Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars, it belongs to Lucasfilm and George Lucas and any other associated groups. I have the game Halo but the trademark belongs to Bungie Studios, Microsoft Gaming Studio, Gearbox Software, and others that I forgot.
Selona 14th, 25 BBY
Ilum System, Unknown Regions
Jedi Master Mace Windu sat in his Delta-7, and scowled at the data. After searching for clues as to what happened to Outbound Flight in the last recorded place, he came up with nothing, no interstellar clouds, nothing to take notice, until…
A beep sounded in his scanners, detecting something big heading in, he peered up through the transparisteel at the object, and his eyes widened.
It was a wreckage of a ship… with an ID: FFG-201, and, written on the side in Galactic Basic: UNSC Forward unto Dawn.
Windu get his communicator online and a second later, a connection is established.
"Aayla, I've got something big, something called Forward unto Dawn. It appears to be the rear end of a ship of some sorts, but I've never seen it before," said Windu.
"Master Windu, I see it too but… No match in the database," said Aayla Secura, who accompanied Windu to see scan the area.
"Maybe we should board it, I see breaches that we can go in through," suggested Windu.
"Alright, but I'm also calling in help, we might need them, until then master, please stay," said Aayla. Windu agreed and called the Jedi Temple and explained the situation. Two Jedis are sent, Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi and his padawan, Anakin Skywalker. It turned out they weren't there however.
Waiting a little bit, Windu suddenly sensed something, a weak Force signature emanating from the ship.
Coruscant, Shopping Mall
Anakin was enjoying watching the droids in a shop when his communicator beeped and his sighed in annoyance. Time to get back to work it seems, why don't they let at least a bit more time off, thought Anakin, as he took his communicator up, "This is Anakin, what's going on?"
"Anakin, Master Windu and Secura found a wreckage of a ship in the Unknown regions; we need you and Obi-Wan to help them. We have the ship you are going to use ready and your fighters are inside, just get over here."
"Got it, out," Anakin sighed and hurried back to his speeder and left to the Jedi Temple. On the way, he glanced and marveled at the wonders of Coruscant, despite having lived here for most of his life. He reached the Temple at around the same time as Obi-Wan did.
"Looks like someone needed us to save again, Master," Anakin said.
"Doubt it, Anakin, remember we're suppose to see Master Windu, and please remember your respect and patience, I will not like to see what happened the last time you met him," said Obi-Wan. Anakin grinned.
The last time Anakin, Obi-Wan and Windu met was before he was sent out, he wanted a word with the duo, or more specifically, to Anakin. He was worried about Anakin's droid creations when he noticed a small switch in Anakin's hand, with the switch in the RECALL position. Just as he noticed droids suddenly ran through the Council doors and all gathered there and Windu was simply dumbfounded. All he could do was scream out Anakin's name while Anakin and Obi-Wan laughed.
"Ok ok master, I won't… or maybe I will, that depends if there is enough space on the ship," replied Anakin.
"Anakin…" said Obi-Wan dangerously.
"Ok I won't Master," replied Anakin, as they reached the ship. "Doesn't look very nice does it?"
"It's fast enough for your purpose, about as fast as the hyperspace rings we have above," replied Obi-Wan at Anakin's disdain. Anakin shrugged and just went in the ship to the cockpit. He fired up the engines and seconds later have Obi-Wan scream, "Anakin shut the engines down. Ow hot hot hot hot!" Anakin quickly shut the engines down and hurried out to see Obi-Wan's robes are on fire.
"Oops, sorry Master, my mistake," Anakin said while trying to keep his laughter in, to no avail. Obi-Wan glared at Anakin while extinguishing his robe and got up to his room to change. 5 minutes later they were off. And after leaving the atmosphere they activated their hyperdrive and in around a day they reached where the wreckage is. Obi-Wan spent most of his time meditating but Anakin, on the other hand, was impatient even in the little time they need to get there. He was constantly walking around and checking his chronometer and pacing around again, then decided to spar a little with one of his droids that he created for that purpose. He sparred for a few hours while Obi-Wan stopped his meditation and watched Anakin spar.
After the day passed, they arrived at their destination: the Unknown Regions near the Wild Space. Windu and Aayla's ships landed in the hanger and met the two Jedis. Windu exclaimed in disdain, "Master Kenobi? Skywalker? You are the one to be sent here?"
"Is… there any problem, Master Windu?" asked Anakin. Windu shook his head and continued walking to the cockpit, where he got some space suits to wear. "I guess you know what happened. Yesterday we found the wreckage that was floating around here close to Bespin, and we called you here. But there's also a twist. I felt a small Force signature coming from the ship, whether it's someone or an artifact we don't know, but we should get it as well." From there, Windu paused and then continued. "Its imperative we retrieve whatever's onboard as it might be able to pinpoint the Sith Lord or it might be able to help us, or, failing to do so, destroy it. Any questions"? No one asked. "Great, let's go"
They started out towards the ship in their Delta-7s and docked in what looks like a Hanger Bay. They got out of their fighters, Windu igniting his violet lightsaber first, followed by Aayla, then Anakin, then Obi-Wan. They advanced into the ship, and paused at the first bulkhead. Anakin was the first to speak, "Now what masters?"
Windu didn't reply, neither did Obi-Wan. Anakin turned and saw the three cutting the door slowly. Than, a pedestal glowed, and Anakin leaped back in shock and pointed his lightsaber at the glow. Then, a shape of a woman appeared.
"Thank God we were rescued. Thanks. By the way, who are you?" She spoke.
"I'm… Anakin Skywalker, Jedi Padawan of the Republic," Anakin replied, "Ok, who, or exactly, what, are you?"
"I'm Cortana, Artificial Intelligence of the UNSC. I take it we're in another Galaxy," She replied. Anakin could only nod. "Don't worry, I'll get that door opened." And with that she opened the door, The 3 Jedis cutting the door jumping away in shock, turned and saw Anakin talking to a purple woman. Obi-Wan was the first to snap out and walked through the door, with each one opening to where they should go to get to the signature that they now all have felt.
After a long walk to near the end of the ship, they found a place writtenCryo, and the signature is emanating from the bulkhead behind. At here Cortana cut in, "Sorry, when the ship is lost, some parts of the bulkhead lost power, you might have to cut it with your Energy Swords."
"Energy Swords? Ma'am, this is most certainly not that, it's a lightsaber, a ceremonial weapon wielded by the Jedi… except the red ones, those guys are the bad guys," retorted Anakin. Cortana shrugged. The four Jedi got to work and cut through the bulkhead, when the Force signature suddenly got stronger. Cortana cut in again, "Ok, I've thawed the person out."
"We sensed it, Cortana," Windu replied. Cortana looked over, "Oh hello, who are you?"
"Jedi Master Mace Windu, ask us all this when we get back to the temple please, you can find out everything there," Windu said. Cortana nodded and vanished suddenly. When the door cut open, they gasped.
A green suit of armor looked at them. Then, it spoke, a deep, grave voice, "Cortana, are these the people you told me?" And out of nowhere, as if its in the armor, Cortana replied and affirmative. Windu was sure, the signature was emanating from the suit. But he quickly squelched that thought and said, "Welcome, I'm Jedi Master Mace Windu, Galactic Republic, and you are…?
"Spartan-117, Master Chief Petty Officer, United Nations Space Command trooper," replied the Spartan.
"Alright, Spartan. If you don't mind, we have a ship but… do you have a starfighter to get to our ship?" Windu asked, hoping they'd say yes. They were not expecting Cortana to laugh, and say, "Chief doesn't need a starfighter to get there, he'd just jump like the crazy bastard he is!" At this, the Chief smacked the back of the helmet, followed by Cortana exclaiming, "OK ok!! But it's true, you don't need to hit that hard!"
"Anyways, it's not far, but it would be nice to get there fast enough," said Anakin, who wanted to return a bit, first, to inspect the armor and the electronics, and second because he wanted to return. The Chief though for a moment, then said, "Wait a moment please, I want to scavenge something a… friend left me." With that, he trod off with the Jedis following, to a room called Armory A-3. The doors opened and the lights hissed on. The Jedis gasped in unison. Wonder, horror, a rainbow of emotions.
Weapons. Weapons everywhere.
The Chief went forward, and picked up a few weapons, amongst which were a hammer which looks like it had the better days than the newer ones , a big… cannon like thing, a small rod that looks like the hilt of a lightsaber, a rifle, and 2 pistol, as well as grenades and ammo. He then nodded to the group and they left. Along the way, Anakin asked the Chief, "What were you carrying, and it seems quite heavy," the Chief thought for a moment, then replied, "This hammer is no ordinary hammer in the arsenal, the others require battery, this is a trophy for a fallen enemy, called Brutes. The Chieftain holds this as a sign of power. This hammer, is called the Fist of Rukt, and it is here because my friend, called the Arbiter, wishes to give it to the person who actually helped him have a chance to win against the Chieftain in charge, called Tartarus. This big gun, it's called a Spartan Laser for short. In short, it blows up most things in one hit, including tanks and sometimes walkers. The hilt, which looks like yours, is an energy sword. It creates a triangular plane of plasma encased in an electromagnetic field, making it stronger than a normal blade and capable of cutting through metal. This is just a rifle, and these are just pistols." Anakin nodded, and then, a thought occurred, but he wasn't sure his master would like it, and connected to Obi-Wan through the Force, "Master, can I tell him he's Force-sensitive?"
"No, wait until we get back to the Council. Let the entire council decide Anakin, have patience."
So it went, they left the wreckage of the ship, the Chief finding a Longsword heavy fighter and leaving the ship to theirs. On board, they took off towards Coruscant.
Selona 16th, 25 BBY
Coruscant, Jedi Council Room
The Master Chief stood nervously in front of the people and aliens that sat in front of the room. He was never this nervous before, not even when he found Cortana in the Jedi Archives wandering around looking at the information and depositing some here and there.
In truth, he was quite afraid.
Finally, Yoda spoke, "Know you are Force-sensitive, you do not, that is correct?"
"Yes Master Yoda."
"Much calmness I sense in you, a Jedi you could be if you want, the council agrees wholeheartedly."
"Thank you Master Yoda, but wouldn't I be too old to begin? Most of the younglings are… younglings."
"You are an exception. You already know some basics with swordsmanship, as proven with that sword, and the fact that you are calm like a Jedi should, and having no actual attachment save Cortana, who is an Artificial Intelligence, is one thing that lets us to this decision," said Ki-Adi-Mundi, a Jedi council member. The others nodded in agreement. The Master Chief bowed his head, "It would be a great honor to join your ranks, Masters."
"Decided it is then. A Jedi you will become," Yoda said, with a small hint of smile. "However, much there is to do, one must go first. Your armor, need that you do not." The Chief hesitated, then took off his armor, showing pale skin underneath. He hesitated again, then handed the armor to the council. Yoda rejected it.
"Require it you will one day, when you return. If choose you do to stay here, dispose of that armor you may. Until then keep the armor you will."
"Thank you, Master Yoda," said the Chief.
"And, by the way, what is your real name, not just the Chief or Master Chief or Spartan?" asked Windu. The Chief answered after a moment, "John, Master Windu, I don't know my last name."
"No last name?"
"No sir – Master Windu. I was taken at the age of 6, I never got to know my surname."
"How surprising… What last name would you want then?" The Chief thought for a moment at the question, and the answer came up. Really, it had been very simple. He liked the man who sacrificed himself to kill Guilty Spark, the man who won against the Flood and the Covenant, and who helped the Chief escape and provided him cover. He decided it would be Johnson, after his comrade, Sergeant Major Avery J Johnson. "John Johnson, Master Windu, after another good friend of mine."
"Johnson it is then, John. Welcome to the Jedi. You still require training in the Force, however," said Windu. Yoda added in, as a surprise to the Chief, now John, "Train with me, you will, until it is necessary or you have been knighted. Train in the Force you must, great potential I sense in you." And with that, it is decided. Yoda has a new Padawan, John.
Selona 20th, 25 BBY
Coruscant, Jedi Temple
John still felt ill at ease at the temple, despite being able to live in many conditions. But interacting with people and walking without his armor was kind of strange and new to the man.
Ah, his armor. John remembered Anakin asked to borrow it, but was too heavy and had to use the Force to lift it. That was something he was trying to learn. Right now, he is capable of calling small objects into his hand but wasn't in a very big hurry to go anywhere soon, a fact which pleased Yoda.
"Patience you must have, my young Padawan, patience," he often instructed. While John had wondered about why he was called young, he recalled looking like a 25 year old than a 42 year old, and overheard someone saying Yoda's age is at around 900 years. 900 Years! That number swam in John head. Was a person able to even live that long? Doesn't matter much to him, he guessed. He just needed to do his job and finish what he needs to do, that's all.
He did miss the UNSC however, but with Cortana here its much better. The star charts in her and the Halo data were all added to the Jedi Archive. Now anyone who finds a ring-shaped structure in a middle of the galaxy with flying robots, they'll know to blow it up before landing.
Wondering what he's going to do in the afternoon, he ate lunch. The food here has more variety than in UNSC space but they were a little weird tasting. Fortunately he was a soldier, and he pretty much ate anything, good or bad.
In the afternoon, he was surprised a bit when Yoda had told him to meditate, as he never knew what meditate is. Yoda taught him through, step by step, and with patience that would scare Anakin, he meditated for the entire afternoon, having nothing to do. It was also this time when Anakin came in.
UNSC Space
May 10th, 2553
Earth, Orbital Defense Platform Cairo
Lord Hood scowled at the figures that came up for the repair of the defense grid and terraforming the destroyed planets. It came up as quadrillions. Then, a blip appeared on radar, around Io. Hood frowned. This is just getting worse, he decided. That is, until the lieutenant swiveled his seat around so quickly he started spinning but continued reporting nonetheless, "S-S-Si-Sir, there are Spartan neural signatures on that ship, 3 Spartan-IIs and 7 Spartan-III's sir!" Hood straightened up, "Allow them to land at once, I'll go meet them." The lieutenant saluted and went ahead to contacting the ship.
Hood strode quickly to Hanger B-05, where a few Covenant Seraphs were parked and some Sangheilis were resting. They straightened up and bowed to Hood in respect, and likewise but continued standing, waiting for the ship.
It did come in, and as it landed, the doors opened. Out came first: the 3 Spartan-IIs, who raised their arms in preparations for battle, the Spartan-IIIs who looked around and immediately camouflaged into the surrounding and took up flanking positions, and finally, Doctor Catherine Halsey, the creator of the Spartan II Program.
"Nice to see you, Lord Hood, but… why are these Elites here?" she asked gracefully.
"They're our allies now Catherine. Spartans, lower your weapons, they mean you no harm, they are our friends," Lord Hood said. The Spartans lowered their hands and the Spartan-III's deactivated their camouflage and stood still with their older counterpart. "Come to the briefing room, I'll explain everything." And so they went.
A Few Hours Later
"So you mean to tell me that John is missing, half our fleets dead, we're allied with the Elites, we're in the Covenant now, and this is the base planet?" Catherine demanded.
"Yes, because of the strategic importance of the Ark, we cannot let it fall into the Brutes hands anymore, nor the Prophets, but they're being subjugated by the Sangheilis" Hood said adding the emphasis on the Sangheili, the name of the Elite race. Catherine simply nodded at this and said, "okay, I accept." Hood sighed. That is one problem solved, but the problem of finding the Master Chief is still a problem.
3 Years Later…
Kelona 10th, 22 BBY
ShuttleClarity in hyperspace en route to Ilum
John is perplexed as to why Master Yoda had brought him here, to the planet of Ilum. Master Yoda didn't explain anything on the way there, and he assumed that he would know when they arrived. Meanwhile, he sparred with Master Yoda a bit, after learning a few more combat movements of Djem So, which is what John is better at than most, being a heavy hitting person than most, if not all, other Jedis. He practiced his short attacks and longer sweeps, incorporating elements of Makashi into it, making his attacks powerful yet precise, with elegance among them. Master Yoda was quite impressed with his efforts.
"Good techniques you have, patience, elegance, yet powerful." He commented during the spar. John had to watch out for Master Yoda's blade, however, as being acrobatic, he was able to hit areas that he does not expect.
After a long while, he decided to rest a bit and pummel Master Yoda with questions again, "Master Yoda, what's so important in Ilum anyways?
"Tell you, or see it, you will when you get there," was Yoda's reply, once again. John couldn't do anything but sigh, and going back to meditate on what's going to happen. Usually he found meditation relaxing and helped him to find out a few things in the world. Now, he felt a familiar presence that was close, other than Master Yoda. It was on the planet he was traveling to. No, not just one. 6 familiar signatures.
Fred, Linda, Kelly, Johanna, Justin, and Katherine. The signatures were the three from blue team and 3 from Grey Team. But, why were they here? On Ilum? Then he realized.
UNSC Frigate Forward unto Dawn had landed there. The Spartans, being his family, had been chosen to investigate.
"Master Yoda, there are Spartans on Ilum," he reported. Yoda looked up in surprise.
"Look for you they are on Ilum? Landed you ship in there?" Yoda asked. John simply nodded, and retrieved his armor. It was polished and renewed by Anakin, whom he still needed to thank, as Anakin and Obi-Wan had been sent on a mission. The armor seems a lot newer now.
According to him, the armor joints, because of the need to move flexibly, are made of Phrik, a lightsaber resistant metal. The chest and other major armors are made from Cortosis, which can short out a lightsaber and if it doesn't can block it, and is one of the strongest materials in the galaxy. The liquid crystals are amplified and offer now thrice as much strength, the neural connection is now strengthened by the Force allowing his reaction to decrease by another 10 milliseconds. The power level also spiked, the reactor made from different materials, which can give more power than normal and give out a shield 5 times as strong as an overshield. Courtesy of Anakin and his love to tinker with machines. John wonders whether this would have been designated by the rogue Monitor, 343 Guilty Spark, as Level 12 Combat Skin.
Kelona 11th, 22 BBY
Planet Ilum
They've arrived.
The first thought that went into John's head when they're in the planet is: snowy. Second thought: This place is the perfect place for a snowball fight! But they have business to do. First, find the crystals that would power his actual lightsaber, explained by Yoda. The crystal cave isn't that far however, but he felt a calling in the Force already and, with permission from his Master, surged ahead to find it.
He'd searched no more for a few minutes before finding the cave entrance, and another hour to find his crystal. It glowed a bright, pale green, and its pretty much right at the entrance of the cave. When he showed it to Master Yoda, he nodded and said, "A Pontite Crystal you have found. Powerful it is, rare, as well. Use it well, for it can help you greatly, for now you must meditate, meditate to imbue yourself with the crystal, then infuse it with your lightsaber. Only until then will you be ready for become a Jedi Knight."
John mediated for days, weeks, or was it months? He lost track of time. He was focused only on his crystal, honing it to fit himself. He kept meditating, calming himself, relaxing himself, and sending Force waves out, like ripples in the pond. Until finally…
"Ready, you crystal is, my Padawan, and be careful of constructing the saber, dangerous it can be, one slight mistake, restart you must," Yoda said, looking at the crystal. John opened his eyes. He estimated him to have sat around a week readying the crystal, and after meditating on how his lightsaber is going to look like, and began creating it, with very slight movements, preferring to use the Force to guide it into place.
Finally, after about a month, he is ready to assemble the final, and most important piece: the crystal. He meditated on it, and thought it through, and then started to put the crystal in. He did it deliberately, slowly, and carefully, caressing it and holding it, and placed it in the right position. After building it, he meditated yet again, to fuse himself with his blade, to give his blade some of his Force essence, and in return it gave some of its back. After a day of meditating, he saw that his blade was all ready. He waited a bit though, not sure what to do, at least until Master Yoda came in, looked at his lightsaber, and smiled, "light it, you should, give it a light." And so he did. And a dazzling blue it was. Absolutely dizzying. He took it and swung it, and was surprised at how it seems to have been a part of his arm the entire time. He looked at it and deactivated it. The hilt was smooth, the lens covered slightly from the side. He clipped it to his armor's magnetic harness, and went with Master Yoda, as they investigated his former families' signature.
September 16th, 2555
Unknown System in unknown planet
Fred frowned. This was way weird. The record said that it was evacuated 3 years ago. Then it had crashed after a few days, a week at most. He was thinking this over and over for what seems like hours. It wasn't until he heard Linda calling out, "Incoming, unknown friendlies or hostiles, advising- wait, they're hailing us, on E-Band, piping it through," A while later, a 6-not sing song was heard. Fred instantly froze. That… that was… Oly Oly Oxen Free! He thought furiously, and immediately sent out a channel on that response, "Oly Oly Oxen Free. All out in the free, we're all free." Then, after a little time, the comlink came on again.
"Knew you guys couldn't forget me, hi Fred, what's up?" John asked casually.
They're all shocked to hear his voice, even more, knowing he was alive. "John? What happened to you? Were you on this planet the whole time?" Kelly asked. John laughed, "No, a few people rescued me, and trained me in a little something… ah, this could get a little while to get used to. Along the way, don't shoot at my Master, he's the… person beside me."
"You mean alien."
"No, he's highly respected in this galaxy,"
"He looks short, and you look different, your armor's been changed," Linda said while peering through her Oracle-X variant sniper scope, an updated version of the Oracle-N variant.
"Yeah, one of my friends likes to tinker with machinery and changed aspects of this armor, its stronger, harder, and lighter all at the same time. I'm wearing it only because its quite cold here and you might shoot me on sight if I wasn't," said John. Fred waited until they're only a few steps away before going up and they gave each other a crushing hug, joined by the other 5 Spartans. Meanwhile, Yoda looked at them smiling with affection, "Families they are, John?" he asked. John looked around, and replied "Yes, yes they are, Master Yoda." Then, remembering, he showed the 6 Spartans his mentor and master. "Guys, this is my master, Master Yoda."
"How are you, Master Yoda," they said in unison, bowing down like John did. Yoda simply smiled again and said, "Cold this planet is, go we will, go Coruscant, to the Jedi Temple." John nodded with the rest, and proceeded to their ships, and took off, streaking towards light speed.
Selona 1st, 22 BBY
Coruscant, Jedi Temple
John looked at his teammates, who didn't flinch much as the Council bombarded them with questions, and answered them fully. John was real surprised by then. How had the ship been traveling for one entire galaxy, gone through unknown amounts of Intergalactic Space, then managed to get just within the edge of the Virgo Supercluster? and landing within a few months. John noted to himself never to underestimate the power of Forerunner technology.
Ever
Again
Suddenly their comlinks beeped at the same time, including John's, and they all responded in unison.
"Spartan-087, reporting."
"Spartan-054, reporting,"
"Spartan-025, reporting,"
"Spartan-104, reporting,"
"Spartan-112, reporting,"
"Spartan-095, reporting,"
"This is Spartan-117, over," There was silence in the comlink, then, Lord Hoods voice broke over, "Spartan-117? You're alive? And well?"
"Yes sir."
"Don't exactly believe you. Sorry, but managing to live that long without power is nearly impossible. What's your recognition code?" Fred sighed in exasperation, but John was readied for that, "Recognition code Tango-Alpha Three Four Zero, copy," Silence again in the comlink, then Lord Hood came back, "Looks like its you then Chief. Mind telling us what you've been doing in the middle of nowhere?"
"I… got blasted to a couple parsecs from this galaxy, drifted at a very fast speed from Slipspace, then a couple of Jedis found me, and took me in because I have a quality similar to what they need. Short version at least." John replied.
"Gotcha. Now, can you guys come back now? The Arbiter would really like a talk with you and hopefully get the Fist of Rukt back. The Brutes are still restless because they don't believe Tartarus or their Alpha Chieftains are dead," Lord Hood said. John hesitated, then replied the thing he usually never do, "I can give you the Hammer back… but I can't go back. I'm sorry sir, but… I'm a civilian now, and I think I deserve to live my life here without the war that destroyed humanity. You have 6 more heroes along the new Spartan-IIIs according to Fred, and a new batch of Spartan-IIs, seems like a good deal. I've fought long enough, Lord Hood, I'm sorry."
"I… understand, son. I'll support you, even if I don't want to. After all, you did do a great thing to humanity." Lord Hood replied, somewhat sadly. John looked at his comrades, and they all gave him a thumbs-up. The Jedis smiled and nodded. He knew this was the right choice.
Authors note: Yes, I know Forward unto Dawn didn't land on an icy planet, it was drifting somewhere else. I'll get to that point later in the story, so bear with me here. This is my first story so no flames please thanks