May 8, 3350, 0931 hours, Trinity airspace

Calem stood behind the seats of the Garuda's pilots, mildly watching them fiddling with the dropship's controls while they kept flying alongside a military convoy of four similar aircraft with a Lich in the center of the formation.

He would occasionally look at the large holographic screen that was infront of them all, showing the environment outside of the heavily armed vehicle. They were flying above lush valleys filled with green grass and trees that swayed towards one direction from being blown by strong gusts of winds. He also saw thin rivers as they flew passed by them, their waters shimmering brightly under the sun's light, like as though it was filled with jewels.

It was a beautiful sight for him, something he's learned to appreciate.

He kept watching the holographic screen with curiosity, watching the aircraft he rode in flew past the expanse of grassy hills and forests that were far below them. Not long after, they flew above small towns that possessed buildings of different make. There was the typical human town with boxy or rectangular-shaped buildings, the Sangheili with their more feudal-styled architecture, the Forerunners with tall metallic structures with levitating parts that reached high up in the air, and so much more.

The towns got bigger the further they flew, larger buildings showing up on the screen along with civilian aircraft flying around the airspace. The architecture in the bigger towns were more unified than the smaller communities farther away, the structures' appearing like a combination of every species' design aspects within the Milky Way; emphasizing the strong sense of unity in the Milky Way Republic.

There were still some distinct building here and there possessing the traditional architecture of the species they were built from. While the uniformity in the MWR was strong, cultural differences were still prevalent with acceptance among the people.

Further into the distance, Calem could see the buildings that made up Bidia City, its massive structures being hard to miss due to them being so tall they pierced through the clouds from their height. Their metallic layers reflecting incoming sunlight and letting off a glare that could be seen long distances away, an architectural trait from the Forerunners.

Calem's train of thought over Bidia was stopped when the voice of a Sangheili talked over the Garuda's radio, "Helios 143 to all vessels in the group, what's your status?"

"This is Blight 189, all systems are green."

"Blight 191, everything is in order here."

"Ajax 493 is green."

The Garuda pilot in front of him reached out to press a button beside him before saying his confirmation with an accent that was Northern Irish, "Ajax 531, all is good and staying on course, Helios 143."

"Very good, remain in formation and follow the trajectory. We will reach the airbase soon."

Once the conversation ended, the holographic screen blinked as it received an update from the Liche pilot. A long blue line appeared, guiding them the direction they needed to follow; it stretched all the way from their location to Bidia city before circling around it.

The Liche was the first to follow the new course as it curved more to the right, the other Garudas following suit near-instantaneously as they maintained formation around the bigger spacecraft.

Calem looked down to watch the human pilot on the left seat turn his control wheel to the right as he made their Garuda follow along with the rest of the group.

The Spartan turned to look at the co-pilot on the right seat, a Yanme'e who was busy typing in commands on a panel and holographic interfaces.

Ajax 531's primary pilot was Whalon and it's his responsibility to be the one in control of the spacecraft while in the air or space. He and Calem go way back, being long-standing friends for decades who would always try to make some time for each other whenever they got the chance while on leave.

The Yanme'e was Mokik and served as the co-pilot, responsible for monitoring the status of the Garuda's various systems while in flight or take control of the spacecraft if the need ever arose (and was slightly better at flying). Calem knew him nearly as long as he knew Whalon and served as a calmer counter to the latter's boisterousness, but was also prone to rowdiness at times which has led him (and even Whalon) into trouble on a few occasions.

Calem looked back up on the large screen to see that they were already flying around the side of the city, seeing the massive buildings up close on their left. They were enormous, their size making them all look like ants in comparison to it as it stretched beyond the clouds. There were observation rooms made of completely transparent metal alloys that held a variety of plants, either acting like small greenhouses or relaxation lounges. The smooth metallic surface acted like a mirror of sorts as it reflected images of any aircraft flying by its vicinity and that included the Garudas.

Civiliain aircraft darted to and fro Bidia, flying towards their destinations before landing into specific locations zoned for outside public landing or hangars. Small cargo haulers flew into designated landing zones, while civilian-owned vehicles moved on the roads and highways far below. Even though it's the 3300s, land-based vehicles still had a strong presence in galactic society.

Calem caught a glimpse of a public transport that landed on a public stop, a crowd of various species walking out of its opened doors which allowed the next crowd to walk inside the large vehicle. Once everybody was inside, the doors closed themselves shut before the craft started lifting off and flying to it's next destination.

As they continued flying around the city, Calem noticed that they were above one of its smaller districts. The buildings were far smaller, usually composing apartments, shops, houses, etc., but were far more numerous and were built with the same architectural mindset used for Bidia and cities built all over Trinity. There were some buildings that stood out the most (or outright completely) as they conformed to the design principals of the species who built them.

Calem always found these structures more interesting to look at, or outright found them fascinating. Buildings like those always showed a strong sense culture, and learning more about a different species' culture was a passion for him. They tend to be more attractive to look at, sometimes possessing vibrant colors that would more pleasing to the eyes. He wouldn't have the same feelings with massive structures in heavily metropolitan areas, it came to point he'd find them boring or as literal eye sores.

The sight of a nearby forest caught his attention, which only got bigger on the holo-screen as they flew closer to it.

The forest was rather big, encompassing miles upon miles of land in bushy green trees. The trees' branches rustled and shook from the strong gusts of winds blowing the ground below, also making many of their branches be pushed towards one specific direction. This made it look like the trees were leaning to the side somewhat, while shaking, to anyone that was flying in the sky.

And to the far off distance were two large mountains, their surfaces covered in layers of white snow with patches of dark green here and there, big clouds covering their peaks; something that many humans would be reminded of old Bob Ross paintings.

This was another thing Calem found pleasing to watch, all of those bustling trees made him think of the similar places he's been too like the thick jungles of Palamok and Eayn, the wildernesses of Doisac, and the valleys of Sangheilios. The mountains made him remember about his times on Reach.

He always liked nature, even environments that most people would find strange or bizarre but that doesn't stop him from getting the urge to go out and explore on his free time.

After all, adapting to any and all environments was expected for all Spartans.

And Demons were expected to dominate them.

"That's a really nice forest down there," Whalon said as he turned to face Calem briefly before going back to his controls.

"Aye, it is," Calem replied, watching the forest slowly disappear to the side, meaning they're flying further away of its range. "It reminds me of places in Eayn and Palamok."

"Eayn is all jungle and ocean; moreso for Palamok, as it has more of 'em."

Mokik let out a chittering sound before he joined the conversation with, "Jungles aren't that different from forests, they just have more humidity and larger trees."

"Hmph. And that tends to make them more dangerous; all of that heat, and whatever creatures are skulking in those big trees."

Mokik let out a laugh that sounded like a mix between chittering and cackling. Anyone not used to hearing these sounds would either be disturbed or concerned, but not them. "If that's how you think of it, then you would not survive a night on Palamok."

Whalon let out a laugh of his own, clearly not offended by what his co-pilot said, but found it humorous before confidently replying, "You go ahead and think that way, and I'll prove you wrong. I can live off that planet a week with no problem."

Calem turned to the Yanme'e, a chiding grin forming under his helmet as he remarked, "Well, hey, Mokik! Looks like Whalon's had a big adventurer's spirit tucked into him this whole time! Were you keeping this a secret from me?"

"No, but he has been getting bolder, recently," Mokik replied as he made some clicking sounds from his mandibles. "He'd normally loathe the idea of going somewhere hot."

"Any whining in there?"

"Indefinitely."

"Wow, screw you guys," Whalon said towards his two friends with obvious annoyance, making them to laugh in response as they found it humorous to his detriment.

"Since you're so hyped about it, I'd say go ahead and do it!" Calem gave the human pilot a friendly shake on the shoulder (but was mindful of his strength due to his augmentations). "Spend a few days over there on your next vacation. Hike in the jungles, look inside a hive, meet up with other Yanme'e and learn more about their culture, firsthand."

"Lad, I doubt I'd be welcome into any hive. Nonetheless, fit in one," Whalon rebuked.

"There are hives that are built to accommodate non-Yanme'e species," Mokik said to the Irishman. "They are literally meant for tourists; you will have a place to stay."

"If I'm going to be staying there for a while, I'll be wearing my civilian armor to protect myself from Palamok's higher gravity."

"As it should be."

After the return of the Forerunners, and the formation of the Milky Way Republic, the idea of personal civilian armors became integrated into the daily lives of all races.

Sharing with the Forerunners' philosophy, personal armors were designed to vastly improve the health and well-being of the wearer, which had an effect on increasing their lifespans and well-being. The technology in the suits provided the wearers' with enough protection to endure even the harshest environments ranging from planets with toxic ecosystems, the vacuum of space, and all the way to high gravity worlds. In terms of physical defense, the armors were made to very endurable and capable to withstand large amounts of punishment before breaking.

Civilian-grade energy shielding was built into the armors to further increase their durability. While not as powerful as military-grade counterparts, they're strong enough to resist both dangerous environmental hazards, and even gunfire, before shutting down to recharge.

To further boost the armors' longevity, they came equipped with various self-repair protocols and self-replicating nanites that would immediately seal and fix any damages that were inflicted on the armor. In extreme circumstances, the armor could replicate any pieces that had been destroyed or damaged beyond repair. There were still limitations however, once the nanites and self-repair systems have gone beyond their limit to function, the entire suit must be brought to a technician to either bring it back to working order or outright replace it.

All personal armors had the capability to heal any injuries the wearer's sustain through the use of automated medical equipment built into the armors' systems. Once the wearer sustains any wounds, the suit would detect and immediately treat them. The built-in medical equipment were capable of handling a variety of injuries ranging from deep cuts, chemical exposure, or deep plasma burns, which has proven to save countless lives during dangerous situations, or at least give them time to be sent to a proper hospital.

Despite it being mandatory by MWR law for all citizens to own at least one set of personal armor, they're not expected to wear it all the time, allowing the people to make use of actual clothing when they want too.

"Protect yourself with armor? What?" Calem asked with a feigned gasp. "You're not going to go in there bare-chested and show that good ol' might of the Irishmen?"

Whalon let out massive bout of laughter that echoed throughout the cockpit as he gave the Demon a short glance.

Calem couldn't see his friend's expressions through the enclosed helmet, but he knew he was making one of the biggest smiles imaginable.

"Lad, Irish might can't shield me from high gravity. But if it did, I'd be showing off my body more often and take away the attention from the both of you."

"You'll be gaining the negative attention," Mokik said with some clicks. "Not many people would be interested in seeing your abdomen."

"To you Yanme'e, maybe, but I definitely get much better glances of every other species in the Milky Way."

"Usually animals."

"The pretty animals, while my lovely physique repels the predators away."

Beginning to worry that the friendly exchange was about to turn more hostile, Calem decided to intervene. "Okay guys, that's enough now. This conversation is starting to head down a bad direction that I've seen butcher friendships. The both of you are beautiful individuals part of an even greater universe that's seen way too much hostility in it existence, let's leave it to that."

"Hey, don't worry yourself about this crap, mucher," Whalon said with his happy enthusiasm still intact as he turned to Calem to give him a friendly pat on his torso. "We do this to each other almost every day and never meant anything bad about it, you know that."

"Sometimes we're worse. This is nothing," Mokik added, chittering sounds emanating from his mandibles.

"Pfft! Yeah, way worse and you know it," Whalon agreed while trying not to laugh. "And yet we're still good friends for this long."

"To the surprise of many."

"Great friendships are created from strange circumstances," Calem stated.

"You consider us strange, then?"

"One of the strangest in the galaxy, but that also makes you badasses which is why I like you guys so much."

Whalon responded to that with another round of boastful laughing, turning to face Calem again before offering hard fist bump that the Demon immediately accepted. "Damn straight, mucker. This doesn't mean you're any less 'strange' than me and Mokik!"

"Is it because I hang out with you weirdos?"

"There's that, yeah. But you're also one of the most dangerous killing machines in the whole galaxy that likes to take jabs and be around people like us."

"And a decorated hero to many," Mokik added.

"I told you this before, Mokik, I'm not a hero. I'm still just a human doing his duty for the people of this galaxy," Calem told the Yanme'e in one full of modesty, before turning back to Whalon. "I can see why you'd find that strange, but I'll hang out with anyone I like and not give a damn if others think otherwise."

"And that's why I LOVE having you around, mo chara!"

"Likewise, brother." Calem gave Whalon a friendly shake on the shoulders before doing the same to the Yanme'e co-pilot (who wasn't used to the gesture but welcomed it, nonetheless).

Before anyone could say anything else, the airlock doors open behind them, revealing the hulking figure of a Jiralhanae service member walking inside the cockpit, adorned in the same military-issued power armor used by pilots throughout the MWR's armed forces (which Whalon and Mokik also wore). The metallic plates on his suit glistened and shone as it reflected off the light coming from the holo displays while he walked closer to the Calem and the two pilots, his heavy footsteps echoing throughout the cockpit.

His head was uncovered, revealing it to be nearly clean-shaved with the exception of a Mohawk and a braided beard that went several inches down his muzzle.

Calem smiled under his helmet as he knew who the Jiralhanae was and couldn't help but feel some joy from seeing him.

He was Volaebus, the Garuda's crew chief and holds the highest authority in the spacecraft. Despite that and his intimidating visage common from all Jiralhanae, he's one of the most relaxed members of the crew who enjoyed joining in on a good conversation when given the chance.

"Still here distracting my pilots?" the Jiralhanae gruffly asked as he stood beside the Demon, towering over him by a mere foot.

"No, they're the ones distracting me. I've been the quiet one the whole time," he joked, jovially.

"Uh-huh," he responded in disbelief with a snort before turning to the holographic screens.

According to what's shown on the screens, they were getting close to their destination as they left the airspace of the suburban district and entered a more urban one.

The buildings below them were obviously bigger and sported the same architectural philosophy used for the inner city, almost all of the building appearing near-identical (or very similar) from one another; they're metallic surfaces letting out bright shimmers as they reflected rays of sunlight back into the sky. While not coming close to the size of the structures from the inner city itself, they were still noticeably larger, some of which had the capability to levitate off the ground and traverse short distances.

"What were you boys talking about?" Volaebus asked as he glanced at everyone in the cockpit.

"Whalon's going to spend time in Palamok on his next vacation. He says he'll manage to go for a week bare-chested with no problems," Calem gladly replied.

"Hey! Bullshit!" Whalon nearly shouted in annoyance from his friend twisting what he said earlier, but was promptly ignored.

"He gloated that his body could repel predators," Mokik added with an obvious tone of sarcasm.

Volaebus made a few snorts before letting out a friendly laugh. "I can see him attracting your human cattle during a mating season."

"Yeah, yeah, very funny you jackasses. Hilarious," Whalon said in a grumpy tone.

"We're just kidding around, man, don't take it personal," Calem reassured the human pilot before giving him a friendly bump to the shoulder. "Great friends tend to be jackasses."

"You guys can be the worst, though."

"That makes us even greater friends," added Mokik.

"Not always."

"We're still your favorite people, either way." Volaebus reached Whalon's shoulder and gave him a friendly (but hard) shake, before turning back to the holo display.

"Sometimes to my dismay," Whalon replied with a tone of sarcasm, getting a loud laugh from the Jiralhanae.

They're finally out of the city limits, flying over another collection of suburban towns below. The airspace was a lot clearer as there weren't too many civilian transports. However, dozens of military ships flew within the vicinity, many of them flying the same flight paths as they were, while some have split off into separate directions and disappeared into the far distance. Over time, more spacecraft from the armed forces began to appear nearby, all of them flew in organized formations as they started to exit the suburban airspace and fly above large plains.

Far off the distance was their destination: Matoaba Airbase, one of the largest military installations on the planet.

On the surface, the base itself looked like a gargantuan runway spanning hundreds of square kilometres, enough land to hold half of Bidia city; the central control tower could be seen on the middle of the airfield, large, fortified and easy to spot, as hundreds of hangars in varying sizes were neatly placed within its vicinity. A large and thick wall surrounded the base on all sides, filled to the brim with heavy armor and turret emplacements placed on strategic positions around its surface.

Dozens of spacecraft made vertical landings in the hangars while others were directed by the control tower operators to land on different locations on the massive runway.

A few kilometers away from the airbase were two mountains that had large rectangular openings on each of them, spacecraft of various sizes flew in and out of them over dozens at a time.

Calem and the Garuda crew had been here before, along with many other military installations a lot like it so this didn't surprise them. A significant portion of the airbase was built underground and spanned through a lot more land, possessing more hangars beneath the terrain and ready to open when needed.

"Looks like things are busy here, too," Volaebus stated.

"There is talk that military high command has been. . . frantic, lately," said Mokik.

"So I've heard, but I try not believe in second-hand gossip."

"You can't deny that something big is about to go on, though," Whalon added. "There's word that some of our biggest fleets are getting ready for a big operation, and that could include us."

"Hmm. . ." Volaebus began stroking his beard as he wondered in thought.

"I also heard that the 'lovely' Office of Military Intelligence is involvement in this too."

Mokik let out a low grumbling, irritated chitter. "They always are."

"Love 'em or hate 'em, you can't deny their work saves our skins with good intel. And without 'em, we wouldn't have this guy," Whalon briefly turned to point at Calem.

"I would still be around. Just not as the same person," Calem replied.

"And dreadfully, not be friends with us."

"A sad existence, indeed." Volaebus turned to face Calem, the latter just being a head shorter him because of his MJOLNIR and physical augmentations. "We're getting close to landing, so I need you back in the troop bay with everyone else."

"Aww, but I want to stay with the cool pilots," Calem playfully whined.

"Not this time. Direct order."

"I can use my Demon authority to stay."

"Get out of my cockpit."

"Hehehe." Calem obliged with a large smile under his helmet as he made his way out of the pilot cabin, the heavy doors closing behind him as soon as he entered the troop bay.

The interior around him was quite big, slightly bigger than that of the old Type-52 Phantoms he'd walk into when visiting museums. It was like a large room with a small upper level, along with a black floor and round, curved walls filled with hexagon-shaped patterns. Bright orange lights illuminated the darkness of the interior, the light reflecting off the thick metallic surfaces.

Service members of various races in the MWR were all strapped to their seats, talking amidst each other or reading logs in their armor's computers.

Calem walked down the interior of the Garuda until he was between the two the large bay doors, catching the curious stares of many of the personnel onboard.

He was used to this so he paid them no mind.

He knew that – to them – he was a Spartan, an individual chosen to be augmented and become a supersoldier, one the best fighters in MWR's military, a seasoned veteran, and a war hero to some.

While there vastly more Spartans now than there had been in the past that never meant the trials to become one became easier. It's harder to join the Spartan Branch than ever before because the selection process alone was downright brutal to even seasoned veterans, kicking out most of candidates who failed to meet the required expectations. It wasn't too uncommon for every candidate in a session to fail the selection process.

Calem remembered what those days were like, the physical and grueling pain of the trials he was put into along with many others. However, he was a slightly different case as he was put into the life of a Spartan at a far younger age.

And unknown to the service members around him, he was far more than an average Spartan.

"Attention all personnel," came Volaebus over the intercom. "We're about to land soon. Please check for your belongings and get ready for departure."

Calem reached an arm forward and grabbed onto the handle bar above him.

As he waited, he watched all of the personnel turn off their switch off their personal computers or checked their belongings before they held onto their safety straps as they got ready to land.

"Opening side bay doors."

The large door in front of Calem opened, which allowed strong gusts of wind to enter the Garuda and created loud echoes as it swirled around the metallic walls.

Below him was the massive paved runway of the airbase, which quickly became larger the closer the Garuda descended to it.

Not too far off in the distance, the other Garuda's already landed, along with the Liche that led the group. Teams of technicians teleported beside the spacecraft and immediately began their routine inspection. Not long after, maintenance drones and Sentinels joined in, which they scanned the outer hulls of the large vehicles for abnormalities before they shared their data with the techs.

Calem felt a light jolt shook everything around him as the Garuda hit the ground, and heard numerous safety straps unbuckled themselves and retreat back into the seats.

"Everyone, you are free to depart."

As if on que, every person in the troop bay stood up, checked their belongings one last time, and walked out of the spacecraft in an organized manner. Many immediately teleported as soon as they got off the Garuda or were picked up by land-based transports and rode off into the nearby hangars, while some were directed by another service member and walked elsewhere.

Calem activated his comm link and sent a connection to Matoaba's smart AI.

/SENDING COMM CONNECTION REQUEST [HIGH PRIORITY]. . ./

. . .

/REQUEST ACCEPTED./

/CONNECTION ESTABLISHED./

"This is Sierra-34189. Requesting teleportation to Briefing Room C."

"I sincerely apologize for the delay, Demon, but the teleportation grid is in a high dense flux. You're gonna have to wait for a little bit. I'll let your superiors know and ensure you get priority."

"Affirmative. Standing by."

"You're still here?" shouted a familiar voice.

Calem turned to see the voice came from no other than Whalon, who just jumped off the Garuda's side door and walked to his side.

"Yep, indeed. The grid's clogged right now, so I have to wait," Calem answered his friend.

"Seriously? You're a Demon for Christ sake. Don't you get prioritization?"

"That I do, but it can't work in this situation, apparently."

"Hmph. You'd think with all of these technological breakthroughs, we wouldn't bother with teleportation traffic."

"Yeah, it's ridiculous we have to deal with this issue."

"And stupid, really," Whalon replied with a scoff. "Come on, this is teleportation: instantaneous travel. Delays like this shouldn't exist."

"There will always be problems no matter how advance technology becomes, and it ain't that bad of an issue. And besides, the waiting is allowing me to do what I like doing."

"Hanging around with me, you cheesy son of a bitch?" Whalon guessed with a huge grin under his helmet.

"Hell yeah, brother," Calem said as he brought out an open palm, which Whalon responded with a hard high-five. "Where are the guys?"

"Mokik's still in the cockpit. Volaebus is talking with the techs."

"And you're taking the time to relax?"

"As always."

Before Calem said anything else, he heard a sharp ping from his helmet's comlink with his radio connected with a private comm channel with the airbase's AI.

"I apologize for interrupting but the grid is now clear and I am ready to have you teleported, sir," said the Smart AI.

"Affirmative, just give me a moment," Calem replied, not bothering to switch off his audio transceivers in front of Whalon.

"Time to get to work?"

"Yep. Anyway, I'll see you around."

"See you later, mucker," Whalon said before he gave him a friendly bump on the arm.

And in a flash of blue light, Calem disappeared.

"Your superiors are waiting for you inside, sir. Just go on through," said one of the Air Force security officers beside the briefing room entrance.

"Thank you." Calem nodded and proceeded to walk to the large door.

The corridor was filled with AF security personnel. They all stood beside entrances to other briefing rooms that hosted meetings that dealt with sensitive information.

They were all female Huragok, every one of them covered head-to-toe with standard-issue power armor. And despite their bodies covered, they still emitted a sense of beauty and gracefulness they've been known for.

Calem remembered their history, how their existence began as floating gasbags with the sole purpose of repairing technology for the Forerunners. Once the old Ecumene fell, they were used by the Covenant for the same reason until the empire's final days, which they were treated more like slaves.

They were far more different now. They've earned their right to be looked at as equals and became stronger for it.

The entire species attained new bodies that were more humanoid in shape, elegant and quite beautiful. More independent in thought and allowed to freely choose their own destinies, even created their own culture that had caught the awe of other races.

However that didn't decline the Huragok's capabilities to maintain technology, it actually advanced it. Their new evolution made them even better with machinery as many individuals became outstanding engineers. Plenty of technological breakthroughs were made by the Huragok, which greatly advanced the lives in the MWR, including the Forerunners.

This was ironic because technology developed by them were considered to be on-par or even surpassed anything developed by Forerunner Builders: their own makers.

Pssst.

Thud.

The door closed behind Calem with a soft metallic thud, which ushered him to walk towards to the center of the room.

There lied a large holographic table which emitted a blue light that shone a good portion of the area around it. Two individuals stood beside the bulky table conversing amongst themselves but stopped when they saw Calem enter the room.

One was a Sangheili and the other was a mech. They were some of the highest ranking officers in the military.

The mech was Rear Admiral Alabastor, second-in-command of the 57th Attack Fleet, famously known as the Fleet of Unyielding Force.

He watched the supersoldier briefly before typing commands on his wrist-mounted TACPAD.

The Sangheili was Rikla'Vadum, the current Arbiter and an old friend to Calem. She was an immensely respected individual by the galaxy, and more vehemently by her own people.

Rikla stood tall and proud, leaving a presence that people couldn't help but give respect or feel intimidated. The plates from the armor of the Arbiter glistened under the blue light, showing small sigils engraved on their surfaces.

Calem knew her, he fought alongside her in many battles and survived horrible conditions together. Because of this, she earned the respect of virtually everyone in the galaxy she fought so hard to protect. Because of this, she earned the title of Arbiter and the famous piece of armor she now wore.

Calem stopped once he was close to the table and gave them all a crisp salute.

"Sierra-E34189, present and ready."

Rikla walked up to Calem, thumped a fist on the side of her chest and gave a light bow.

"You know such formalities are unnecessary, my friend."

Calem nodded. "Oh, I know, but I like to do it." He gave a quick glance around the room. "Where's everybody else?"

"All other Demons have been reassigned in response to an emergency," Rikla answered. "High Command didn't do the same to you because it wasn't deemed necessary."

"Don't know if I should be offended by that."

"Eleven Demons is beyond more than enough for one emergency," she explained. "And you were the first one to reach Trinity when it happened. Everyone else were a lot closer to where it was happening."

"So we'll just wait for them?" Calem asked.

"No. We decided to brief you first, and then we'll brief everyone else once they complete their mission."

"Understood." Calem turned to Alabastor, who looked back to him in turn. "I assume Fleet Master 'Oroamai is busy with other matters?"

"Yes," Alabaster responded. "He's needed to organize the fleets for the big operation. I'm coordinating with him and the other Admirals as we speak."

"Very well, let's get this show on the road."

Rikla turned to Alabastor and gave him a brief nod.

The humanoid mech summoned a holographic interface from the table and typed several commands.

Not long after, the platform roared to life as a large hologram of a star system materialized in the center of the room. There was only a small handful of planets in the system, which were a mix of gas giants and barren silicate planetoids.

However, there was one planet in particular that seemed the most interesting as it showed obvious signs of life.

Calem guessed everything would revolve around it.

"With your successful exfiltration of our captured OMI team, we've received valuable information of our enemy's activities," Rikla began.

With a simple gesture from her arm, the holographic image of the life-filled planet expanded and became the sole image of focus. Every other part of the star system disappeared as it was 'pushed' away.

More details of the planet came into view. Incredibly earth-like, continents with varying environments, large oceans, and definite signs of animal life.

However, there was something about this planet that gave it an odd but familiar feeling. Calem knew this feeling for going to other planets like this one in MWR space, as he noticed bits and pieces on the surface that seemed. . . artificial.

"Is that a shield world?" Calem finally asked.

"Indeed." Rikla nodded. "And it's not any ordinary shield world because we can't find any information on it in any Forerunner archives."

"Not even the Domain?

"OMI and Catalogue agents searched the Domain on a constant basis," Alabastor answered. "They found nothing. But the OMI team you rescued possessed many saved images and scans of the planet's surface. Upon close inspection, there are aspects of its construction that matched the shield worlds built during the Forerunner-Flood War.

"That could explain why there's no information about it," Calem theorized. "Data regarding this installation was either destroyed or kept secret."

"That's what we thought as well. There's also evidence that Builders and Lifeworkers had an extensive presence on this planet."

"That means advance technology. Possibly more within the dyson sphere.

"Indeed," said Rikla. "And our foes have been pouring so much of their resources into claiming it."

The hologram of the shield world zoomed out quite a bit, making it appeared like it shrank, revealing the small moon in its orbit. Then, thousands of holographic images of ships materialized all over the planet, all of them came in a variety of sizes but shared the same design philosophy.

The bodies of the spacecrafts were long and cylindrical with thick wing-like structures built onto them. The front halves of the ships were also long and wide, resembling upside down blades.

Calem often joked how Rahkoan ships would look like giant upside down knives in space. But he would never underestimate just how dangerous those ships could really be.

"While this is nothing like the grand armada they had long ago, this has to be one the largest fleets they've assembled ever since their defeat," Rikla explained. "They don't know what secrets this world holds, and neither do we. But that hasn't stopped them from trying to take control of it as ferociously as possible. Thousands of Rahkoan troops had been deployed on the planet's surface in an attempt to set footholds."

"Has there been a response from automated defenses?"

Alabastor was quick to answer. "There has, and they've been putting up a fierce resistance. Anti-air emplacements have destroyed quite a number of their ships in orbit while their progress planetside have slowed to a halt. But they're adapting to this, becoming more creative with their artillery and air supports to gain more ground."

"How much ground are we talking?"

"Not much but that could've changed, since then. The shield world's defenses have showed signs of adapting as well. We don't know have visual on what kind of Forerunner defenses we'll be dealing with, so remain on high alert. Judging by the possible secrecy of this planet, expect a high level AI."

"Contender-class in control?" Calem asked.

"Unknown but highly possible," Alabastor said.

"Okay. I don't have any questions right now, so how are we going to start this?"

"We're splitting the 57th and 346th into two halves, and then they'll attack the opposing force from four different directions. With the Rahkoan fleet preoccupied with supporting their ground forces, they won't immediately respond to our navy appearing in the system. And once the enemy fleet is weakened, we'll send two Demon and Spartan teams to board the flagship and destroy it from the inside."

"Am I part of the boarding party?"

"No, you'll be needed for something else." Alabastor gestured to Rikla, which the latter nodded in response.

"Once the Rahkoan fleet is further weakened, you and the other Demons on standby will be dropped on several key locations," Rikla explained as she highlighted the said locations. "These locations are in the proximity of hostile Forward Operating Bases that are crucial to our enemies operations here."

One of the highlighted locations began blinking and zoomed in. The hologram changed to show a small fortress.

"This is your target," Rika continued explaining. "This FOB is used as a hub for heavy anti-air defenses in that part of the region. Destroying it will prevent massive casualties for our ground forces reaching the surface."

"By any reason you aren't able to destroy the base, focus on destroying or disabling the anti-air emplacements," Alabastor said. "And gather as much information as you could from their network."

"Understood." Calem nodded. "Who am I partnered with?"

It was Rikla who answered. "You will be partnered with Luca again, along with a team of Headhunters selected by us."

"They will provide sniper and surveillance support," Alabastor added. "While you and Luca are infiltrating the base, the Headhunters will deal with any threats outside."

"Who are they?"

"Eli-G4345 and Eckhart-G4419 of Eta team. Spartan-IIs like you." Rikla typed commands on the holographic interface.

The hologram of the Forerunner shield World became replaced with the images of the two Spartans. They both wore different armor, Eli was equipped with the Recon variant while Eckhart wore the Scout.

"They've assisted Demons before and earned many commendations," Rikla explained. "They're a reliable duo."

"I've heard of them. They were trusted to assist Blue team on an operation."

"Indeed. There have been talks of having them chosen for Demon Selection." Rikla typed on the interface again, returning them to where they left off on the shield world. "We can lend you an information packet that details their combat history."

Calem just nodded in response.

"Once your objectives are complete, you are to regroup with the 365th Infantry Battalion and aid them in creating a base of operations."

"Anything else after that?"

"Continue to assist friendly forces until said otherwise," said Alabastor. "And inflict heavy damage on Rahkoan movements when given the opportunity."

"Understood. Since that's everything I have to do, who's responsible for finding the Control Room?"

"Blue Team," Alabastor stated. "They'll infiltrate the dyson sphere and fight their way to take control of it. As for the objectives for all other Demons, we rather save that once they're here."

"I don't mind the wait."

Author's Note: Very first Halo/Mass Effect crossover fic I've done. Please leave a comment to let me know what you think! Constructive critiscm is welcomed here but please take things a little on me.