He had actually landed in one of the massive trees. With a sigh he grabbed his gear. A MA5C with an underslung grenade launcher and a red dot radical, as well as a stockless shotgun. He also had his trusty satchel, its contents were one portable welding tool, four frag grenades, several clips for his assault rifle, shredder and AP, and four Pipe bombs. Every thing was there.

Roy looked out the hole and saw he was barely off the ground, he grunted and jumped off and landed. He was actually a bit away from Dani, but not from the covie front line. He blipped his position to her, and then moved forward towards the wreckage. It was a bit further, but eventually he came to the bustle of the covenant forces.

He scanned the front trying to assess their fortifications, when he spotted a towering creature. It was huge, with silver armor and a commanding voice as it worbbled commands at the soldiers around it. He sat, not expecting any thing to see him, as he scanned them further.

[McStubbsberry]

Private Scott Lugar
Inbound to Unknown Planet

The last half hour was a blur to Scott. He had been talking with the two officers for awhile when the call came to deploy. Scott remembered saluting the two men then running to his bunk. The soft thump from the bass had stopped and everyone was in a rush to the fight. He ran to his previously unknown bunk and haphazardly threw his bag in. As Scott was about to leave, he realized he had forgotten something important. The private ran back to his bag and retrieved his father's knife. The trip to the deck's armory was relatively uneventful, minus the rush of people. Scott met up with his squad and briefly met up with the fireteam. He recalled receiving a glare from the Lance Corporal for some reason. Private Lugar suited up and received his MA5 rifle with a nice compliment of clips and other gear. After that, he was on a Pelican and off into the void.

Scott had plenty of time to think on the way down to the planet's surface. He had a cold sweat and his stomach churned. A sudden urge to urinate came that forced Scott to sit in a more uncomfortable position within the harness. Lugar was scared, the thought of the unknown legitimately frightened him.

"Listen up," Staff Sergeant Naomi Kosovo shouted in the noise of the Pelican. "We'll be landing in a few minutes. A perimeter is supposed to be set up, so our squad will be securing the Northeastern corner of the area. Fireteam Alpha, you will be the tip of the spear, Bravo will act as a reserve a few meters behind. Good luck ladies and gentlemen, don't die before we get off the Pelican!"

There were other Sergeants barking out their orders on the dropship as well, but Scott didn't pay too much attention. He was finally getting what he wanted, a real combat mission.

"Hey, Private Lugar, you've got point. You better be the first one off this damned Pelican or your ass is mine!" Lance Corporal McLaughlin said from across Scott. "You got us into a special operations unit, you can be the first to die like a hero," the Corporal added coldly.

Scott was terrified now. "Thirty seconds," a Sergeant yelled out. The time ticked by faster than Scott would have liked. The doors had opened and the rush of hot, thick humid air hit him like a wave. He could see the ground coming closer and closer. The harness was off quickly and he had his rifle and pack in hand ready for the go. "Touch down! Give 'em Hell Marines," the pilot called out, he might as well have been millions of miles away because it was barely audible to Scott. The only thing that really roused him was the impact with the ground and he was up and running. The private was out of the back before anyone else, he wasn't going to be that Lance Corporals bitch. Within seconds, his face and body was soaked. He wasn't sure if it was his sweat or if the air was really that saturated.  

[Daenerys Targaryen]

Captain Lydia Adelle Morgan
UNSCS Bismark
Entering Real Space

Lydia was really getting too old for this s***, but she couldn't leave the UNSC another Captain short this late in the war. The aging captain didn't mind being assigned to active duty, there were many people her age still active in the UNSC. Medical sciences allowed people to live extraordinarily long so it was not even close to uncommon for her to be found on a ship. Her problem was where her ship was. Chasing after a downed super carrier for some alien the UNSC had barely any information about was a complete fools errand. She sometimes wondered if all the officers in fleetcom had died off and were replaced by five year olds. "Ma'am, exiting slip space in five seconds, I suggest you sit down." Offered Hera, the ships current smart AI. Lydia let out a small huff before striding back to her seat and plopping down. 

The hull of the ship shuddered as the vessel tore its way back into Einstein space, as soon as the transition was complete, the forward translucent titanium plates that acted as as view screen were filled with green. The planet below was covered in a thick coat of plants, that much could be ascertained from what she saw, the rest would be up to Hera to give an in depth report. 

"Beginning rudimentary scans of the planet below." Announced the AI, lights flickering around the bridge as new hard data crept into terminals. "Rocky planet, breathable atmosphere with a high oxygen-nitrogen ratio, immense jungles of Flora and Fauna, safe for deployment, but clear cutting would be nee... Oh, the rest of the fleet has already taken care of that." Within a moment, the holo table on the bridge flickered to life, revealing a full display of the planet surface below, the UNSC Fleet that hung in the air, and the red dot in the dense jungle representing the downed Covenant ship they had been chasing. Green areas on the surface of the planet signified landing areas to begin UNSC operations. 

"I still do not understand why we don't just nuke the ship and knock off one more alien in their dammed fleet." Lydia grumbled as she stood from her chair. "Troy, I want our ODST hot dropped ASAP, get the pelican crews to cycle up their engines and begin deploying a marine contingent in the main UNSC landing zone." 

"Aye, ma'am." Responded Troy, clicking away at his handheld tac pad. Soon this damned mission would be over and they could all go home.  

Lieutenant Aspen "Jade" Watts
UNSCS Bismark
Pelican Flight Zulu 14
Gearing Up

"Attention Crew, it looks like this is going to be a land battle, ready up for deployment ASAP. Planetside operations will begin shortly." Announced the male voice over hangar bay comms. Aspen, ready for most things during this point in the war was already keeping the engines warm. The call to actually dust off and bring marines to some obscure planet below hadn't really surprised her, nor did she question the judgement behind such orders, she delivered, she didn't ask why. 

"Looks like we are dusting off after all!" Called Dan from the open pelican trooper bay, he didn't sound too surprised either. 

"Yeah! Just get our first load in here so we can get out of this tin can, I am interested as to what backwater rock the covies could have landed on that would require marine forces to get their boots muddy." Aspen responded, already flipping switches and adjusting instruments in the cockpit for a quick take off. Before long, she heard Dan move into the cockpit and settle in his chair set above and behind Aspen's. "All in?" Aspen asked. Dan grunted in response, settling his helmet on his head and beginning his own round of checks and calls. 

"Well then marines, get your asses secured in those buckets, I am not sure if this will be a bumpy ride or not" Announced Aspen over the pelican bay's intercom. Gently, the pelican lurched as it picked itself up from the hangar floor, a gentle push of the yoke sent it right out into the void. No covenant ships to worry about, that was good, because Aspen had an eyeful on what was below her. A massive expanse of green cloaking a large planet, the covies managed to land right on top of a jungle. Her HUD marked the UNSC Main Drop Zone with a tiny blue diamond, and the pilot angled her pelican toward the LZ. 

It didn't take long for the pelican to enter the first layers of the planets atmosphere, and it was obvious they would be having a bumpy flight ahead. Through each layer, the pelican shook more and more violently, the trees continuously getting closer and closer. Aspen let out a small whistle as she flew, "Damn, if these are the tree's I'd hate to see the animals!" A small laugh from Dan was all she could get until the pelican eventually touched down on the ruined mess the forces here dared to call a deployment zone.

[AlphaWolf]

First Lieutenant Adrian Johann
Pelican Foxtrot Two November
En Route to Planetary Surface

    Adrian sat at the back of the Pelican, ready to get in the jungle and fight.  His platoon was to be the first one dirtside, and the Pelican they were carrying held the executive officer of TF77, Major Killinger.  Adrian looked over his platoon as the Major spoke with the Pelican crew.  He wasn't worried, the initial insertion was just that, an insertion.  They'd treat it like a hot drop, but in reality, it probably wouldn't be.  It'd most likely be uneventful and relatively normal.  Good.  That was the way Adrian liked his insertions.  Cold, calm, and collected.  He didn't like the hectic mess of a combat insertion, with everyone dashing and gunfire going off to where Adrian couldn't properly issue orders.

    As the Pelican entered the atmosphere, Adrian pulled back the charging handle on his BR55 and got ready to bail fast.  Moving to a stand as the Pelican started hovering, Adrian dashed out of the Pelican and into a crater as the bird touched down, followed by one of his four squads.  Around the clear zone, several other Pelicans were dropping troops

"Major Killinger to all deploying marines. I was a eight point perimeter around the deployment zone. We need to secure the area before more Marines come. No point in setting up a F.O.B if it isn't secured. Killinger out."

Activating the COM channel, Adrian acknowledged the transmission and began pointing out defensible positions as his men broke out their entrenching tools and got to work.

Hospital Corpsman Second Class Mark Phillips
Pelican Foxtrot Two November
En Route to Planetary Surface

    Mark was in the middle of the Pelican, sandwiched between two squads.  Adrian had thrown him back here so that if the Covenant strafed the LZ or had mortars or some other ambush-type attack waiting, Mark wouldn't be slaughtered in the initial charge.  Good plan.  Kill the platoon leader and let the corpsman patch everyone up while being the highest-ranking man in the platoon.  Good plan.  As the Pelican entered atmosphere, Mark checked over his gear.  His MA5B was locked and cocked, his gear was taped down good, he was ready to go.  As the Pelican transitioned from a hover to its landing cycle, Mark stood and got ready to run, intending to get clear of the Pelican as soon as possible.  All the Pelican was was a giant target.  Good thing to get away from.

As the Pelican hit the dirt, Mark charged out after the other Marines, getting into a rough semicircle.  Lieutenant Johann was off to one side, and Mark was in the middle with Sergeant Remington.  Diving behind a log, Mark poked his head up and watched the perimeter, waiting for further orders.  Before long, Adrian issued them, and Mark broke out his E-tool and started digging a foxhole that he'd probably abandon later.  Fantastic.

[Huka]

Field Master Til Je'at Ra'ha 'Muramai

Standing on the platform with the War Priest and his fellows, the Field Master was silent and attentive. Listening to the War Priest, he thought about the hymns of the ancient words of the Muram Shamans, as they chanted and spurred the Spirits from their rest in the Helian Deserts, summoning flesh-rending storms to halt and kill the clan's enemies as they advanced to the keep. The War Priest spoke with reverence and awe-inspiring righteous fury, but Til have lived long enough to be wary of his kind. 

 The Field Master earned his place in the Zealotry as one of the most devout and relentless warriors in the Covenant, who would execute a Heretic without a second thought and torture another for even rousing another faction that would split the Covenant, but the more closely-connected Sangheili to the San'Shyuum's politics is a dangerous believer. He may be a devout warlord, but he wasn't stupid to the corruption creeping through the council chambers like a serpent in a bath house. 

 Clasping his claws behind his lower back and eye looking, the Field Master's head pounded. His respirator needed filtering and the burden of command was making his migraines ache, but this wasn't new. He use the pain to contribute to his enemies who were no doubt plotting and landing nearby as the War Priest speak. 

 When the speech was done, Til looked to the War Priest, wondering what would be his oh-so brilliant coordinates. First the Arbiter, now this. Interesting time to appear when we're trapped on a planet with insects and Heretics, a glorious battle or humiliating defeat. Doubts and anger of this entered the cauldron of pain and made his breath more ominous and his plans cruel. 

 He've planned for this battle, the defenses were stationed, the warriors' hearts raised. He did all he could, now the soldiers must do their part in this defense, and the array must be raised. As Field Master, he will continue to lead and prove a example on and off the field. His brothers-in-arms must fight and remain the Humans that Reticent is not a force to be reckoned with. 

 As these muses ran through his mind, Til 'Muramai felt his fury and valor raising to the days that he fought against the Humans in the first cycles on the worlds of Harvest and Arcadia, even though the berserker Ripa was dead. He still felt his rage coursing through his veins, the feverish rage of Moram, the cursed half of Muram. 

 Clicking his mandibles silently under his helm, he used its heightened communications to signal Ekdo and the lance officers to be prepared. It is time for War and all who oppose them will fall! 

[TinCanHitman]

Silence

Jiralhanae stalker

Silence sat with his file, Sight and Stillness. They had been tasked with sweeping the perimeter, and easy task, but a needed one. The fighting would soon be on their door, and they would have to be ready for it. They moved like water, simply sliding between other soldiers as they went about their business. I would be a long battle indeed.

Tasmas and Fexlur

Hunter pair 

The two towering creatures sat near the holy one, the Battle priest having decided to watch the fight from a vantage point that had been erected by his warriors. The hunter pair cared little for political reasons, but religions was their life. The Priest was an embodiment of their religion, so devotion wasn't a question, but a statement. So when asked to guard this pinnacle of righteousness, they accepted. 

Yinji Ra'ha Torai

Holy battle priest of the minor Prophet of anger

Yinji stood with the other zealots of this valor filled war party. The famed soldiers of reticent were among him, and he was not impressed. All sangheili were religious, to some degree, but none could surpass his faith. He looked over the field master Til Je'at Ra'ha 'Muramai, his exploits proceeding him.

"Field master" he said giving a slight bow "your exploits are far and spread, your virility unquestioned, and your ferocity all encompassing." the priest spoke with the ancient dialect, well known, rarely used. He spoke using many compliments to the addressee. He spoke using many complex combinations of the ancient tongue as well as common, attempting to flaunt his ability.

"What is it that you plan to to do to advance your soldiers? I hope not merely requesting the aid of other fleets?"

[deceit]

[Deleted]

ODST Lilianna
Dropping to the planet

"We have our orders ODST's, prepare to drop." Cpl Hicks said to the rest of his squad. Lilianna looked at her pod in silence for a moment, simply not doing anything.. she seemed to be lost in thought. A hand on her shoulder quickly shook her from these thoughts. "You alright?" Pvt Ripley said, her French accent thick in her speech. "Yeah." Lilianna replied, slipping her helmet on. "I'm fine." "Thirty seconds" Hicks said, already strapping himself into his pod. Ripley went to her own pod, and Pvt Sanders to his own before Lilianna finally strapped herself into her own pod.

"When we hit the ground, meet up ASAP." Hicks said over their radio. The passing seconds felt like hours to Lilianna.. they always did. Lilianna closed her eyes and let out a sigh as the door to their pods shut. Ten, nine, eight... the seconds counted off in the soldiers head as she gripped the bars in her pod.

Five
Four
Three
Two
One
Launch

Their pods all dropped straight down to the planet, Liliian felt her teeth rattle in her skull, and her body shook in the pod. She held her eyes closed tight, pod drops always terrified her, though once on land she did fine. The pods shook even more once they hit the atmosphere of the planet. Lilianna opened her eyes and let out another sigh. It wasn't long before she smacked against something hard though... something that wasn't the ground. Her pod rattled and flipped in the air causing Lilianna to close her eyes once more as she was sent spinning with it. Finally, she struck against the ground and skidded to a halt. Lilianna let out a grunt as the door to the pod popped open. Retrieving her assault rifle, she hopped out... she scanned around her to see if she could see what on God's green Earth she hit, and she found it.

A massive bee like insect lay only a few feet from where her pod crashed, the creature was huge, easily big enough to fly off with Lilianna if it so desired. Lilianna quickly raised her rifle, not sure if it was dead or not... slowly, she made her way over to the creature, it's wings looked broken. Once she was only inches from it, she gave it a nudge with her foot... no movement. "Covenant and massive bugs? Awesome.." Lilianna said under her breath.

"Lilianna, do you read?" Hicks's voice came over her radio. "Loud and clear, sir." Lilianna replied back. "Copy that, meet up with the rest of us." Lilianna's visor bleeped with the position of her other squad mates. "Understood." She replied back. "And sir, watch yourself... I ran into a really large insect." With that said, Lilianna set off in the direction of her other squad mates.

[McStubbsberry]

Private Scott Lugar
Unknown Planet
UNSC Drop Zone

Scott sighted his weapon after exiting the Pelican. He panned left and right as his fireteam and the rest of the squad formed up behind him. The land in the immediate area was desolate. The scorched earth beneath his feet spoke of the volumes of ordinance that tore the landscape to shreds. Other Pelicans were landing as well, disgorging their cargo just as his did. There were men already digging about twenty meters away.

"You're quick, Private. Even the SSG was surprised," Lance Corporal McLaughlin said coming up behind Scott. "But move your ass, we don't have all day to for sight-seeing."

Prick. Scott thought to himself as he moved to the northeastern perimeter of the blasted land. He kept his guard up as he moved, scanning the treeline while still watching his footing. Despite the heavy barrage, there were still a lot of branches and stumps that had to be circumvented, they made great tripping hazards. Everything was very black and very dead. There were massive carcasses that Scott would rather not think what they might have been. If the trees are massive, the wildlife probably will be as well. Scott glanced to his right. Private First Class Brown was scanning the trees to the right of the spear quite diligently, Scott wondered just how good of a shot he really was. To his left was PFC Mathias, he was the heavy weapons expert of the fireteam. He seemed like an alright guy, though right now he had a rather bored expression on his face as he lugged his massive light machine gun around. Who was clever enough to name those 'light?' Scott thought to himself again. Finally, the Lance Corporal and Private Park were at his six. He couldn't figure out the private, but the Corporal was beginning to show his true colors.

 Once Scott was within 20 meters of the treeline, he halted and listened closely. It was very quiet, so he decided that this would probably be a good location to watch from as there were some massive branches to use as cover. Scott sat next to one and propped his rifle up, scanning the trees.

[Huka]

Field Master Til Je'at Ra'ha 'Muramai

 As he was about to return to his side of the outer war table, the Zealot looked at the approaching War Priest. His unseen eye glancing up and down at the gilded harness and he easily understood the dialect, his religious respect took the compliments quite well and his Hunter instincts kept him wary of the other, beware, his tongue is as deadly as his sword. 

 Bowing his head respectably before speaking a smooth and calm voice with a edge of a warrior around it, returning the dialect with the Muram fluidity,

"Your praise is too kind, Holy Messenger. To your question, I have our territories perfectly defended for the time being. The Yanme'e enthralls many of the native insects outside of the frontlines, if our soldiers are wise and were attentive to my briefings, the humans will fall to the hidden beasts before they reach the first line of holy fire. When the Heretics do manage to break through, they'll face our entrenched warriors and a couple turrets. I save our more heavy artillery for when the need arises. I've gained reports from Officer 'Umamee that the communications array is soon to be complete in fifteen units, time given directly from Swifter than Some. If the Heretics falter, we'll advance cautiously. While we are superior, the Heretics are still devious in their nature..." 

 After explaining, he looked at his surroundings slowly and felt the brief breeze through his harness. Mih'os...Spirit of War, guide and teach him as he always have. 

 Looking to the giant trees, he quickly returned attention to the table and pressed a glyph to show the War Priest the territory and the precise planning that he have planted, now the red figures of the Enemy just at the edge, which he'll make sure to have the maintenance Huragok to give some power to the sensors array to better view.

[David]

Colonel Jason Brody
On Board Pelican - 049 (Hellraiser)
En route to base camp location

Looking at his tacpad, the Colonel clucked his tongue dissaprovingly at the data that scrolled across the screen. TF77 was in total dissaray. They had gone from a battalion strength, Whittled down to a Company size. But the Colonel kept his opinion to himself. Personal vendettas and hate only served to create failure.

Looking at the ODST locations, He clicked on his COMM to the ODST Lt. “Lt, move your men due east, scout out grid 24X36.”

“Acknowledged” was the reply. All Jason ever expected. Then switching to the rest of the Task Force, he opened another channel.

“Ladies and Gentlemen. I know you’ve come off a rough battle on the Covenant cruiser. I know some of you just want to go home. But I must ask you to find the energy and resourcefulness that I know each of you holds, and hold out with me a bit longer.”

Clearing his throat, Jason continued. “We are going to be setting up base camp at grid 42X56. Recon has scouted it as the most clear sector for us to begin setting up camp. This is our priority. [yellow]Major Killinger. When you get down there, I want you to take a security detail and post marines around the perimeter.[/yellow] The rest of us will get set up. i want to have eyes in the air as well as ground sensors, everything, set up within 30 minutes. Brody out.”

Nodding, Jason cut the channel and looked back at his Tacpad. then, Jason opened a final channel to the Admiral of the fleet, David Vardy.

“Sir. Mission is a go, Expect to be operational within the hour.” Jason reported. “Brody out.”

[Arbiter124]

Arbiter Tibur 'Muramai

The Arbiter paced back and forth, grunting loudly, which worried the subordinates in the area. They were shaking. His aggressive attitude was surely making them uncomfortable to be in this position. What did he care, though? He was the will of the Prophets, they were worthless infantrymen, many of them only Minors or Majors.

"Arbiter, holy one." A rasped hiss came onto his comm. It was too high pitched and scrawny to be a Sangheili, but was by no means an Unggoy.

"What is it, Kig-Yar?" He growled back. He updated himself that this was a Jackal Sniper, hiding somewhere amongst the trees. He hoped that the Jackal had finally found a lance of the wretched Nishum, a scouting part for him to dispose of. 

"Look to your right, almighty Arbiter." The Sniper clicked off. Tibur scanned to the right with his one eye, and saw nothing. He scanned further, before seeing a reflection of armor. Not standard human armor, no. This was stronger, harder. Perhaps Imp armor. That would make no sense though, considering Imps are colored black. What could this be?

The head moved.

The green helmet.

The golden visor.

A Demon.

A SPARTAN.

Tibur roared out at the top of his lungs, and pointed in the creature's direction. He turned and saw two Skirmisher minors. They stood attentive, even the aggressive, fearless shock troopers shaking from the Arbiter. He grunted towards them, and hopped down to ground level, moving in on the SPARTAN. The Skirmisher shock troops followed closely behind, both wielding Type-31 Needle rifles. He clicked on his comm to the Sangheili Major in charge of the outpost.

"No one fires until I command it. If I die, have a file of Skirmishers follow this hellspawn quietly. We must not lose his location. Perhaps we will even find more of them if we follow them quietly. That is if I fall though, which I will not let happen."

"I will have four follow if you fall to the Demon, sir. Good luck, Arbiter."

Tibur flashed on his sword, his mind racing wildly.

[Deleted]

UNSCS Hide-And-Seek
Commander Daniel Jones
Dropping into Orbit

"Exiting Slipspace on chosen vectors, estimated drift is in optimum range, stable orbit established." Isosceles said stoicly as the prowler smoothly dropped out of Slipspace, elegantly skimming the dark space around the planet as some UNSC Shps were already visible. Daniel assumed they'd tracked their quarry and began to move closer, more ships exiting in a blaze of purple as the fleet moved in on the planet. The Prowler flew smoothly amidst the fiery emissions of the numerous cruisers, dropping into a stable orbit and beginning to move to action stations.

-------------------------------------------------------------

Ultra Yrai 'Vedolmee
Unknown Planet
Waiting

[yellow] "Very well Ra'ab. Be cautious. I am nearby if you require assistance." [/yellow] Yrai said cooly, watching the streaks in the sky as he sat in the north of the Corvette, accompanied by his majors as they stood strong and watched the streaks in the sky, focused on the job at hand and boosted by the stirring speech from blessed soldier earlier. Yrai had decided to wait, occupying a space at the most northerly fortification and armed with his trusty Plasma Rifle. His Majors grunted nearby, their Kig-Yar marksman and Unggnoy spoiling for a fight. Most important however, is the fact they're on home ground this time. The Covenant have the tactical advantage and that is what Yrai had decided would win them the day...

[Deleted]

Major Johnathon B'Sheau Killinger
Task Force Seven Seven
Marine Landing Zone

The Colonel's orders came through loud and clear, but what the man didn't realize was the Major was already following the orders before they were even ordered. A eight point perimeter was being set up, defensive positions developed and troops from the Marines who had been deployed were using their E-Tools to dig trenches and sensors around the perimeter were already being mounted into a grid pattern, sending live feed to every tactical pad with an active CNI signal and to the naval vessels in order.

"Orders understood, sir. A eight point perimeter is being set up, sensors are coming online and the field is becoming a defensive strength." The Major responded to the call immediately after it came. The Colonel needed to know that the Major was on top of his game. He didn't care about first impressions - he was a battlehardened Marine Officer who had humped through thick and thin ever since the HARVEST campaign - way back when as a green Second Lieutenant. "I estimate we have about one hundred marines on the ground, give or take a dozen. Pelican's are on their way back to load up more. By the time you get down, sir, this place should be a fucking paradise." Killinger said, chuckling.

He switched his comm away from the command channel. He'd still hear everything said over the channel, but now he was linked into the Battalions core channel - a channel individual Captain's used to receive orders. From there, their own separate channel for their platoon leaders - then their platoon leaders for their Sergeants. The way the radio worked was complex, yet amazingly simple. All you had to do was... Go to the channel. Anyone within the UNSC simply had to use their Neural Interface to link to another channel. It literally only took a few seconds. Even less, if you memorized the channel before hand.

"Major Killinger to all deployed Marines. I want a sitrep on the perimeter. Platoon leaders, get your squads setting up motion sensors and grid sensors around the tree-lines edge. Be advised, this planet is oxygenated quite a bit. As per intelligence and original breifing, the wildlife around this planet are much larger than normally seen. Be careful around the tree-line. Killinger out."

[Daenerys Targaryen]

Captain Lydia Adelle Morgan
UNSCS Bismark
Scans and other things..

"Deployments are going smoothly, ma'am. Our pelican pilots met turbulence in the thick atmosphere of the planet, but we didn't lose any birds and there was no major damaged. Our first shipment of Marines has touched ground and the birds will be returning soon to pick up more. ODST's are in their buckets, waiting to be dropped." Troy reported, moving to stand beside the captain of the ship as she stared down toward the holo table. Troop deployments were going great.... it seemed like whatever the hell the UNSC was trying to accomplish here would actually work, things were going good. 

"Odd..." Intoned Hera, her avatar appearing in one corner of the holo table. The map of the surface of the planet zoomed out until only the blue hologram of the planet floated in its place, hovering over the holo table. "Scans have picked up something.... different...." Hera intoned, moving her hands along the planet to spin the specific portion of the crashed covenant ship toward her. 

"Well, what is it?" Lydia asked gruffly, stepping back from the holo table as if the point she stood now would give her a better vantage point of what the AI was about to convey.

"This planet is heavily blanketed in massive trees that seem to cover most land mass on the planet." Hera began, turning the planet around quickly, as if she were a tiny doll spinning a classroom globe. 

"That really isn't hard to gather..." Troy stated, staring blankly toward the planet as it spun. 

"Yes, but the amount of megaflora suggests a very low amount of carbon dioxide at the surface of the planet, if these trees undergo a similar production of food to photosynthesis. Yet, carbon dioxide readings toward the surface of the planet are far higher than expected, signifying large amounts of fauna living and thriving in these jungles." Hera added, the spinning globe of the planet quickly shrinking to the size of a small ball before a screen popped up to take its place. "I expected life on this planet, as I am sure you did. But, I did not expect this." A burst of static on the holographic screen gave way to a recorded feed of one of the Bismark's drones as it swept over the tree canopy of the massive forest. 

Lydia watched the screen intently, thinking that she would have to strain her eyes to see what the drone had seen, but the captain soon found herself jumping back when a wasp like creature larger than the drone crashed into it, sending it tumbling down into the depths of the forest below. The drone lay smacked into the ground, obviously too damaged to be salvaged, but as the feed began to break apart, a large mass in front of the camera slowly opened, and a gigantic fanged creature stared into the eye of the drone, before clamping down on it and pulling it into darkness. The holo screen burst back into static, and Lydia stood there with troy, both dumbfounded. it took at least a good minute for the captain to come back to her senses. "Alert Admiral Vardy to what we have just seen. I want more drones down there ASAP, we need to know exactly what our marines are dealing with, or I suggest pulling them back up." Lydia ordered, moving to the translucent Titanium view screen at the front of the bridge. 

"Of course." Responded Hera, her avatar blinking from the holo table. 

//TO: Fleet Admiral David Vardy//
//FROM: UNSCS Bismark Artificial Intelligence HERA//

Scans from the UNSCS Bismark have identified the fauna of this planet. Large insectoid species have been picked up by one of our drones, at least two species have been identified so far. Large Hornets and what I can only pull from record as trapdoor spiders. This insectoids are very large, I suggest you send this data to ground forces ASAP. 

Sergeant David Williams
ODST
Hot Drop

"Alright ODST! Move it, move it! We are hot dropping onto whatever god forsaken rock the covies managed to crash their ship on. Remember to thank them for crashing onto a breathable planet after you plug them full of lead." Called out David to his squad as they geared up and moved to their drop pods. The whole team seemed to be energized after what seemed to them like a major UNSC turn around. Instead of being chased down and hunted, they were the ones doing the chasing for once, and it was great. His staff was electric as they clambered into their pods, making the random joke or two, every one seemed to be more alive. Once everyone was inside, David climbed into his own pod and hunkered down for the inevitable drop that would follow. 

"ODST Contingent of the UNSCS Bismark, prepare to be dropped planetside." Alerted a automated female voice across pod intercoms and internal comms. As she spoke the clamps that held the pod firmly in their grasp swung out from the ship to hold their metal caskets high above the planet's surface. Several of his squad mates could be heard gulping over their radios. Guppies, kids too young to remember much else but the constant fight against the Covenant.  David let out a small sigh as the automated voice spoke up once more, "Prepare to drop in 3... 2.... 1..." Clink.  There was no going back now, David found himself getting an eyeful of the jungle planet they were dropping too as they began to scream toward the planets surface. The flight through the void was short and uneventful, but as soon as they began to breach the atmosphere things got interesting. 

"Everyone Green?" Asked David over comms as the pods crashed through the thick atmosphere. Lights flashed green all over his display HUD, and he took a breath of relief. Eventually, their pods auto-directed to their course, a massive cleared patch of ground where all ODST's would be landing. "Looks like it will be a drop and sprint, Squad. As soon as you hit, blow the hatch and run for the treeline. You don't want any pods crashing down on your head!" 


Smack.

A pretty decent landing for a quick drop such as this, as soon as his pod smashed into the ground, David popped his hatch and quickly scanned the clearing for the rest of his Squad. All squadies made it and were quickly packing their gear. "Alright ODST, move it move it move it!" David called, slining his own gear over his armoured shoulder before jogging closer toward the treeline. 

The Sergeant looked around at what the rest of the soldiers on the ground had to offer, few ODST had made it to the ground yet, but one stood out in particular, eyeing a large dead thing in the brush. His HUD identified her as Private Lilliana. David waved her down as his squad began to regroup toward the tree line. "Private. What was that over there?" David asked, pointing toward the carcass the female had just been at. 

Major Domo Lusa 'Qorahee
Absolute Retribution Lance
Covenant Corvette

The crash had been astounding, and she was sure she would have been dead if it weren't for the massive trees that had caught their ship. The forerunners most likely smiled down upon them this day. This planet of such majesty would soon be tainted by human feet, though, and unfortunately for the first time, they were the ones to be preyed on.  Large insects like the drones that use to work on repairing their ships, covered the planet in mass, and would be a great problem for the forces here. The female elite had collected herself during the breif time the Covenant on the planet were able to erect defenses, she only waited now for either the humans to get to her barricade first or the bugs.

Veken 'Poramee slopped over toward her and let out a low guttural hiss before speaking. "These damned creatures would serve better as ashes underneath my aching feet, that I may walk more comfortably." Spat the aging male warrior, now standing beside Lusa. Veken stood tall over his superior, but had been loyal through and through. As they stood together on the barricade, Lusa looked to him as a reliable ally. 


Behind and beside them, the rest of the lance muddled around. The two Kig Yar, Gat and Raz, took turns digging their talons deep into the flesh of the tree the barricade was propped by. The rest of the sangheili that made up their Lance moved back and forth, waiting impatiently for the battle to come, assorted hisses and the flexing of mandibles could be heard behind her, in the muddy heat.  

[Deleted]

ODST Lilianna Dawn


Lilianna hadn't walked more than five feet when she spotted another ODST waving her down. Not from her squad, but a friendly none the less. Her own HUD identified him as Sargent David. Lilianna trotted over to him and gave a quick salute. "I'm not sure, sir." She replied, looking back at where the dead creature lay. "But if I had to guess, it's a big ass bug." Lilianna looked around at the humongous trees, the oxygen here was thick, very thick. "My pod crashed into it... lucky for me it was enough to kill it, but where there's one, there's bound to be more... caution is advised." She then said, looking up at the sky once more.

[Deleted]

Captain Brad McCauley
(Temp.) Commander Officer, UNSCS Kong
UNSCS Kong

"Dropping out of slipspace in 3... 2... 1..." The AI of the Kong said with her usual calming tone. As the ship came out of slipspace it shook for a bit before everything was calm again. Before Brad, who was sitting in the command chair in the middle of the bridge could even ask for them, status reports came pouring in to his padd from all departments. The weapons were okay, and so were the engines and every other system. The few damages they had sustained in the last battle were easily fixed and were crossed off the list. Now they were in orbit of some uninhabited planet, with minimal hostile ships.

Then the AI said "Captain, you have received an encrypted message from the fleet admiral.". "Thank you, Kathrin." he replied in a calm, yet somewhat excited tone to his voice. Standing up, he picked up the padd and listened to the message.
"This is Admiral David Vardy." David began. "We have found the Covenant ship
in question. It looks as if they are setting up a temporary base and
looks as though they are wanting to set up a beacon for re-inforcements.
I'm not about to let that happen. You will be receiving encrypted
orders. Lets do this right. Vardy out." before checking the orders that were included.

After having done that, he sat back down in the chair which sat rather comfortably. "helm, move us to the port side of the fleet. Weapons, stay ready for further orders. Flight ops, load the pelicans up with all but our own marines and direct them to the coordinates I am uploading to your station right now." Taking a moment to catch his breath, he touched a few places on the padd and gave the Lieutenant the coordinates. "XO, sound action stations, prepare the crew". "Actions stations, aye" The Lieutenant said before saying over the intercom "Action Stations! Action Stations! All hands to action stations. Action
surface starboard. Assume condition Yankee. Action Stations! Action Stations!"

Lance-Corporal Aurélie Devereaux
ODST
UNSCS Killiminjaro

Viv was running across the deck with the rest of her squad when the alarm sounded. The marines were to report to the hangar bays, while the ODSTs were to report to the drop pod bays. They quickly scrambled and got there as quick as they could, and armed themselves when they got there. They were told that they were dropped on a jungle planet in a clearing made by orbital bombardment. Then they were to scout the Covenant position. Everyone got in, and just before the pods closed, Viv shouted "Helljumpers!! Feet first into hell!", and then the door was shut sealed.

The thirty second countdown began, and when it ended the pod was fired towards the surface with the hope of hitting the clearing. After a few seconds the 'chute' opened, and then before it nearly hit the ground the braking rockets fired, thus slowing it down enough to make the shock a bit less. Viv launched the hatch, grabbed her rifle the rest of her gear and ran to the assembly point.

[/div]

[Spartan 999]

Major Domo Ziin Shal'toree
Near the Corvette

Ziin checked his salvaged plasma pistol and needle rifle, as he was low on arrows and throwing knives after the crash and subsequent forays into the deadly forest. His armor was dented and gashed in places, marring the red-orange coloring. He decided that next time, he would accept the promotion to Ultra, as the stronger shields would aid him much better than his current ones. His eyes twitched to the side when Veken spoke up.

“Agreed.” Ziin murmured, sliding the needle rifle onto his back. “I am at home in forests and jungles, but this...this one is unwelcoming of our presence. It is angry at the disturbance we have caused, so the sooner we get off this planet, the better.”



Field Master Sorsa Re'ha Je'at 'Xirsasai
Inside the Corvette

Sorsa stared down at the holographic map projected in the war room. The crimson orbs darted from side to side until he was sure he had practically memorized the layout, then glanced at the reports of how the the fortifications for the corvette had been coming. The trees had turned out to be a decent source for such a task, being easier to cut and move than large chunks of debris from the ship itself; all in all, it looked like the ship could take a good beating before giving way. He stepped back and tapped the helmet held under one arm thoughtfully. The coming battle would be intense, and very interesting, to say the least.



Skirmisher Major Cyy
Near the Corvette

Cyy loaded his needle rifle and tittered as he thought of how fast-paced the upcoming fight was likely to be. It was what he lived for now, from the triumph of striking a perfect headshot from far away to the thrill of sprinting all out, tearing into enemy lines and vanishing the next moment like phantoms. Indeed, life was good, as long as he was careful when caution was required.

[McStubbsberry]

Private Scott Lugar
Task Force 77
Marine Staging Grounds

"Listen up," Staff Sergeant Naomi Kosovo called out to her squad as they were preparing defensive positions. "Orders have come down the line. Bradley and Kelly, you two will set up sensors along the eastern edge of our section. Lugar and Brown, you two will take the northern sector. Watch out for those bugs and watch each other. There are Covenant lurking in the shadows, I just know it." The Staff Sergeant walked away, going back to her comm system to talk to who knows what, or who. 

"Welcome to the Marines, buddy. There's a lot of hurry up and wait going on here," Private First Class Michael Brown said to Scott as he carried the package of sensors. "Oh, don't let the Lance Corporal get to you, he's a lot of talk, but he's a real push over. You could easily take him in a fight, but I wouldn't suggest it."

"Why are you telling me this, Brown?" Scott said as he carefully scanned the closing treeline. "I'm the FNG around here, I don't know about Park, she might be hiding something, so that leaves me."

"I wouldn't worry about it, man. The Staff Sergeant is impressed so far, that's what matters. I've never seen anyone exit a Pelican so fast before, you should have seen the Sergeants' faces! It was priceless." Brown sat down the crate next to the base of one of the gigantic trees. "It's amazing how huge these bastards are, I thought the pictures of the redwoods out on Earth were bullshit, but this, this really puts things into perspective."

"I guess you're right, Brown. I'm on edge is all. I got you guys into this, which I know it pissed some of the squad members off. I don't know where the SSG is sitting on it either."

"Yeah, some of them are a little upset about it. Myself, and I think I can speak for the SSG on this as well, but we're glad for the change. We were in a reserve unit. We saw action, but nowhere near what the other units saw. They can say they were in the shit, by no means were we."

The conversation died down as the two men worked. They took turn setting up the two types of sensors. One would set up while the other watched the trees, keeping a close eye on the man they were protecting while watching their own back. It was a good system and they made good time with tagging their section of the jungle.

[AlphaWolf]

First Lieutenant Adrian Johann
UNSC Firebase
Dirtside

    Adrian's men had quickly dug shallow foxholes where needed, although most of the men had quickly established defensive positions using fallen trees and craters.  His platoon was effectively dug in, and he felt that they could defend the position for as long as they needed to.

"Major Killinger to all deployed Marines. I want a sitrep on the perimeter. Platoon leaders, get your squads setting up motion sensors and grid sensors around the tree-lines edge. Be advised, this planet is oxygenated quite a bit. As per intelligence and original breifing, the wildlife around this planet are much larger than normally seen. Be careful around the tree-line. Killinger out."

    Adrian keyed up the channel.

"Lieutenant Johann to Major Killinger.  My platoon is dug in and prepared to defend the perimeter.  We'll have a squad out setting up sensors momentarily."

    Adrian cut the channel, then turned to his squad leaders and started to bark orders.

"Scott, Remington, take your squads and go set up motion sensors and grid sensors at the tree line.  Two men on security for each one setting up a sensor."

Satisfied, Adrian stood back and watched as his orders were carried out and two squads departed the perimeter carrying sensors.

Hospital Corpsman Second Class Mark Phillips
UNSC Firebase
Dirtside

    Mark stood back and looked at his work so far.  He had managed to dig out a 4 foot wide and 2 foot deep hole in the short time since they had landed.  Now, to get it five foot deep so he could properly use it.  Grabbing his entrenching tool, Mark went back to work, digging in the dirt just like he did when he was five.  Seems like he just went from digging in the sand with a plastic shovel to digging in the dirt with a steel shovel in those nearly twenty years.  That was the military for you, eh? Give you  job, maybe send you to college, and where do you end up?  In the dirt.

[David]

Rear Admiral David Vardy
Bridge - UNSC Killimanjaro
Sorting through paperwork

Sitting in his command chair, David was busy squinting at a tacpad with some of the recent updates that had been piped to him. One such was incoming from a [yellow]Colonel Jason Brody[/yellow] and so he played the audio out of the tiny singular speaker;

[yellow]“Sir. Mission is a go, Expect to be operational within the hour. Brody out.”[/yellow]

Nodding his approval, David then moved on to the next report in his queue, this one from one [yellow]Captain Morgan of the Bismark[/yellow];

//TO: Fleet Admiral David Vardy//
//FROM: UNSCS Bismark Artificial Intelligence HERA//

Scans from the UNSCS Bismark have identified the fauna of this planet. Large insectoid species have been picked up by one of our drones, at least two species have been identified so far. Large Hornets and what I can only pull from record as trapdoor spiders. This insectoids are very large, I suggest you send this data to ground forces ASAP.

Eyes widening, he knew that the oxygenation levels were above normal, He didn't realise that there were huge bugs. Hell, he didn't think bugs got that big. but then, he was an Admiral, not a biologist.

David then forwarded the message to [yellow]Colonel Jason Brody[/yellow] and added an addendum of "Make sure you have a giant flyswatter."

Satisfied with his pun, David continued to work.

[Deleted]

Sangheili General Ekdo 'Sausamai
Covenant Fortifications

Ekdo had been overlooking the restless Sect as he stood atop the fortification.  He had position himself with Yrai, listening to all communications and ready for the battle to come.  The reports from a major by the name of Ra'ab came in that the Human's had arrived, and the Field Master had told them to prepare as well, but they were all more than ready now that the Battle Priest had added to the zeal of the Sect.  Now, The General could hear a Human weapon firing, too close to the Covenant forces.  And it was coming from the Arbiter's position.

Ekdo turned to Yrai, "Yrai, something is amiss...keep the men from getting too restless, I shall take care of this myself.  If anything goes wrong, you have temporary command of the Sect.  I should return shortly," After this, he turned and called a Lance to follow him.

Ekdo and the Lance quickly made their way to the Arbiter's last known position, looking around for any signs of the Shamed One.  He quickly caught the scent of blood nearby.  Ekdo really felt something was astray now as he ordered the Lance to move up quietly.  He held his Plasma Rifle steady as they breached through the trees.

And there it was.  Standing above the Arbiter, dressed in green with a face of gold.  A Demon, as though he was set before Ekdo by the Gods.  Everything Ekdo had worked for in his life had come to fruition.  The 'Sausam Clansmen could still hear the chanting of the people.  Heretic!  Heretic!  Heretic!  Now Ekdo's chance for redemption was here.  To face a Demon in battle, whether in victory or in demise, would show Ekdo's loyalty and bring honor back to the Clan.  Ekdo drew his blade, activating it.  The archaic hilt, once his father's, would be a blessed tool now, bathed in the blood of a Demon.  This was his destiny.

"The Demon is mine.  Return to the Sect and warn them off these unholy creature's presence!"  Ekdo said, being left to fight the beast.

Sangheili Minor Lexo Medomee
Returning to Covenant Defenses

"Ultra Yrai!  Ultra Yrai!" Lexo scrambled up to Yrai's position, "A Demon has appeared in the jungle!  The General chose to face him alone, and I think there could be more.  Do you want me to warn the Zealots?" The words were almost unintelligeble as Lexo blurted them out.  He waited nerviously for the Ultra's response.

Sangheili Ultra Vinza'za 'Wodamai
Covenant Fortifications

"This is Sangheili Ultra Vinza'za 'Wodamai to all members of Imperator Creche, the Creche now goes by the name of Acolyte and is commanded by myself.  Any soldiers who are not already at my location are to report here immediately and to prepare for combat.  There is little time left until the Human's arrive," Vinza'za frowned at the situation as he cut the battlenet.

Not only was General Zuko now dead and his own Creche gone, but he was stranded on a planet being invaded by Human's.  Things looked grim, but he was ready to fight to the death in the name of the Covenant and the safety of the Imperial Admiral.  At least this planet was reminiscent of home...except the gigantic insects that now acted as a barrier between them and the Human's.  He was waiting patiently unlike many of the Sangheili present.  Vinza'za understood the hunter needed patience to succeed.  But then again...none of them was a hunter this day.  The only thing on their side was the Will of the God's.  That could not be taken away.

ODST Gunnery Sergeant Wesley Black
Drop-pod

Everyone had already entered their pods and were waiting for the countdown to finish.  An area had been cleared for all the ODST's...but Black thought that was pointless.  He would drop down into the forest.  The pod lurched, dropping through the sky quickly towards the green jungle below.  He came down into the trees near the fortifications of the Covenant.  He could tell they were pretty dug in.  Then, the pod's lights turned red and beeping began.  The chute had malfunctioned and he was going in hard.  The pod smashed through branches as he Black reached the treeline.  The pod smacked right into the base of a tree with a sickening crunch.  Bark flew everywhere as the tree collapsed onto the pod.

ODST Gunnery Sergeant Wesley Black KIA

[Deleted]

ODST Staff Sargent Anna "Deep Red" Jones

ODST Landing zone


  Anna loved being an ODST, she got to do things that required great skill. Like piloting a drop pod to safety. Yet as she hit the emergency release buttons of her pod, she couldn't help but have rage building up in her chest. For some reason she had been knocked of course, and the pod chute failed to deploy on time, leaving her at the mercy of the trees, which seemed to have deemed her worthy of survival. Worst yet she lost sight of her own squad luckily green lights flashed below. The Intel read A squad and a Sargent near some trees.

" Sargent  Williams." She said into the com line." Do me a big favor, and help me get out of this big ass tree that I'm in."

[Deleted]

Ultra Yrai 'Vedolmee
Unknown Planet
Defenses

[yellow] "Of course General. I will wait with the men, ensure they do not let their attitude affect their aim."[/yellow] Yrai said, looking out over the dense forest ahead as Ekdo led a lance away into the bushes. It was a big responsibility but Yrai felt he could do it. Perhaps one day, he could even ascend to be the General's equal, as opposed to subordinate. He was disturbed by a scuffle of bloodthirsty grunts and turned to gather their attention.

[yellow] "Focus! Your enthusiasm will be your undoing." [/yellow] He roared, before returning to looking out. It hadn't been long until a grunt could be seen, toddling back out of the woods with a frantic expression visible even through the clunky mask it wore over it's tiny head.

[yellow]"Ultra Yrai! Ultra Yrai!" Lexo scrambled up to Yrai's position, "A Demon has appeared in the jungle! The General chose to face him alone, and I think there could be more. Do you want me to warn the Zealots?"[/yellow] The grunt screamed rapidly, Yrai's attention drawn to a single word. 

Demon...

It didn't bode well for everyone if there indeed were Demon's present here. Yrai had heard of them, unstoppable slayers of holy forces, driven by steel resolve. One Demon was a problem. A group of them could be fatal. And if Ekdo was alone with one, with more preparing to strike, he wouldn't last long.

[yellow] "Alert the Zealots immediately. They will no doubt wish to learn about this predicament. Minor! Escort the Unggnoy with your file!" [/yellow] Yrai replied to the Grunt, having a simple minor accompany him to the most senior of the soldiers here. He on the other hand, would remain here, ready to lead his creche, and for now his sect, to glory

[yellow] "All Forces, remain at your defenses! The humans will reach the admiral easily should you wander!" [/yellow] Yrai roared. Ekdo could care for himself, and the admiral was priority, wasn't it?