Consistent with standard UNSC insertion protocols2, Major Antonio Silva’sHEV accelerated once it was launched so that it was among the first to enterHalo’s atmosphere. There were a number of reasons for this, including thestrongly held belief that officers should lead rather than follow, bewilling to do anything their troops were asked to do, and expose themselvesto the same level of danger.
There were still other reasons, however, beginning with the need to collect,sort, and organize the troops the moment their boots touched ground.
Experience demonstrated that whatever the Helljumpers managed to accomplishduring the first so-called golden hour would have a disproportionate effecton the success or failure of the entire mission. Especially now, as theMarines dropped onto a hostile world without any of the Intel briefings,virtual reality sims, or environment-specific equipment mods they wouldnormally receive prior to such an insertion. To offset4 this, the command podwas equipped with a lot of gear that the regular “eggs” weren’t,including some high-powered imaging gear, and the Class C military AIrequired to operate it.
This particular intelligence had been programmed with a male persona, thename Wellsley—after the famous Duke of Wellington—and a personality tomatch. Though he was a good deal less capable than a top-level AI likeCortana,all of Wellsley’s capabilities5 were focused on things military,which made him extremely useful if somewhat narrow-minded.
The HEV shook violently and flipped6 end for end as the interior temperaturerose to 98 degrees. Sweat poured down Silva’s face.
“So,” Wellsley continued, his voice coming in via the officer’s earplugs, “based on the telemetry available from space, plus my analysis, itappears that the structure tagged as HS2604 will meet your needs.” TheAI’s tone changed slightly as a conversational7 subroutine kicked in.
“Perhaps you would like to call it ‘Gawilghur,’ after the fortress8 Iconquered in India?”
“Thanks,” Silva croaked9 as the pod inverted10 a second time, “but nothanks. First:you didn’t take the fortress, Wellington did. Second: Thereweren’t any computers in 1803. Third: none of my troops would be able topronounce ‘Gawilghur.’ The designator ‘Alpha Base’ will do just fine.”
The AI issued a passable rendition of a human sigh. “Very well, then. As Iwas saying,‘Alpha Base’ is located at the top ofthis butte.” Thecurvilinear screen located just six inches from the end of the Marine3’snose seemed to shiver and the video morphed into a picture of a thick,pillarlike formation topped by a mesa with some variegated11 flat-roofedstructures located at one end.
That was all Silva got to see before the HEV’s skin started to slough12 awayrevealing the alloy13 crash cage that contained the officer and his equipment.
The air turned cold and ripped at his clothes. A moment later, the chuteunfurled and assumed the shape of an airfoil. Silva winced14 as the poddecelerated with a bone-rattling jerk. His harness bit into his shouldersand chest.
Wellsley sent an electronic signal to the rest of the Helljumpers. Theremains of their HEVs turned in whatever direction was necessary in order toorient themselves on the command pod and follow it down through theatmosphere.
All except for Private Marie Postly, who heard asnap as her main chute toreaway. There was a sickening moment of freefall, then a jolt16 as the back-upchute deployed17. A red light flashed on the instrument panel in front of her.
She started to scream on freq two, until Silva cut her off. He closed hiseyes. It was the death that every Helljumper feared, but none of them talkedabout. Somewhere, down toward Halo’s surface, Postly was about to dig herown grave.
Silva felt his HEV stabilize18 and took another look at the butte. It was tallenough to provide anyone who owned it with a good view of the surroundingcountryside, plus the sheer cliffs would force attackers to either come byair or fight their way up along narrow paths. As a bonus, the structureslocated on top would provide his Marines with defensible shelter. “It looksgood. I like it.”
“I thought you would,” Wellsley replied smugly. “There is one littleproblem, however.”
“What’s that?” Silva shouted as the last section of the HEV’s skinpeeled away and the slipstream tore at his mask.
“The Covenant19 owns this particular piece of real estate,” the AI replied,calmly, “and if we want it, we’ll have to take it.”
Deployment+00 hours:02 minutes:51 seconds(SPARTAN20-117 Mission Clock) / Lifeboat Lima FoxtrotAlpha 43, in emergency descent to surface of Halo.
The Master Chief watched the ring open up in front of him as the pilotguided the lifeboat in past a thick silvery edge, and down “under” theconstruct’s inner surface, before putting the tiny ship into a shallow divecalculated to place it on the strange landscape below. As he looked forward,he saw mountains, hills, and a plain that curved up and eventually out offocus as the ring swooped21 upward to complete itself somewhere over his head.
The sight was beautiful, strange, and disorienting all at the same time.
Then the sightseeing was over as the ground came up to meet them. The MasterChief couldn’t tell whether the lifeboat took enemy fire, suffered anengine failure, or nicked an obstacle on final approach. It really didn’tmatter; the result was the same.
The pilot had time to yell, “We’re coming in too fast!” A moment later,the hull22 bounced off something solid, and the Spartan was knocked off hisfeet.
Pain stabbed through his temples as his helmet slammed into the bulkhead onhis way to the deckplates—followed by clinging blackness . . .
“Chief . . . Chief . . . Can you hear me?” Cortana’s voice echoed in hishead.
The Spartan opened his eyes and found himself facing the overhead lightpanels. They flickered23 and sparked. “Yes, I can hear you,” he replied.
“There’s no need to shout.”
“Oh,really ?” the AI replied in an arch tone. “Maybe you’d like to filea complaint with the Covenant. The crash triggered a lot of radio trafficand it’s my guess that the welcome wagon24 is on the way.”
The Master Chief struggled to his feet and was just about to answer in kindwhen he saw the bodies. The impact of the crash had ripped the boat open andmangled the unprotected people within. No one else had survived.
There was no time to dwell on that, not if he wanted to stay alive, and keepCortana from falling into enemy hands.
He hurried to gather as much ammo, grenades, and supplies as he could carry.
He had just finished checking the pins on a quartet of frag grenades whenCortana piped up in alarm: “Warning—I’ve detected multiple Covenantdropships on approach. I recommend moving into those hills. If we’re lucky,the Covenant will believe that everyone aboard the lifeboat died in thecrash.”
“Acknowledged.”
Cortana’s plan made sense. The Spartan surveyed the area for threats, thenhurried toward a canyon26 and the bridge that crossed it. The span was devoidof safety railings, and was constructed from a strange, burnished27 metal.
Beneath the bridge, a towering waterfall thundered down a massive drop-off.
The rest of the world arched high overhead. Large outcroppings of weather-smoothed gray rock rose ahead, and a scattering28 of what looked like conifersreminded him of the forests he’d trained in on Reach.
There were differences, however, like the way the ring tapered29 up from thehorizon, the manner in which its shadow fell upon the land, and the crisp,clean air that came in through his filters. It was beautiful, breathtakinglyso, but potentially dangerous as well.
“Alert—Covenant dropship inbound.” Cortana’s voice was calm butinsistent.
The prophecy soon proved correct as a large shadow floated over the far endof the bridge and the ship’s engines screamed a warning. There was verylittle doubt that the Spartan had been spotted30, so he made plans to dealwith it.
He reached the end of the bridge, saw a likely-looking boulder31 off to hisleft, and hurried to take advantage of it. He skirted the cliff edge,ignoring the long drop. Careful to watch his footing, the Master Chiefcircled the rock and found a crevice32 where the boulder touched the cliff.
Now, with his back to the wall, he had a chance to defend himself.
He checked his motion tracker, and realized that a pair of Covenant Bansheeswere practically on top of him. The alien aircraft boasted plasma33 cannon34 andfuel rod guns. Though not especially fast, they were still dangerous,especially against ground troops.
Combined with air support, the Grunts35 and Elites38 that dropped from the forkshaped alien troop carrier were a serious threat.
He steadied his aim and sighted on the nearest Banshee. Careful not to fireearly, the Spartan waited for the Banshee to come within range, thensqueezed the trigger. The first assault ship came straight at him, whichmade it relatively39 easy to stay on target. Bullet impacts sparked on theBanshee’s hull as his ammo counter dwindled40.
The ship shuddered41 as at least some of the armor-piercing rounds penetratedthe fuselage, pulled up out of its dive, and started to trail smoke.
The Master Chief was in no position to appreciate the results of hisefforts, however, as the second Banshee swooped out of the sun, pounded thearea around him with plasma fire. His shield display dropped, then pulsedred. An alarm whined42 in his helmet speakers.
The Master Chief returned fire. Without pause, he thumbed the magazinerelease and slammed a fresh clip into the receiver.
He crouched43, searched the sky for targets, and spotted Banshee number one inthe nick of time. He braced44 himself for another assault. The Spartan allowedthe enemy aircraft to approach, took a slight lead, and squeezed the triggeragain. The Covenant ship ran into the stream of bullets, exploded intoflames, and slammed into the cliff wall.
The second ship was still up there, flying in lazy circles, but the Spartanknew better than to stand around and watch it. A half dozen red dots hadappeared on his motion sensors45. Each blip represented a potential assailantand most were located to his rear.
The Master Chief waited for his shields to return to their full charge, thenturned, jumped up onto the boulder, and took a quick look around. TheCovenant dropship had deposited a clutch of Grunts on the far side of thecanyon where they were busy examining the wreckage46 of his lifeboat.
But that wasn’t all. To his left, on his side of the bridge,another groupof Grunts was working its way through the trees, moving in his direction.
They were still a ways off, however—which gave him a few seconds toprepare.
Though not armed with the standard S2 AM Sniper’s Rifle, his weapon ofchoice for this sort of situation, the Spartan was packing the M6D pistolthat Keyes had given him. It was equipped with a 2X scope and, in the handsof an expert, it could reach out and touch someone.
The Master Chief drew the sidearm, turned to the group gathered around thewreckage, and placed the targeting circle over the nearest Grunt36. In spiteof the fact that they were of no immediate47 threat, the aliens on the otherside of the canyon were in an ideal position to flank him, which meant hewould deal with them first. Twelve shots rang out, and seven Grunts fell.
Satisfied that his right flank was reasonably secure, he slammed a freshclip into the pistol and shifted his attention to the enemy troops that wereemerging from the trees. This group of Grunts was closer now,much closer,and they opened fire. The Master Chief chose to target the most distantalien first, thereby48 ensuring that he would still get a crack at the others,even if they turned and tried to escape.
The pistol shots came in quick succession. The Grunts barked, hooted49, andgurgled as the well-aimed bullets hurled50 their lifeless carcasses down thereverse slope.
When there were no more targets to fire at, the Master Chief took a momentto reload the handgun, clicked on the safety, and returned the weapon to itsholster. He jumped off the boulder and crouched under an outcropping ofrock.
He eyed the Banshee above. It was still there, circling well out of range,waiting to pounce51 should he emerge from cover. That meant he could sit thereand wait for more ground forces to arrive, or he could abandon his hidingplace and attempt to slip away.
The Spartan had never been one for standing52 around, so he readied hisassault rifle and slid forward over the rock. Once on open ground it was ashort dash past the scattering of dead Grunts. He crouched beneath the coveroffered by a copse of trees.
He counted to three, then dashed from boulder to boulder. He leapfroggeduphill, still very much aware of the Banshee at his back, but reasonablycertain he’d given the aircraft the slip.
There were no blips on his threat detector53, until he topped the rise andpaused to examine the terrain54 ahead. A telltale red dot popped onto his HUD.
The Master Chief eased his way forward, waiting for the moment of contact.
Then he saw movement as hunched55 bodies dashed from one scrap56 of cover to thenext. There were four of them, including a blue-armored Elite37. The Elitecharged recklessly forward, firing as he came.
He’d engaged such Elites before—there was some significance to thealiens’ armor colors—and they always fought like aggressive rookies. Athin smile touched the Master Chief’s lips. He ignored the alien’s badly-placed shots, stood, and returned fire. The Elite’s advance stalled, andthe Grunts began to fall back toward a stand of trees. His threat indicatorsounded a warning and a red arrow pointed57 to the right. The Master Chiefdrew and primed an M9 HE-DP grenade.
He turned just in time to see another Elite—this one in the scarlet58 armorof a veteran—charge him. The grenade was already in hand, and the distanceto the target was sufficient, so the soldier let the M9 fly. The grenadedetonated with a loudwhump! and tossed the enemy soldier into the air, whilestripping a nearby tree of half its branches.
The rookie was close now, and roared a battle cry. The alien hosed theMaster Chief with plasma fire. His shields dropped precipitously.
The Spartan backed away, fired his assault rifle in short controlled bursts,and finally managed to knock the remaining Elite off his feet.
With their leader down, the Grunts broke ranks and began to scamper59 away.
The Master Chief cut their retreat short in a hail of bullets.
He eased up on the trigger, felt the silence settle in around him, and knewhe had made a mistake. The veteran had damned near blindsided him. How?
He realized with a start that he was still fighting like part of a unit.
Though he was trained to act independently, he had spent most of hismilitary career as part of a team. The Elite had managed to flank himbecause his was simply accustomed to one of his fellow Spartans60 watching outfor him.
He was cut off from the chain of command, alone, and most likely surroundedby the enemy. He nodded, his face grim behind the mirrored visor. Thismission would require a major revision in his tactics.
He pushed his way up through a meadow thick with knee-high, spiky61 grass. Hecould hear the distant chatter62 of automatic weapons fire and knew someMarines were somewhere up ahead.
He sprinted63 toward the sound of battle. Perhaps he wouldn’t be on his ownfor long.
Deployment+00 hours:05 minutes:08 seconds (Captain Keyes’
Mission Clock) / Lifeboat Kilo Tango Victor 17, in emergencydescent to surface of Halo.
Maybe it was because theAutumn ’s navigator, Ensign Lovell, was at thecontrols, or maybe it was simply a matter of good luck, but whatever thereason, the rest of the trip down through Halo’s atmosphere was completelyuneventful. So peaceful that it made Keyes nervous.
“Where would you like me to put her down, sir?” Lovell inquired, as thelifeboat skimmed a grassy64 plain.
“Anywhere,” Keyes answered, “so long as there aren’t any Covenant forcesaround. Some cover would be nice—since this boat will act like a magnet ifwe leave it out in the open.”
Like most of its kind, the lifeboat had never been intended for extendedatmospheric use; it flew like a rock, in fact. But the suggestion madesense, so the pilot turned toward what he had arbitrarily designated as the“west,” and the point where the grasslands65 met a tumble of low rollinghills.
The lifeboat was low, so low that the Covenant patrol barely had time to seewhat it was before the tiny vessel66 flashed over their heads and disappeared.
The veteran Elites, both of whom were mounted on small single-seathoversleds, Ghosts, stood to watch the lifeboat skim the plain.
The senior of the pair called the sighting in. They turned toward the hillsand opened their throttles67. What had promised to be a long, boring daysuddenly seemed a great deal more interesting. The Elites glanced at eachother, bent68 over their controls, and raced to see which of them could reachthe lifeboat first—and which of them would score the first kill of theafternoon.
Deep in the hills ahead, Lovell fired the lifeboat’s bow thrusters, droppedwhat flaps the stubby little wings had, and jazzed the boat’s belly69 jets.
Keyes watched in admiration70 as the young pilot dropped the boat into a gullywhere it would be almost impossible to spot, except from directly overhead.
Lovell had been a troubled officer, well on his way to a dishonorabledischarge, when Keyes had recruited him. He’d come a long way since then.
“Nice job,” the Captain said as the lifeboat settled onto its skids71.
“Okay, boys and girls, let’s strip this ship of everything that might beuseful, and put as much distance between it and ourselves as we can.
Corporal, post your Marines as sentries72. Wang, Dowski, Abiad, open thosestorage compartments73. Let’s see what brand of champagne74 the UNSC keeps inits lifeboats. Hikowa, give me a hand with this body.”
There was a certain amount of commotion75 as ’Nosolee’s corpse76 was carriedoutside and unceremoniously dumped into a crevice, the boat was stripped,and the controls were disabled. With emergency packs on their backs, thebridge crew started up into the hills. They hadn’t gone far when a sonicboom rolled over the land, thePillar of Autumn roared across the sky, anddropped over the horizon to the arbitrary “south.”
Keyes held his breath as he waited to see what would happen. He, like allCOs, had neural77 implants78 that linked him to the ship, the ship’s AI, andkey personnel. There was a pause, followed by what felt like a mild earthtremor. A moment later, a terse79 message from Cortana’s subroutine scrolledacross his vision, courtesy of his neural lace:
>CSR-1 :: BURST BROADCAST ::
>PILLAR OF AUTUMNIS DOWN. THOSE SYSTEMS WHICH REMAIN FUNCTIONAL80 ARE ON STANDBY.
OPERATIONAL READINESS STANDS AT 8.7%.
>CSR-1 OUT.
It wasn’t the sort of message that any commanding officer would want toreceive. In spite of the fact that theAutumn would never swim through spaceagain, Keyes took some small comfort from the fact that his ship still hadthe equivalent of a pulse, and might still come in handy.
He forced a smile. “Okay, people, what are we waiting for? Our cave awaits.
The last one to the top digs the latrine.”
The bridge personnel continued their climb.
In spite of efforts to keep the HEVs together, the Helljumpers came down ina landing zone that stretched approximately three kilometers in diameter.
Some of the landings were classic two-point affairs in which the morefortunate Marines were able to jettison81 their crash cages about fifty metersoff the ground, and land like sim soldiers in a training vid.
Others were a good deal less graceful82, as the skeletal remains15 of their droppods smashed against cliffs, dropped into lakes, and in one unfortunate caserolled into a deep ravine. As the surviving Helljumpers extricatedthemselves from their HEVs, a homing beacon83 snapped to life, and they wereable to orient themselves to the red square which appeared on theirtransparent eye-screens. That was where Major Silva had landed, a temporaryHQ had been established, and the battalion85 would regroup.
Each pod was stripped of extra weapons, ammo, and other supplies, whichmeant that the force which converged86 on the hot dry plateau was wellequipped. Helljumpers were supposed to be able to operate without externalresupply for two-week periods, and Silva was pleased that his troops hadretained most of their gear, despite the difficult drop conditions.
In fact,Silva thought as he watched his troops stream in from everydirection,the only thing we lack is a fleet of Warthogs and a squad87 ofScorpions. But those assets would come, oh, yes they would, shortly afterthe butte was wrenched88 from enemy hands. In the meantime, the Helljumperswould use what ground-pounders always use: their feet.
First Lieutenant89 Melissa McKay had landed safely, as had most of her 130personcompany. Three of her people had been killed in action on theAutumn ,and two were missing and presumed dead. Not too bad, all things considered.
As luck would have it, McKay hit the dirt only half a klick away from thehoming beacon, which meant that by the time a perimeter90 had been establishedshe had already humped her gear across the hardpan, located Major Silva, andreported in. McKay was one of his favorites. The ODST officer nodded by wayof a greeting. “Nice of you to drop in, Lieutenant . . . I was beginning towonder if you’d taken the afternoon off.”
“No, sir,” McKay responded. “I dozed91 off on the way down and sleptthrough my wake-up alarm. It won’t happen again.”
Silva managed to keep a straight face. “Glad to hear it.”
He paused, then pointed. “You see that butte? The one with the structureson top? I want it.”
McKay looked, brought her binoculars92 up, and looked again. The butte’srange appeared along the bottom of the image and was soon chased out of theframe by coordinates93 that Wellsley inserted to replace the concepts oflongitude and latitude94 which worked on most planetary surfaces, but nothere.
The sun was “setting” but there was still enough light to see by. As shesurveyed the target area, a Covenant Banshee took off from the top of thebutte, circled out toward the “west,” and came straight at her. The onlything that was surprising about that was the fact that it had taken theenemy so long to respond to their landing.
“It looks like a tough nut to crack, sir. Especially from the ground.”
“It is,” Silva agreed, “which is why we’re going to tackle it from boththe airand the ground. Lord only knows how they did it, but a group ofPelican pilots were able to launch their transports before the Old Manbrought theAutumn down, and they’re hidden about ten klicks north of here.
We can use them to support an airborne operation.”
McKay lowered her binoculars. “And theAutumn ?”
“She’s KIA back thataway,” Silva replied, hooking his thumb back over ashoulder. “I’d like to go pay my final respects, but that will have towait. What we need is a base, something we can fortify95, and use to hold theCovenant at bay. Otherwise they’re going to hunt our people down one, two,or three at a time.”
“Which is where the butte comes in,” McKay said.
“Exactly,” Silva answered. “So, start walking. I want your company at thefoot of that butte ASAP. If there’s a path to the top I want you to find itand follow it. Once you get their attention, we’ll hit them from above.”
There was a loudbang as one of the first company’s rocket jockeys fired herM19 SSM man-portable launcher, blew the incoming Banshee out of the sky, anda put a period to Silva’s sentence. The battalion cheered as the Bansheebits dribbled96 smoke and wobbled out of the sky.
“Sir, yes sir,” McKay answered. “When we get up there, you can buy me abeer.”
“Fair enough,” Silva agreed, “but we’ll have to brew97 it first.”
Even Grunts had to be granted some rest once in a while, which was why long,cylindrical tanks equipped with air locks had been shipped to Halo’ssurface, where they were pumped full of methane98 and used in lieu ofbarracks.
Having survived the nearly suicidal attack on theAutumn by rescuing awounded Elite, and insisting that the warrior99 be evacuated100 rather than leftto die, Yayap had extended the duration of his own life, not to mentionthose of the Grunts directly under his command.
Now, by way of celebrating that victory, the alien soldier was curled in atiny ball, fast asleep. One leg twitched101 slightly as the Grunt dreamed ofmaking his way through the swamps of his home world, past naturallyoccurring pillars of fire, to the marshy102 estuary103 where he had grown up.
Then, before he could cross a row of ancient stepping-stones to the reedyhut on the far side of the family’s ancestral fish pond, Gagaw shook hisarm. “Yayap! Get up quick! Remember the Elite we brought down from theship? He’s outside, and he wants to see you!”
Yayap sprang to his feet. “Me?Did he say why?”
“No,” the other Grunt replied, “but it can’t be good.”
That much was certainly true, Yayap reflected as he waded104 through the chaosof equipment that hung in untidy clusters along the length of the cylinder105.
He entered the communal106 lavatory107, and hurried to don his armor, breathingapparatus, and weapons harness.
Which was more dangerous, he wondered, to show up disheveled, and have theElite find fault with his appearance, or to show up later because he hadtaken the time required to ensure that his appearance would be acceptable?
Dealing108 with Elites always seemed to involve such conundrums109, which was oneof the many reasons that Yayap had a hearty110 dislike for their kind.
Finally, having decided111 to favor speed over appearance, Yayap entered theair lock, waited for it to cycle him through, and emerged into the brightsunlight. The first thing he noticed was that the sentries, who couldnormally be found leaning against the tank discussing how awful the rationswere, stood at rigid112 attention.
“Are you the one called Yayap?” The deep voice came from behind him andcaused the Grunt to jump. He turned, came to attention, and tried to looksoldierly. “Yes, Excellency.”
The Elite named Zuka ’Zamamee wore no helmet. He couldn’t, not with thedressing that was wrapped around his head, but the rest of his armor wasstill in place. It was spotlessly clean, as were the weapons he wore.
“Good. The medics told me that you and your file not only pulled me off theship—but forced the assault boat to bring me down to the surface.”
Yayap felt a lump form in his throat and struggled to swallow it. The pilothad been somewhat reluctant, citing orders to wait for a full load of troopsbefore breaking contact with the human ship, but Gagaw had been quiteinsistent—even going so far as to pull his plasma pistol and wave it about.
“Yes, Excellency,” Yayap replied, “but I can explain—”
“There’s no need,” ’Zamamee replied. Yayap almost jumped; the Elite’svoice lacked the customary bark of command. It sounded almost . . .
reassuring113.
Yayap was anything but reassured114.
“You saw that a superior had been wounded,” the Elite continued, “and didwhat you could to ensure that he received timely medical treatment. Thatsort of initiative is rare, especially among the lower classes.”
Yayap stared at the Elite, unable to reply. He felt disoriented. In hisuniverse, Elites didn’t offer accolades115.
“To show my appreciation116 I’ve had you transferred.”
Yayapliked the normally sleepy unit to which he was attached, and had nodesire to leave it. “Transferred, Excellency? To what unit?”
“Why, tomy unit,” the Elite replied, as if nothing could be more natural.
“My assistant was killed as we boarded the human ship.You will take hisplace.”
Yayap felt his spirits plummet117. The Elites who acted as special operativesof the Prophets were fanatics118, chosen for their limitless willingness torisk their lives—and the lives of those under their command. “Th-thankyou, Excellency,” Yayap stuttered, “but I don’t deserve such an honor.”
“Nonsense!” the Elite replied. “Your name has already been added to therolls. Gather your belongings119, say good-bye to your cohort, and meet me herefifteen units from now. I’m scheduled to appear in front of the Council ofMasters later this evening. You will accompany me.”
“Yes, Excellency,” Yayap said obediently. “May I inquire as to thepurpose of the meeting?”
“You may,” ’Zamamee replied, allowing a hand to touch the bandage thatcircled his head. “The human who inflicted120 this wound was a warrior socapable that he represents a danger to the entire battle group. Anindividual who, if our records can be believed, is personally responsiblefor the deaths of more than a thousand of our soldiers.”
Yayap felt his knees start to give. “By himself, Excellency?”
“Yes. But never fear, those days are over. Once I receive authorization,you and I will find this human.”
“Findhim?” Yayap exclaimed, protocol1 forgotten. “Thenwhat?”
“Then,” ’Zamamee growled121, “we will kill him.”
The dawn air was cold, and McKay could see her breath as she stared upwardand wondered what awaited her. Half the night had been spent marching acrossthe stretch of intervening hardpan to get into position below the butte, andthe other half had been spent between trying to find a way up to the top,and grabbing a little bit of sleep.
The second task had been easy, perhaps a littletoo easy, because other thana sloppily122 constructed barricade123, the foot of the four-foot-wide ramp124 wasentirely unguarded. Still, the last thing the Covenant expected was for ahuman ship to appear out of Slipspace, and land infantry125 on the surface ofthe construct. Viewed in that light, a certain lack of preparation wasunderstandable.
In any case, the path started at ground level, spiraled steadily126 upward, andhadn’t been used in some time judging from what she could see. That’s theway itappeared , anyway, although it was hard to be sure from below, andSilva was understandably reluctant to send in one of the Pelicans127 lest itgive the plan away.
No, McKay and her troops would have to wind their way up along the narrowpath, engage whatever defenses the Covenant might have in place, and hopethat the Pelicans arrived quickly enough to take the pressure off.
The Lieutenant eyed the readout on the transparent84 boom-mounted eye-screenattached to her helmet, waited for the countdown to complete itself, andstarted up the steep incline. Company Sergeant128 Tink Carter turned to facethe men and women lined up behind him. “What the hell are you waiting for?
An engraved129 invitation? Let’s get it in gear.”
While B Company marched toward the butte, and C Company marched off torendezvous with the Pelicans, the rest of the battalion used the remaininghours of darkness to prepare for the following day under Major Silva’swatchful eye. Wireless130 sensors were placed two hundred meters out andmonitored by Wellsley; three-person fire teams took up positions a hundredfifty meters out; and a rapid response team was established to support them.
There wasn’t any natural cover here, so the Helljumpers moved their gear uponto a low rise, and did what they could to place fortifications around it.
Dirt excavated131 from the firing pits was used to build a low barrier aroundthe battalion’s perimeter, connecting trenches132 were dug, and a landing padwas established so that Pelicans could put down within the battalion’sfootprint.
Now, standing at the very highest point of the pad, and gazing off to thewest, Silva listened as Wellsley spoke133 into his ear. “I have good news andbad news. Thegood news is that Lieutenant McKay has started her climb.
Thebad news is that the Covenant is about to attack from the west.”
Silva lowered his glasses, turned, and looked to the west. An enormous dustcloud had appeared during the five minutes that had passed since he lookedthat way. “Whatkind of attack?” the ODST officer demanded curtly134.
“That’s rather difficult to say,” Wellsley replied deliberately,“especially without the ships, satellites, and recon drones that I normallyrely on for information. However, judging from the amount of dust, plus myknowledge of the Covenant weapons inventory135, it looks like an old-fashionedcavalry charge similar to the one that Napoleon threw my way at Waterloo.”
“You weren’t at Waterloo,” Silva reminded the AI as he brought thebinoculars up to his eyes. “But, assuming you’re correct, what are theyriding?”
“Rapid attack and reconnaissance vehicles which our forces refer to asGhosts,” Wellsley replied pedantically136. “Perhaps a hundred of them . . .
judging from the dust.”
Silva swore. The timing137 couldn’t have been worse. The Covenant had torespond to his presence, he knew that, but he had hoped for a little moretime. Now, with fully138 half his strength committed elsewhere, he was leftwith roughly two hundred troops. Still, they were ODST troops, the best inthe UNSC.
“All right,” Silva said grimly, “if they want to charge, let’s give themthe traditional counter. Order the pickets139 to pull back, tell Companies Aand D to form an infantry square, and let’s get all the backup ammo belowground level. I want assault weapons in the pits, launchers halfway140 up theslope, and snipers up on the pad. No one fires until I give the command.”
Like Silva, Wellsley knew that the Roman legions had used the infantrysquare to good effect, as had Lord Wellington, and many since. Theformation, which consisted of a box with ranks of troops all facing outward,was extremely hard to break.
The AI relayed the instructions to the troops, who, though surprised to bedeployed in such an archaic141 way, knew exactly what to do. By the time theGhosts arrived and washed around the rise like an incoming tide, the squarewas set.
Silva studied the rangefinder in his tac display and waited until the enemywas in range. He keyed the all-hands freq and gave the order: “Fire!Fire!
”
Sheets of armor-piercing bullets sleeted142 through the air. The lead machinesstaggered as if they had run into a wall, Elites tumbled out of their seats,and a runaway143 machine skittered to the east.
But there were a lot of the attack vehicles and as the oncoming hordesprayed the Marines with plasma fire, ODST troopers began to fall.
Fortunately, the weapons that fired the energy bolts were fixed144, which meantthat the rise would continue to offer the humans a good deal of protection,so long as the Ghosts weren’t allowed to climb the slopes.
Also operating in the Helljumpers’ favor were the skittish145 nature of themachines themselves, some poor driving, and a lack of overall coordination146.
Many of the Elites seemed eager to score a kill: They broke formation andraced ahead of their comrades. Silva saw one attack craft take fire fromanother Ghost, which crashed into a third machine, which subsequently burstinto flame.
The majority of the Elites were quite competent, however, and after someinitial confusion, they went to work devising tactics intended to break thesquare. A gold-armored Elite led the effort. First, rather than allowing theriders to circle the humans in whatever direction they chose, he forced theminto a counterclockwise rotation147. Then, having reduced collisions by atleast a third, the enemy officer chose the lowest pit, the one against whichthe fixed plasma cannons148 would be most effective, and drove at it time andtime again. Marines were killed, the outgoing fire slackened, and one cornerof the square became vulnerable.
Silva countered by sending a squad to reinforce the weak point, ordering hissnipers to concentrate their fire on the gold Elite, and calling on therocket jockeys to provide rotating fire. If the humans’ launchers had aweakness, it was the fact that they could only fire two rockets before beingreloaded, which left at least five seconds between volleys. By alternatingfire, and concentrating on the Ghosts closest to the hill, the Marinedefenders were able to leverage149 the weapons’ effectiveness.
This strategy proved effective. Wrecked150, burned, and mangled25 Ghosts formed ametal barricade, further protecting the humans from plasma fire, andinterfering with new attacks.
Silva lifted his binoculars and surveyed the smoke-laced battle area. Heoffered a silent thanks to whatever deity151 watched over the infantry. Hadheled the assault, Silva would have sent in air support first to pin theHelljumpers down—followed by Ghosts from the west. His opposite number hadbeen trained differently, had too much confidence in his mechanized troops,or was just plain inexperienced.
Whatever the reason, the Banshees were thrown into the mix late, apparentlyas an afterthought. Silva’s rocket jockeys knocked two of the aircraft outof the air on the first pass, nailed another one on the second pass, andsent the fourth running south with smoke trailing from its failing engines.
Finally, with the gold Elite dead, and more than half of their numberslaughtered, the remaining Elites withdrew. Some of the Ghosts remaineduntouched, but at least a dozen of the surviving ships carried extra riders,and most were riddled152 with bullet holes. Two, their engines destroyed, weretowed off the field of battle.
This is why we need the butte,Silva thought as he surveyed the carnage,toavoid another victory like this one. Twenty-three Helljumpers were dead, sixwere critically injured, and ten had lesser153 wounds.
Static burped in his ear, and McKay’s voice crackled across the commandfreq.“Blue One to Red One, over.”
Silva swung toward the butte, raised his glasses, and saw smoke drift awayfrom a point about halfway up the pillarlike formation. “This is Red One—go. Over.”
“I think we have their attention, sir.”
The Major grinned. It looked more like a grimace154. “Roger that, Blue One. Weput on a show for them, as well. Hang tight . . . help is on the way.”
McKay ducked back beneath a rocky overhang as the latest batch155 of plasmagrenades rained down from above. Some kept on falling, others found targets,bonded to them, and exploded seconds later.
A trooper screamed as one of the alien bombs landed on top of his rucksack.
A sergeant yelled, “Dump the pack!” but the Marine panicked, andbackpedaled off the path. The grenade exploded and sprayed the cliff facewith what looked like red paint. The infantry officer winced.
“Roger, Red One. Sooner would be a whole helluva lot better than later.
Over and out.”
Wellsley ordered the Pelicans into the air as Silva stared out over theplain. He wondered if his plan would work, and if he could stomach theprice.
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收听单词发音
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1
protocol
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| n.议定书，草约，会谈记录，外交礼节 | |
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protocols
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| n.礼仪( protocol的名词复数 )；（外交条约的）草案；（数据传递的）协议；科学实验报告（或计划） | |
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marine
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| adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵 | |
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offset
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| n.分支，补偿；v.抵消，补偿 | |
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capabilities
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| n.能力( capability的名词复数 )；可能；容量；[复数]潜在能力 | |
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flipped
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| 轻弹( flip的过去式和过去分词 )； 按（开关）； 快速翻转； 急挥 | |
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conversational
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| adj.对话的，会话的 | |
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fortress
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| n.堡垒，防御工事 | |
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croaked
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| v.呱呱地叫( croak的过去式和过去分词 )；用粗的声音说 | |
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inverted
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| adj.反向的，倒转的v.使倒置，使反转( invert的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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variegated
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| adj.斑驳的，杂色的 | |
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slough
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| v.蜕皮，脱落，抛弃 | |
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alloy
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| n.合金，(金属的)成色 | |
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winced
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| 赶紧避开，畏缩( wince的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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jolt
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| v.（使）摇动，（使）震动，（使）颠簸 | |
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deployed
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| （尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用 | |
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stabilize
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| vt.（使）稳定，使稳固，使稳定平衡；vi.稳定 | |
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covenant
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| n.盟约，契约；v.订盟约 | |
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spartan
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| adj.简朴的，刻苦的；n.斯巴达；斯巴达式的人 | |
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21
swooped
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| 俯冲，猛冲( swoop的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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22
hull
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| n.船身；(果、实等的)外壳；vt.去(谷物等)壳 | |
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flickered
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| （通常指灯光）闪烁，摇曳( flicker的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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24
wagon
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| n.四轮马车，手推车，面包车；无盖运货列车 | |
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25
mangled
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| vt.乱砍（mangle的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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26
canyon
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| n.峡谷，溪谷 | |
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27
burnished
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| adj.抛光的，光亮的v.擦亮（金属等），磨光( burnish的过去式和过去分词 )；被擦亮，磨光 | |
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28
scattering
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| n.[物]散射；散乱，分散；在媒介质中的散播adj.散乱的；分散在不同范围的；广泛扩散的；（选票）数量分散的v.散射(scatter的ing形式)；散布；驱散 | |
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29
tapered
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| adj. 锥形的，尖削的，楔形的，渐缩的，斜的 动词taper的过去式和过去分词 | |
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30
spotted
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| adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的 | |
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31
boulder
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| n.巨砾；卵石，圆石 | |
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32
crevice
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| n.(岩石、墙等)裂缝；缺口 | |
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plasma
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| n.血浆，细胞质，乳清 | |
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34
cannon
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| n.大炮，火炮；飞机上的机关炮 | |
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35
grunts
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| （猪等）作呼噜声( grunt的第三人称单数 )； （指人）发出类似的哼声； 咕哝着说； 石鲈 | |
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36
grunt
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| v.嘟哝；作呼噜声；n.呼噜声，嘟哝 | |
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37
elite
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| n.精英阶层；实力集团；adj.杰出的，卓越的 | |
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38
elites
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| 精华( elite的名词复数 )； 精锐； 上层集团； （统称）掌权人物 | |
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39
relatively
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| adv.比较...地，相对地 | |
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dwindled
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| v.逐渐变少或变小( dwindle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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41
shuddered
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| v.战栗( shudder的过去式和过去分词 )；发抖；（机器、车辆等）突然震动；颤动 | |
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42
whined
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| v.哀号( whine的过去式和过去分词 )；哀诉，诉怨 | |
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43
crouched
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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44
braced
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| adj.拉牢的v.支住( brace的过去式和过去分词 )；撑牢；使自己站稳；振作起来 | |
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45
sensors
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| n.传感器，灵敏元件( sensor的名词复数 ) | |
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46
wreckage
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| n.（失事飞机等的）残骸，破坏，毁坏 | |
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47
immediate
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| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
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48
thereby
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| adv.因此，从而 | |
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49
hooted
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| （使）作汽笛声响，作汽车喇叭声( hoot的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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50
hurled
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| v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 )；大声叫骂 | |
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51
pounce
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| n.猛扑；v.猛扑，突然袭击，欣然同意 | |
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52
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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53
detector
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| n.发觉者，探测器 | |
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54
terrain
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| n.地面，地形，地图 | |
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55
hunched
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| （常指因寒冷、生病或愁苦）耸肩弓身的，伏首前倾的 | |
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56
scrap
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| n.碎片；废料；v.废弃，报废 | |
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57
pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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58
scarlet
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| n.深红色，绯红色，红衣；adj.绯红色的 | |
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59
scamper
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| v.奔跑，快跑 | |
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60
spartans
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| n.斯巴达（spartan的复数形式） | |
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61
spiky
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| adj.长而尖的，大钉似的 | |
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62
chatter
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| vi.／n.喋喋不休；短促尖叫；(牙齿)打战 | |
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63
sprinted
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| v.短距离疾跑( sprint的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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64
grassy
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| adj.盖满草的；长满草的 | |
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65
grasslands
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| n.草原，牧场( grassland的名词复数 ) | |
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66
vessel
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| n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管 | |
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67
throttles
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| n.控制油、气流的阀门( throttle的名词复数 )；喉咙，气管v.扼杀( throttle的第三人称单数 )；勒死；使窒息；压制 | |
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68
bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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69
belly
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| n.肚子，腹部；(像肚子一样)鼓起的部分，膛 | |
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70
admiration
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| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
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71
skids
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| n.滑向一侧( skid的名词复数 )；滑道；滚道；制轮器v.（通常指车辆） 侧滑( skid的第三人称单数 )；打滑；滑行；（住在）贫民区 | |
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72
sentries
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| 哨兵，步兵( sentry的名词复数 ) | |
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73
compartments
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| n.间隔( compartment的名词复数 )；（列车车厢的）隔间；（家具或设备等的）分隔间；隔层 | |
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74
champagne
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| n.香槟酒；微黄色 | |
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75
commotion
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| n.骚动，动乱 | |
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76
corpse
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| n.尸体，死尸 | |
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77
neural
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| adj.神经的，神经系统的 | |
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78
implants
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| n.（植入身体中的）移植物( implant的名词复数 ) | |
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79
terse
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| adj.(说话，文笔)精炼的，简明的 | |
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80
functional
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| adj.为实用而设计的，具备功能的，起作用的 | |
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81
jettison
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| n.投弃，投弃货物 | |
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82
graceful
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| adj.优美的，优雅的；得体的 | |
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83
beacon
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| n.烽火，（警告用的）闪火灯，灯塔 | |
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84
transparent
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| adj.明显的，无疑的；透明的 | |
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85
battalion
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| n.营；部队；大队(的人) | |
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86
converged
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| v.（线条、运动的物体等）会于一点( converge的过去式 )；（趋于）相似或相同；人或车辆汇集；聚集 | |
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87
squad
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| n.班，小队，小团体；vt.把…编成班或小组 | |
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88
wrenched
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| v.（猛力地）扭( wrench的过去式和过去分词 )；扭伤；使感到痛苦；使悲痛 | |
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89
lieutenant
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| n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员 | |
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90
perimeter
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| n.周边，周长，周界 | |
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91
dozed
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| v.打盹儿，打瞌睡( doze的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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92
binoculars
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| n.双筒望远镜 | |
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93
coordinates
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| 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 | |
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94
latitude
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| n.纬度，行动或言论的自由(范围)，(pl.)地区 | |
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95
fortify
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| v.强化防御，为…设防；加强，强化 | |
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96
dribbled
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| v.流口水( dribble的过去式和过去分词 )；（使液体）滴下或作细流；运球，带球 | |
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97
brew
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| v.酿造，调制 | |
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98
methane
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| n.甲烷，沼气 | |
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warrior
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| n.勇士，武士，斗士 | |
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100
evacuated
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| 撤退者的 | |
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101
twitched
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| vt.& vi.（使）抽动，（使）颤动（twitch的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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102
marshy
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| adj.沼泽的 | |
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103
estuary
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| n.河口，江口 | |
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104
waded
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| （从水、泥等）蹚，走过，跋( wade的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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105
cylinder
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| n.圆筒，柱(面)，汽缸 | |
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106
communal
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| adj.公有的，公共的，公社的，公社制的 | |
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107
lavatory
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| n.盥洗室，厕所 | |
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108
dealing
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| n.经商方法，待人态度 | |
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109
conundrums
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| n.谜，猜不透的难题，难答的问题( conundrum的名词复数 ) | |
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110
hearty
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| adj.热情友好的；衷心的；尽情的，纵情的 | |
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111
decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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112
rigid
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| adj.严格的，死板的；刚硬的，僵硬的 | |
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113
reassuring
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| a.使人消除恐惧和疑虑的，使人放心的 | |
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114
reassured
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| adj.使消除疑虑的；使放心的v.再保证，恢复信心( reassure的过去式和过去分词) | |
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115
accolades
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| n.（连结几行谱表的）连谱号( accolade的名词复数 )；嘉奖；（窗、门上方的）桃尖拱形线脚；册封爵士的仪式（用剑面在肩上轻拍一下） | |
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116
appreciation
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| n.评价；欣赏；感谢；领会，理解；价格上涨 | |
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117
plummet
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| vi.(价格、水平等)骤然下跌；n.铅坠；重压物 | |
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118
fanatics
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| 狂热者，入迷者( fanatic的名词复数 ) | |
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belongings
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| n.私人物品，私人财物 | |
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120
inflicted
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| 把…强加给，使承受，遭受( inflict的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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121
growled
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| v.（动物）发狺狺声， （雷）作隆隆声( growl的过去式和过去分词 )；低声咆哮着说 | |
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122
sloppily
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| adv.马虎地，草率地 | |
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123
barricade
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| n.路障，栅栏，障碍；vt.设路障挡住 | |
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ramp
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| n.暴怒，斜坡，坡道；vi.作恐吓姿势，暴怒，加速；vt.加速 | |
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125
infantry
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| n.[总称]步兵(部队) | |
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126
steadily
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| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
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127
pelicans
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| n.鹈鹕( pelican的名词复数 ) | |
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128
sergeant
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| n.警官，中士 | |
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129
engraved
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| v.在（硬物）上雕刻（字，画等）( engrave的过去式和过去分词 )；将某事物深深印在（记忆或头脑中） | |
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wireless
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| adj.无线的；n.无线电 | |
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excavated
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| v.挖掘( excavate的过去式和过去分词 )；开凿；挖出；发掘 | |
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132
trenches
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| 深沟，地沟( trench的名词复数 )； 战壕 | |
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133
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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134
curtly
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| adv.简短地 | |
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135
inventory
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| n.详细目录，存货清单 | |
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136
pedantically
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137
timing
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| n.时间安排，时间选择 | |
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fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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139
pickets
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| 罢工纠察员( picket的名词复数 ) | |
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halfway
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| adj.中途的，不彻底的，部分的；adv.半路地，在中途，在半途 | |
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archaic
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| adj.(语言、词汇等)古代的，已不通用的 | |
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142
sleeted
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| 下雨夹雪，下冻雨( sleet的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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143
runaway
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| n.逃走的人，逃亡，亡命者；adj.逃亡的，逃走的 | |
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fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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145
skittish
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| adj.易激动的，轻佻的 | |
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146
coordination
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| n.协调，协作 | |
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rotation
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| n.旋转；循环，轮流 | |
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148
cannons
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| n.加农炮，大炮，火炮( cannon的名词复数 ) | |
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149
leverage
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| n.力量，影响；杠杆作用，杠杆的力量 | |
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150
wrecked
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| adj.失事的，遇难的 | |
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151
deity
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| n.神，神性；被奉若神明的人(或物) | |
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152
riddled
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| adj.布满的；充斥的；泛滥的v.解谜，出谜题(riddle的过去分词形式) | |
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153
lesser
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| adj.次要的，较小的；adv.较小地，较少地 | |
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154
grimace
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| v.做鬼脸，面部歪扭 | |
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155
batch
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| n.一批(组，群)；一批生产量 | |
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