Lightning sat dully in his dark prison cell, eyes staring at a spec on the floor from where his face had been slammed into its surface weeks before hand by a rather aggressive Brute.
It'd been months since the fall of Meridian, and Lightning was still brewing over how he should feel about the planets destruction.

SARA argued he should be grieving for the loss of so many, while Lightning remained emotionless to the slaughter and argued that humanity had betrayed them, so they deserved what they got. This didn't sit well with the AI and the subject had become a sore spot between them, Lightning just shrugged it off as a hiccup in their relationship.

However SARA saw it as a reminder of how inhuman Lightning had become over the years, and what he truly was beneath the pain and rough scale armour that covered his body.
The drake still held wounds across his body, curtesy of the Covenant and there interrogation methods to try and make him speak. The drake was rather proud to admit that he hadn't spoken a single word to anyone since his capture, his captives were growing impatience with his silence and as thus intensified their efforts to break his will.

In the months following Lightning's capture, SARA had utilised her skills to gather information and entertainment for them both. With her systems fixed she could access the Covenant battle net, the enemy's main form of communication between the warships and infantry personnel. It was from this that they learnt the depressing news from weeks previously, the dreaded news that Reach. The fortress world of humanity and one of the most prominent contributors to the war effort, had been invaded, defeated then glassed into oblivion by the Covenant battle fleet.

But one thing had them both brewing with confusion, the repeated reference of the 'Holy Ring' and the heated coms chatter about some 'Great Journey', which SARA had discovered was the focus of the Covenant religious worships. It was also due to this religion that humanity was to be exterminated, as they were apparently a plague that had befallen the galaxy and were hindering the Great Journey from being accomplished.

Lightning had chuckled upon this revelation, stating how humanity always found a way to get itself in deep trouble no matter how hard they try to avoid it. SARA had replied with something about human behaviour and how it was natural that they made mistakes causing the problems.

Such discussions were all Lightning and SARA could do to stay entertained, the confined imprisonment was beginning to take its toll on them both mentally. Including the drake who was slowly becoming less talkative and more pessimistic with each day. It didn't help when SARA noticed an increase in hormones levels related to Lightning's desire for violence, it was a genetic trait engineered to keep him fighting for as long as possible.
SARA could suppress her companion's violent urges, but she couldn't contain them indefinably.

A commotion outside the cell caused Lightning's head to snap upwards with a startled bark, eyes darting about before focusing on the large fur covered form of a near naked Brute standing outside his cell. Lightning thought briefly back to a lesson with SARA, before remembered the correct name for the Brute species was Jiralhanae, but for simplicity sake Lightning preferred to just call them Brutes.

Beside the Brute was a very familiar Special Ops Elite, while his armour had changed and so apparently his rank. Lightning could always tell who he was by the way he held himself with pride, and by the two missing mandibles vacant from the left side of his jaw. His name was according to SARA, an Rtas 'Vadumee, a respected and dangerous individual with some power amongst the Covenant army.

But the other individuals and the unusually decorated Elites is what caught the drakes eye the most, hovering in a throne like chair, was the unusual alien in red robes.

"The Prophet of Truth, he doesn't look very…. Impressive" chimed in SARA with an innocent voice, Lightning was a reminded of a child not trying to be rude and smirked a little at her comment.

The energy field to the cell was lowered, and in shoved the foul smelling form of the brute. The beast towered over the drake at nearly 9 feet tall, compared to Lightning's small frame of 6'6 feet tall when standing.
Roaring and snarling like a beast, the Brute turned to bark at the other aliens but received a swift punch across the jaw by Rtas.

Even Lightning had to admit that was a good punch, as if supporting the statement the Brute spat a broken tooth from its maw and glared coldly at the white armoured Elite.
The energy field was reactivated without a moment's hesitation by Rtas part, leaving Lightning to share the cell with his rather foul tempered cell mate.

It was the Prophet of Truth that made things interesting, the old weak looking alien pointed a finger at the Brute and said with a stern, confident filled voice like one of a priest in church.

"If you wish to eat than you must fight for it" the Prophet announced before gesturing with his hand towards the drake, the Brute turned its snub face towards Lightning and made a predatory growl in its throat.

"That's not good" said SARA allowed, Lightning only snorted in agreement his eyes narrowing and pupils turning into dangerous slits. His eyes glowed dully in an unnatural manner as he sat there waiting for something to happen.

The Brutes hands were cuffed much like Lightning's own hands, but the alien was easily stronger and could still pummel the drake to death with ease. Yet Lightning had the advantage of his tail spikes, that and a few other genetically engineered abilities that lay hidden inside his body would give him an edge.

With a savage roar, the Brute suddenly hurled its muscular body towards stationary prey. Eyes gleaming with the raw, hungry intent to kill and consume, Lightning was in motion as soon as the Brute moved a muscle. His form flickering as he moved before disappearing completely as the Brute swung wildly at thin air.

A flinch worthy snap of bone and ripping sound of flesh then suddenly followed, the Brutes left knee giving out at an odd angle and causing the ape like beast to fall into a kneeling position. Another snap of bone and for a brief moment the form of Lightning could be seen in the darkness, foot crashing down upon the Brutes knee with such violence it dislocated the bone and sent the Brute collapsing to its face with a painful snarl.

The great furry beast rolled over and reached down to grasp its wounded legs, but felt a force slam down on its chest and something grab its head.
The Prophet of Truth watched on in fascination as the drake materialised from thin air, lips quivering with a snarl and the blue markings across his body glowing with energy.

Standing upon the Brute, Lightning hands jerked the Brutes skull to the side, snapping the spinal cord in a fluent manner before the drake began to twist and pull. An unpleasant ripping and wet tearing sound soon followed, ending when the decapitated head of the Brute was suddenly thrown against the energy barrier.

Lightning stood there panting, claws dripping with the purple like blood of the slain alien that was gushing from the severed neck of the mongrel's body.
The drake's eyes however were narrowed with anger, an anger that was staring directly at the Prophets face.

The Prophet of Truth said something to the other Elites, causing them to promptly lower the energy barrier and storm into the cell. Lightning snarled and thrashed about in defiance, but was helpless as the Elites easily dragged him from the cell.

The Prophet hovered away with Rtas by his side, while Lightning was dragged off down a corridor to who knows where. All Lightning knew at the moment was the need to rip flesh and spill blood, inside his skull. SARA was hounded with unnatural urges and desires emitting from her companion, making it hard to offer calming thoughts and comfort to the distressed and panicking drake.

So caught up in his own artificial instincts, Lightning didn't notice the room they had just entered or hear the sound of running water. It wasn't until the drakes head was shoved forcefully downwards and submerged in icy cold water, did Lightning realised something was amiss.

Throwing his head back with a sputter, he looked left and right in confusion as he spotted some kind of water fountain in the room. The Elites slowly released him from there clutches and stepped back warily, eyeing the drake for any more signs of aggression.

But Lightning was now transfixed upon his own reflection in the water's surface, eyes taking in the battered and scared muzzle of his own face. Hesitantly, Lightning lowered his paws into the fountains surface and began to scrub away the purple blood.

"All these years of us having to nearly restrain you during your little incidents, and now you reveal all we had to do was splash you with water?" scoffed SARA in disbelief, she didn't know how many times she and her creator had struggled to subdue the drake during his more volatile days, back when he was young and impulsive, before he actually understood what he was.

SARA felt a little sadden for a moment, watching on in silence as she felt uncertainty and shame emanate from the drakes mind. In silence the drake began to groom himself, scrubbing water across his old and battered scales to remove the dusty layering. He polished his claws and used the fountains reflection to examine his own carnivorous fangs for chips or tooth decay.

Once complete in his grooming session, the drake was taken by surprised when a small Grunt then came waddling into the room with clothing. Lightning hesitated as he recalled the proper name for the species, the Unggoy were a funny species to say the least, and one that Lightning couldn't pronounce even if he tried.

Giving a small nod of thanks, Lightning took the clothing and was surprised to discover it was his combat undergarment. The fabric looked cleaned, and even repaired slightly from where it sustained damage during combat on Meridian.
Suddenly feeling exposed, Lightning threw the clothing over his body, enjoying the sensation of being covered and not exposing his scarred body for all to see.

"This is a little suspicious" voiced SARA, stating exactly what was going through Lightning's mind.

Leaving the room, Lightning was escorted to another area of the ship, or so he thought it was a ship. SARA said they were on a ship the size of a small planet so Lightning couldn't be sure where he was.

Upon entering a room, the drake instantly became suspicious and alert as he spotted a long row of armed Elite guards dressed in ceremonial like armour.
In the middle of the room, was what one could describe as a large dining table, yet most tables Lightning saw weren't hovering in the air or had the Prophet of Truth sitting at I like some king before a banquet.

With a soft shove, Lightning stumbled forwards and slowly walked towards the Prophet with an air of hesitation. This didn't feel good, it had all the indications that the Prophet wanted him for something, why else would he be showered with less aggressive behaviour and allowed to bath for the first time in months.

Slowly drawing closer to the Prophet with a wing of guards behind him, Lightning noticed a small feast of food was sitting on the table before the Prophet. Were they going to have a conversation over a meal?

As if reading his mind, the Prophet of Truth gestured to a hovering stool and promptly spoke.

"Please have a seat" hesitantly Lightning sat down with his hands held in his lap, arms still cuffed with energy shackles as well as his muzzle.

The Prophet face seem to sadden as he took in the restraints and waved towards one of the Elites.

"Remove the restraints, such tools should not hinder our humble guest" Lightning snickered softly at the comment, but was grateful as the energy cuffs were removed from his body and he was allowed to stretch his stiff jaws for the first time in months.

"I think he's trying to get on your good side" said SARA in irritation, Lightning huffed at her before looking at the food before him.

Seeing Lightning's sudden interest, the Prophet once more gestured for the drake to proceed.
"Please, help yourself" Lightning couldn't say no to food no matter how disgusting it looked, he eaten worse.

Shoving anything meat looking into his jaws, Lightning felt a little uncomfortable under the stare of the Prophet, or as SARA would have him say. The San 'Shyuum, such nasty little names on the tongue these Covenant species could be.

Silence followed for some time, with two guards flanking the drakes chair and the Prophet himself helping himself to some of the food in an almost bored manner. SARA wondered who would speak first, her companion of the alien sitting in the hovering throne.

"Such a peculiar creature, tell me how did you become in possession of a holy artefact left by the Gods?" asked the Prophet without warning, Lightning burped in reply causing the Prophet to cast a disapproving stare before the drake examined a strange soup like sludge and held the bowl to his lips.

"Surely you understand the primitive language of those repulsing and plaugeful humans we liberated you from" urged the Prophet in an attempt to make the drake speak, Lightning shot him a bitter stare and huffed.

Ye 'Liberated' was just a fancy word for 'we captured you' and didn't have much value in Lightning's eyes, he'd rather the traitorous humans compared to genocidal aliens.

"Or have I mistaken you for a being of lesser intelligence than the Unggoy?" Lightning dropped the bowl and snarled aggressively in reply, making sure the Prophet got a good look at his murderous venom oozing fangs.

"How rude" spat SARA in anger, Lightning growled in agreement with her, such insults were uncalled for.

"Clearly your smart enough to recognise an insult, perhaps that device on your back would hold more answers once we remo.."

"DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH HER!" roared Lightning as he stood up, fist slamming against the table with enough force to leave a shallow dent in the material and rock the table so violently some food items were thrown into the air.

Behind him Lightning heard the deadly hum of plasma rifles, an indication that the Elites were prepared to battle in Lightning stepped out of line.

"Her? You said her?" the Prophet looked extremely amused with himself as he stared at the fuming drake.

Lightning growled loudly, tail swishing with agitation like a predator ready to kill an unwanted pest.

"How intriguing, by Her I'm assuming you mean the instrument fused to your spine. The construct that you house would be incredibly useful in the undertaking of the Great Journey"

"I'm not letting you touch her, end of story Truth" spat Lightning savagely, making the Prophet look mildly surprised.

"I believe introductions are in order, but you have the convenience of already knowing my name, it's only fair I learn yours" Lightning huffed at the Prophets words, sparks spitting from his spikes occasionally with a soft zap.

"Calm yourself, I wish you no harm and seek your help. I wish to understand you and how you became affiliated with the creatures called humans" this was a small surprise for the drake, but not an unexpected one.

"Time to utilise your art of bull shitting" giggled SARA cheekily in the drakes mind, Lightning huffed at her in offense. It wasn't bull shitting it was a gifted art of manipulation and creative story telling that left out details or altered them to hide the truth.

Lightning sat there in silence for some time, mind stewing over a convincing story to tell the Covenant prophet before him. It had to be backed with facts and be related to this universe, if he said he was from a clan of post Nazi dragons than the Prophet would surely think he's lying and likely resort to torture once more.

SARA added her own input to the story, helping the drake formulate something that would hopefully paint the drake in a better light than the Prophet had previously perceived.

"The humans found me, woke me up from a long sleep on some planet… can't remember the name but I think it was a colony" began Lightning sounding hesitant and a little nervous, trying to indicate he was uncomfortable describing his past.

Prophet sat there silently, watching the drake in a calm demeanour as he allowed the drake to speak.

"I was made to fight, a weapon designed by a creator I do not know… When the humans found me they begged for help, saying that a great evil was approaching that would wipe out there species… So I helped them fight this dangerous enemy known as the Covenant" said Lightning before pausing briefly to gauge the Prophets reaction.

"These creators of yours, were most defiantly the doing of the Gods!" announced Prophet confidently "as for the humans, it's a great misfortune they were able to deceive you in believing there petty accusations"

Lightning tilted his head trying to look confused.

"Accusations? They ask for help I don't see why that is petty?" Lightning said innocently, sounding puzzled by what Prophet spoke of.

"The gods have declared the vermin's death, and your skills could prove useful to the holy Covenant" yelled Truth sounding aggravated, as if Lightning had hit a sensitive topic.

"And your gods… are my creators?" Prophet gave a silent nod of confirmation in reply.

"Indeed O blessed one, your destiny is amongst our great covenant, not amongst those lowly humans" Lightning thought for a moment, helping the Covenant did sound better than being a captive

"You're not seriously considering joining them?" criticized SARA with distaste, she'd seen the death and misery the Covenant had brought to the humans, such acts were barbaric in her frame of mind.

Lightning grunted in confirmation, eyes wondering around the room as he stewed over the possibility of joining the winning side. His instincts said go for it, he was a survivor, and part of him was made with evolution in mind. If joining the covenant increased his chance of living, than it was worth pursuing.

SARA was disgusted by his line of reasoning, she knew it was his primitive side working away but still she was disappointed to see it remerge after her long struggle to subdue that darker nature.

"I need time to consider" announced Lightning softly, eyes staring down at the table.

"I urge you to make haste, the Great Journey will not wait for one individual such as yourself" commented the Prophet, before hovering away from the table.

"Please follow, there is something I wish to show you" Lightning tilted his head with confusion before standing, slowly following after the alien as his Elite guards flanked behind them like a cloak.

It was unsettling to have the dangerous creatures in his blind spot, his body urged caution as he was near vulnerable to the Elites weapons without his armour plating.

"I don't like this" said SARA as they walked down a hallway lined with prison cells, all manner of covenant creatures were pressed against the bars, growling screeching and making ungodly noises as they walked past.

They walked until they passed another set of doors and entered a ginormous room that stretched high and low into the air. Lightning was momentarily stunned by the vastness and could only gape in awe at the massive room, it looked like some memorial room judging by the covenant numbers lining various points on the wall, which SARA stated were dates and names.

They approached a large platform adorned with some large almost white structure with hints of glowing lights decorating its surface. Beside this structure was a large pod with similar colours, it looked a little out of place and didn't appear to be integrated into the architect of the room like everything else in sight.

"I wish to offer you a place amongst a glorious Covenant, a place of honour and respect, in return I expect you to follow our command and aid us in this campaign" the Prophet of Truth announced as he hovered beside the out of place structure, Lightning slowly moved closer to examine the object and was surprised when it split apart to reveal his own battle gear.

The armour and equipment was shadowed by a bright light, and held into the air upon some invisible force in the exact shape of his body and where the plates would attach. Most shocking of all, the armour looked like it been repaired recently, with old plasma scorching and deep scratches having been removed. Lightning was also surprised to see the familiar patterned surface of Covenant technology knitted into parts of his armour, replacing some of the older systems like radio and the region housing the previously broken shield generator.

Oh how the drake missed having an energy shield, he had one when he started this war but lack of parts made repairing it impossible during this war. The last aspect of the armour that confused him was a funny looking suit, he wasn't sure what it was but it was resting snuggly under the armour plating as if it belonged there.

Hesitantly walking closer to the armour, Lightning reached out and grasped his combat goggles, with their familiar armoured plated surface and multiple visor slits and optics. The marines use to call it his fly goggles or spider eyes, because when his eyes glowed it appeared he had multiple eyes in every direction. Lightning was pleased with this discover as it meant his physiological impact would be stronger amongst the enemy, people tend to fear that which appeared unnatural or beastly in nature.

Turning the goggles so he was staring at the back of the goggles where a block of armour housed a small computer system, the drake slipped the item over his head where it clicked into place with his neural interface system. Pushing the goggles over his eyes and turning to the Prophet, the drake then spoke in the native Elite language with the assistance of SARA translation system.

"What would you have me do for the Covenant?"

To be continued…

AU

Most Halo fans would know where Lightning is right now, the Momumentarian of the Arbiter... How you spell that?
Anyway, this fanfic has hit over 21000 words in length, and still going strong. For those who think this is going to be another OC insert into the main plot of the game. It is but I got a few twist to the story, and behind the scenes stuff coming along.

If you like what your reading, then stab that fave button with your energy sword brothers and sisters, and slash apart those reviews. FOR THE COVENANT WART WART WART!

^.=.^; and maybe I should sharpen my humour, stay tuned for the next installment coming soon to a PC near you.