Chapter 23

0500 Hours, July 18, 2552 (Military Calendar) /UNSCIroquois , military staging area in orbit around Sigma Octanus IVCaptain Keyes leaned against the brass¹ railing on the bridge of theIroquois and surveyed the devastation².

The space near Sigma Octanus IV was littered with debris³: the dead hulks of Covenant⁴ and UNSC shipsspun lazily in the vacuum, surrounded by clouds of wreckage⁶: jagged pieces of decimated armor plate,shattered single-ship fuselages, and heat-blackened metal fragments created a million radar⁷ targets. Thedebris field would clutter⁸ this system and make for a navigational hazard for the next decade.

They had recovered nearly all the bodies from space.

Captain Keyes’ gaze caught the remnants of theCradle as the blasted space dock spun⁵ past. Thekilometer-wide plate was now safely locked in a high orbit around the planet. She was slowly being tornapart from her own rotation⁹; girders and metal plates warped¹⁰ and bent¹¹ as the gravitational stresses on theship increased.

The Covenant plasma¹² weapons had burned through ten decks of super-hard metal and armor like somany layers of tissue paper. Thirty volunteers on the repair station had died piloting the unwieldy craft.

Admiral Stanforth had gotten his “win” . . . but at a tremendous cost.

Keyes brought up the casualty figures and damage estimates on his data pad. He scowled¹³ as the datascrolled across his screen.

The UNSC had lost more than twenty ships, and those that survived had all suffered heavy damage;most would require months of time-consuming repair at a shipyard. Nearly one thousand people werekilled in the battle, and hundreds more were wounded, many critically. Add to that the sixteen hundredMarine casualties on the surface—and the three hundred thousand civilians¹⁵ murdered in C.te d’Azur atthe hands of the Covenant.

Some “win,” Keyes thought bitterly.

C.te d’Azur was now a smoldering¹⁶ crater—but Sigma Octanus IV was still a human-held world. Theyhad saved everyone else on the planet, nearly thirteen million souls. So perhaps it had been worth it.

So many lives and deaths had been measured in this battle. Had the balance of the odds¹⁷ tipped slightlyagainst them—everything could have been lost. That was something he had never taught any of hisstudents at the Academy—how much victory depended on luck as well as skill.

Captain Keyes saw the last of the Marine¹⁴ dropships returning from the planet surface. They docked withtheLeviathan , and then the huge carrier turned and accelerated out of the system.

“Sensor sweep complete,” Lieutenant¹⁸ Dominique reported. “I think that was the last of the lifeboats wepicked up, sir.”

“Let’s make certain, Lieutenant,” Keyes replied. “One more pass through the system please. EnsignLovell, plot a course and take us around again.”

“Yes, sir,” Lovell wearily replied.

The bridge crew was exhausted¹⁹, physically²⁰ and emotionally. They had all pulled extended shifts as theysearched for survivors²¹. Captain Keyes would rotate shifts after this next pass.

As he looked at this crew he noticed that something was different. Lieutenant Hikowa’s movementswere crisp and determined²², as if everything she did now would decide their next battle; it made astartling contrast to her normally lethargic²³ efficiency. Lieutenant Hall’s false exuberance²⁴ had beenreplaced by genuine confidence. Dominique almost seemed happy—his hands lightly typing a report toFLEET- COM. Even Ensign Lovell, despite his exhaustion²⁵, stepped lively.

Maybe Admiral Stanforth was right. Maybe the fleet needed this win more than he had realized.

They had beaten the Covenant. Although not widely known, there had been only three smallengagements in which the UNSC fleet had decisively defeated the Covenant. And not since AdmiralCole had retaken Harvest colony had there been an engagement on this scale. A complete victory—aworld saved.

It would show everyone that winning was possible, that there was hope.

But, he mused²⁶, was there really? They won because they had gotten lucky—and had twice as many shipsas the Covenant. And, he suspected, they had beaten the Covenant because the Covenant’s real objectivehadn’t been to win.

Naval²⁷ Intelligence officers had come aboard theIroquois immediately after the battle. Theycongratulated Captain Keyes on his performance . . . and then copied and purged²⁹ every single bit of datathey had intercepted³⁰ from the Covenant planetside transmission.

Of course, the ONI spooks left without offering any explanation.

Keyes toyed with his pipe, replaying the battle in his mind. No. The Covenant had lost because theywere really after something else on Sigma Octanus IV—and the intercepted message was the key.

“Sir,” Lieutenant Dominique said. “Incoming orders from FLEETCOM.”

“Put it through to my station, Lieutenant,” Captain Keyes said as he sat in his command chair. Thecomputer scanned his retina and fingerprints³² and then decoded³³ the message. He read on the smallmonitor:

United Nations Space Command Priority Transmission 09872H-98Encryption Code:RedPublic Key:file /lightning-matrix-four/From:Admiral Michael Stanforth, Commanding Officer, UNSCLeviathan / USNC Sector³⁴ ThreeCommander/ (UNSC Service Number: 00834-19223-HS)To:Captain Jacob Keyes, Commanding officer UNSCIroquois / (UNSC Service Number: 01928-19912-JK)Subject:ORDERS FOR YOUR IMMEDIATE²⁸ CONSIDERATIONClassification:SECRET (BGX Directive)/start file/Keyes,drop whatever you’re doing and head back to the barn. We’re both wanted for immediate debriefing³⁵ byONI at REACH Headquarters ASAP.

Looks like the spooks at Naval Intelligence are up to their normal cloak-and-dagger tricks.

Cigars and brandy afterward³⁶.

Regards,Stanforth“Very well,” he muttered to himself. “Lieutenant Dominique: send Admiral Stanforth my compliments.

Ensign Lovell, generate a randomized vector as per the Cole Protocol³⁷, and make ready to leave system.

Take us out for an hour in Slipstream space, then we’ll reorient and proceed to the REACH MilitaryInstillation.”

“Aye, sir. Randomized jump vector ready—our tracks are covered.”

“Lieutenant Hall: start organizing shore leave for the crew. We’re heading back for repairs and somewell-deserved R and R.”

“Amen to that,” Ensign Lovell said.

That wasn’t technically³⁸ in his orders, but Captain Keyes would make sure his crew got the rest theydeserved. That was the least he could do for them.

TheIroquois slowly accelerated on an out-system vector.

Captain Keyes took one long last look at Sigma Octanus IV. The battle was over . . . so why did he feellike he was headed into another fight?

TheIroquois plowed³⁹ through a haze⁴⁰ of titanium dust—condensed from a UNSC battleplate vaporized byCovenant plasma. The fine particles caught the light from Sigma Octanus and sparkled red and orange,making it look like the destroyer sailed through an ocean of blood.

When there was time, a HazMat team would sweep the area and clean up. In the meantime, junk—ranging in size from microscopic⁴¹ up to thirty-meter sections ofCradle —still drifted in the system.

One piece of debris in particular floated near theIroquois .

It was small, almost indistinguishable from any of a thousand other softball-sized blobs that clutteredradar scopes and polluted thermal⁴² sensors⁴³.

If anyone had been looking close enough, however, they would have seen that this particular piece ofmetal drifted in the opposite direction from all the other masses nearby. It trailed behind theacceleratingIroquois . . . and edged closer, moving with purpose.

When it was close enough, it extended tiny electromagnets that guided it to the baffles at the base oftheIroquois ’ number-three engine shield. It blended in perfectly⁴⁴ with the other vanadium steelcomponents.

The object opened a single photo eye and gazed at the stars, collecting data to reference its currentposition. It would continue to do this for several days. During that time it would slowly build up acharge. When it reached critical energy, a tiny sliver⁴⁵ of thallium nitride memory crystal would be ejectedat nearly the speed of light, and a minute Slipstream field would generate around it. If its trajectory⁴⁶ wasperfect, it would intercept³¹ a Covenant receiver located at precise coordinates⁴⁷ in the alternate space.

. . . and the tiny automated⁴⁸ probe would reveal to the Covenant every place theIroquois had been.

1 brass   

n.黄铜；黄铜器，铜管乐器

参考例句：

• Many of the workers play in the factory's brass band.许多工人都在工厂铜管乐队中演奏。
• Brass is formed by the fusion of copper and zinc.黄铜是通过铜和锌的熔合而成的。

2 devastation   

n.毁坏；荒废；极度震惊或悲伤

参考例句：

• The bomb caused widespread devastation. 炸弹造成大面积破坏。
• There was devastation on every side. 到处都是破坏的创伤。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 debris   

n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片

参考例句：

• After the bombing there was a lot of debris everywhere.轰炸之后到处瓦砾成堆。
• Bacteria sticks to food debris in the teeth,causing decay.细菌附着在牙缝中的食物残渣上，导致蛀牙。

4 covenant   

n.盟约，契约；v.订盟约

参考例句：

• They refused to covenant with my father for the property.他们不愿与我父亲订立财产契约。
• The money was given to us by deed of covenant.这笔钱是根据契约书付给我们的。

5 spun   

v.纺，杜撰，急转身

参考例句：

• His grandmother spun him a yarn at the fire.他奶奶在火炉边给他讲故事。
• Her skilful fingers spun the wool out to a fine thread.她那灵巧的手指把羊毛纺成了细毛线。

6 wreckage   

n.（失事飞机等的）残骸，破坏，毁坏

参考例句：

• They hauled him clear of the wreckage.他们把他从形骸中拖出来。
• New states were born out of the wreckage of old colonial empires.新生国家从老殖民帝国的废墟中诞生。

7 radar   

n.雷达，无线电探测器

参考例句：

• They are following the flight of an aircraft by radar.他们正在用雷达追踪一架飞机的飞行。
• Enemy ships were detected on the radar.敌舰的影像已显现在雷达上。

8 clutter   

n.零乱，杂乱；vt.弄乱，把…弄得杂乱

参考例句：

• The garage is in such a clutter that we can't find anything.车库如此凌乱，我们什么也找不到。
• We'll have to clear up all this clutter.我们得把这一切凌乱的东西整理清楚。

9 rotation   

n.旋转；循环，轮流

参考例句：

• Crop rotation helps prevent soil erosion.农作物轮作有助于防止水土流失。
• The workers in this workshop do day and night shifts in weekly rotation.这个车间的工人上白班和上夜班每周轮换一次。

10 warped   

adj.反常的；乖戾的；（变）弯曲的；变形的v.弄弯，变歪( warp的过去式和过去分词 )；使（行为等）不合情理，使乖戾，

参考例句：

• a warped sense of humour 畸形的幽默感
• The board has warped. 木板翘了。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

11 bent   

n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的

参考例句：

• He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
• We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。

12 plasma   

n.血浆，细胞质，乳清

参考例句：

• Keep some blood plasma back for the serious cases.留一些血浆给重病号。
• The plasma is the liquid portion of blood that is free of cells .血浆是血液的液体部分，不包含各种细胞。

13 scowled   

怒视，生气地皱眉( scowl的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He scowled his displeasure. 他满脸嗔色。
• The teacher scowled at his noisy class. 老师对他那喧闹的课堂板着脸。

14 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

15 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

16 smoldering   

v.用文火焖烧，熏烧，慢燃( smolder的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The mat was smoldering where the burning log had fallen. 燃烧的木棒落下的地方垫子慢慢燃烧起来。 来自辞典例句
• The wood was smoldering in the fireplace. 木柴在壁炉中闷烧。 来自辞典例句

17 odds   

n.让步，机率，可能性，比率；胜败优劣之别

参考例句：

• The odds are 5 to 1 that she will win.她获胜的机会是五比一。
• Do you know the odds of winning the lottery once?你知道赢得一次彩票的几率多大吗？

18 lieutenant   

n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员

参考例句：

• He was promoted to be a lieutenant in the army.他被提升为陆军中尉。
• He prevailed on the lieutenant to send in a short note.他说动那个副官，递上了一张简短的便条进去。

19 exhausted   

adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的

参考例句：

• It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长，到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
• Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。

20 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。

21 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

22 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

23 lethargic   

adj.昏睡的，懒洋洋的

参考例句：

• He felt too miserable and lethargic to get dressed.他心情低落无精打采，完全没有心思穿衣整装。
• The hot weather made me feel lethargic.炎热的天气使我昏昏欲睡。

24 exuberance   

n.丰富；繁荣

参考例句：

• Her burst of exuberance and her brightness overwhelmed me.她勃发的热情和阳光的性格征服了我。
• The sheer exuberance of the sculpture was exhilarating.那尊雕塑表现出的勃勃生机让人振奋。

25 exhaustion   

n.耗尽枯竭，疲惫，筋疲力尽，竭尽，详尽无遗的论述

参考例句：

• She slept the sleep of exhaustion.她因疲劳而酣睡。
• His exhaustion was obvious when he fell asleep standing.他站着睡着了，显然是太累了。

26 mused   

v.沉思，冥想( muse的过去式和过去分词 )；沉思自语说（某事）

参考例句：

• \"I wonder if I shall ever see them again, \"he mused. “我不知道是否还可以再见到他们，”他沉思自问。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• \"Where are we going from here?\" mused one of Rutherford's guests. 卢瑟福的一位客人忍不住说道：‘我们这是在干什么？” 来自英汉非文学 - 科学史

27 naval   

adj.海军的，军舰的，船的

参考例句：

• He took part in a great naval battle.他参加了一次大海战。
• The harbour is an important naval base.该港是一个重要的海军基地。

28 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

29 purged   

清除（政敌等）( purge的过去式和过去分词 )； 涤除（罪恶等）； 净化（心灵、风气等）； 消除（错事等）的不良影响

参考例句：

• He purged his enemies from the Party. 他把他的敌人从党内清洗出去。
• The iron in the chemical compound must be purged. 化学混合物中的铁必须清除。

30 intercepted   

拦截( intercept的过去式和过去分词 )； 截住； 截击； 拦阻

参考例句：

• Reporters intercepted him as he tried to leave the hotel. 他正要离开旅馆，记者们把他拦截住了。
• Reporters intercepted him as he tried to leave by the rear entrance. 他想从后门溜走，记者把他截住了。

31 intercept   

vt.拦截，截住，截击

参考例句：

• His letter was intercepted by the Secret Service.他的信被特工处截获了。
• Gunmen intercepted him on his way to the airport.持枪歹徒在他去机场的路上截击了他。

32 fingerprints   

n.指纹( fingerprint的名词复数 )v.指纹( fingerprint的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Everyone's fingerprints are unique. 每个人的指纹都是独一无二的。
• They wore gloves so as not to leave any fingerprints behind (them). 他们戴着手套，以免留下指纹。 来自《简明英汉词典》

33 decoded   

v.译（码），解（码）( decode的过去式和过去分词 )；分析及译解电子信号

参考例句：

• The control unit decoded the 18 bits. 控制器对这18位字进行了译码。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Scientists have decoded the dog genome. 科学家已经译解了狗的基因组。 来自辞典例句

34 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

35 debriefing   

n.任务报告，任务报告中提出的情报v.向（外交人员等）询问执行任务的情况( debrief的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• We've got the rescued soldiers in there for debriefing. 我们把被救的士兵带到了这里做一个报告。 来自电影对白
• Attention, all fighters are to return to moon base for debriefing. 注意，所有战斗机返回月球基地做任务报告。 来自互联网

36 afterward   

adv.后来；以后

参考例句：

• Let's go to the theatre first and eat afterward. 让我们先去看戏，然后吃饭。
• Afterward,the boy became a very famous artist.后来，这男孩成为一个很有名的艺术家。

37 protocol   

n.议定书，草约，会谈记录，外交礼节

参考例句：

• We must observe the correct protocol.我们必须遵守应有的礼仪。
• The statesmen signed a protocol.那些政治家签了议定书。

38 technically   

adv.专门地，技术上地

参考例句：

• Technically it is the most advanced equipment ever.从技术上说，这是最先进的设备。
• The tomato is technically a fruit,although it is eaten as a vegetable.严格地说，西红柿是一种水果，尽管它是当作蔬菜吃的。

39 plowed   

v.耕( plow的过去式和过去分词 )；犁耕；费力穿过

参考例句：

• They plowed nearly 100,000 acres of virgin moorland. 他们犁了将近10万英亩未开垦的高沼地。 来自辞典例句
• He plowed the land and then sowed the seeds. 他先翻土，然后播种。 来自辞典例句

40 haze   

n.霾，烟雾；懵懂，迷糊；vi.(over)变模糊

参考例句：

• I couldn't see her through the haze of smoke.在烟雾弥漫中，我看不见她。
• He often lives in a haze of whisky.他常常是在威士忌的懵懂醉意中度过的。

41 microscopic   

adj.微小的，细微的，极小的，显微的

参考例句：

• It's impossible to read his microscopic handwriting.不可能看清他那极小的书写字迹。
• A plant's lungs are the microscopic pores in its leaves.植物的肺就是其叶片上微细的气孔。

42 thermal   

adj.热的，由热造成的；保暖的

参考例句：

• They will build another thermal power station.他们要另外建一座热能发电站。
• Volcanic activity has created thermal springs and boiling mud pools.火山活动产生了温泉和沸腾的泥浆池。

43 sensors   

n.传感器，灵敏元件( sensor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There were more than 2000 sensors here. 这里装有两千多个灵敏元件。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Significant changes have been noted where sensors were exposed to trichloride. 当传感器暴露在三氯化物中时，有很大变化。 来自辞典例句

44 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

45 sliver   

n.裂片，细片，梳毛；v.纵切，切成长片，剖开

参考例句：

• There was only one sliver of light in the darkness.黑暗中只有一点零星的光亮。
• Then,one night,Monica saw a thin sliver of the moon reappear.之后的一天晚上，莫尼卡看到了一个月牙。

46 trajectory   

n.弹道，轨道

参考例句：

• It is not difficult to sketch the subsequent trajectory.很容易描绘出它们最终的轨迹。
• The path followed by a projectile is called its trajectory.抛物体所循的路径称为它的轨道。

47 coordinates   

n.相配之衣物；坐标( coordinate的名词复数 )；（颜色协调的）配套服装；[复数]女套服；同等重要的人（或物）v.使协调，使调和( coordinate的第三人称单数 )；协调；协同；成为同等

参考例句：

• The town coordinates on this map are 695037. 该镇在这幅地图上的坐标是695037。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, headed by the Emergency Relief Coordinator, coordinates all UN emergency relief. 联合国人道主义事务协调厅在紧急救济协调员领导下，负责协调联合国的所有紧急救济工作。 来自《简明英汉词典》

48 automated   

a.自动化的

参考例句：

• The entire manufacturing process has been automated. 整个生产过程已自动化。
• Automated Highway System (AHS) is recently regarded as one subsystem of Intelligent Transport System (ITS). 近年来自动公路系统(Automated Highway System,AHS)，作为智能运输系统的子系统之一越来越受到重视。