Halo_ The Fall of Reach - Eric Nylund [29]
She clasped her hands and wrung them nervously. “Something has happened, Chief. Something ONI and the Admiralty never expected. The brass wants to deploy the Spartans. They want to test them in a real combat mission.”
“They’re as ready for that as I can make them,” Mendez said. He narrowed his dark eyes. “But this is far ahead of your schedule. What happened? I’ve heard rumors there was some heavy action near Harvest colony.”
“Your rumors are out-of-date, Chief,” she said, and a chill crept into her voice. “There’s no more fighting at Harvest. Thereis no more Harvest.”
Dr. Halsey punched the descent button, and the observation room slowly lowered to the floor.
“Get them out of this hole,” she said crisply. “I want them ready to muster at 0400. We have a briefing at 0600 tomorrow aboard thePioneer . We’re taking them on a mission ONI has been saving for the right crew and the right time. This is it.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Mendez replied.
“Tomorrow we see if all the pain they’ve been through has been worth it.”
CHAPTER NINE
0605 Hours, September 12, 2525 (Military Calendar) / UNSC Destroyer Pioneer , en route to Eridanus System.
John and the other Spartans stood at ease. The briefing room aboard the UNSC DestroyerPioneer made him uncomfortable. The holographic
projectors at the fore end of the triangular room showed the field of stars visible off the bow of the ship. John wasn’t used to seeing so much space; he kept expecting the room to decompress explosively. The stars flickered and faded and the overhead lights warmed. Chief Petty Officer Mendez and Dr.
Halsey entered the room. The Spartans snapped to attention. “At ease,” Mendez said. He clasped his hands behind his back and clenched his jaw muscles. The Chief
looked almost . . . nervous. That made John nervous, too. Dr. Halsey walked to the podium. The overhead light reflected off her glasses. “Good morning,
Spartans. I have good news for you. The word has come down. Command has decided to test your
unique abilities. You have a new mission: an insurgent base in the Eridanus System.” A star map appeared on the wall and zoomed in to show a warm orange sun ringed with twelve planets. “In 2513, an armed insurrection in this system was suppressed by the UNSC force—Operation: TREBUCHET.”
An intersystem tactical map appeared, and tiny icons representing destroyers and carriers winked on.
They engaged a force of a hundred smaller ships. Pinpoints of fire appeared against the dark. “The insurrection was put down,” Dr. Halsey continued. “However, elements of the rebel forces escaped and regrouped in the local asteroid belt.”
The map tilted and moved into the circle of debris around the star. “Billions of rocks,” Dr. Halsey said, “where they hid from our forces . . . and continue to hide to this
day. For some time ONI believed that the rebels were disorganized, and were lacking in leadership. That appears to have changed.
“We believe that one of these asteroids has been hollowed out, and that a formidable base has been constructed within. UNSC explorations into the belt have met either with no contact or with an ambush by superior forces.”
She paused, pushed up her glasses, and added, “The Office of Naval Intelligence has also confirmed that FLEETCOM has discovered a security breach within their organization—a rebel sympathizer leaking information to these forces.”
John and the other Spartans shifted uneasily. A leak? It was possible. Déjà had shown them many historical battles that had been won and lost because of traitors or informants. But it never occurred to him that it could happen in the UNSC.
A flat picture flashed over the star map: a middle-aged man with thinning hair, a neatly trimmed beard, and watery gray eyes.
“This is their leader,” Dr. Halsey said. “Colonel Robert Watts. The original photo was taken after Operation: TREBUCHET and has been computer aged.
“Your mission is to infiltrate the rebel