Halo: T.O.Z.O.A. Ch. 1

Chapter 15 - 22

Tozoa leaned against the wall of the Faith of One, the ship was docked with the covenant battle cruiser, Tozoa held his plasma reaper tight in his right hand before disappearing around the corner. Asha stood in Tozoa's previous spot listening for the call sign. Tozoa ran cloaked down the halls, he stopped dead in his tracks, the entire ship seemed to have been massacred, though it wasn't the normal human carnage, it was covenant on covenant, Tozoa consciously walked the rest of the way to the bridge, he turned back looking down the hall as the door shut and his cloak deactivated. He turned looking at the main controls and pulled the chip from the back of his head placing it into a slot in the computer, "interesting, the ship seems to have no AI or remaining crew for that matter..." Samantha said over the ships speakers, Tozoa could hear Asha's Kig 'Yar footsteps on the metallic floor, along with the rest of the group, the door opened, Tozoa turned to them and said smugly, "she's all ours."

Kevin opened his eyes, he lay on the ground, a large piece of concrete on his chest, he pushed it off and sat up, he looked around and saw the warthog toppled over, they had been fairly close to the area where the elevator hit, Kevin stood up and grabbed his Silenced SMG from the ground, he spotted his helmet and grabbed it putting it on, in a quick fluid motion. Kevin spotted something next to the hog, a shiver ran up his spine and he stepped over a chunk of wall, Marx lay on the ground, a pillar on his stomach and his Magnum in hand, his eyes where already closed, Kevin looked opposite of Marx to see a brute chieftain laying on the ground, holes all the way up his chest to his neck. Kevin smiled in his helmet and whispered to himself, "like the fox you where..." he grabbed the patch on Marx uniform and stuck it on his shoulder, the fibers latched together and he dusted it off. "Mendez, Gab, Dave, sound off!" he called out over the roar of the fires. Dave grabbed Kevin's arm and pulled him into the ally with Gab and Mendez, Dave had his finger to his lips and Kevin nodded in agreement Mendez made a noise like a dove and motioned ahead of her was all clear, they headed off down the alley.

Tozoa sat in the shipmasters chair looking at a data pad, he glanced an Asha who was sitting in the first mates chair twirling her dagger, Rkze stood next to her with his arms folded and he was talking in his normal squawks and squeaks, though Asha seemed only half interested. Tozoa looked ahead of him, Dan and Pace sat in the two navigator chairs, they were catching up, laughing, cutting up, though Tozoa noticed Pace would glance at Eon every now and again. Eon stood at the other end of the bridge leaning on the wall, the two brute brothers stood in front of him telling tales of previous victories, losses, and family life, Eon was looking at Tozoa, though Tozoa knew that he couldn't tell that he was looking at him, Tozoa turned his head to Eon, "do you have a question?" Eon seemed a little hesitant and embarrassed, but he asked, "You look like a brother, though you fight like a demon." he chuckled a bit. "I suppose I am partly a... Elite," Tozoa replied, "though I wasn't by choice" "understood." Eon said smiling a bit. "Hey ladies, if you're all done with your gossip we're about to exit slipspace!" Pace hollered as Dan chuckled a bit, "would you look at that..." Dan said suddenly stopping his laughter, Tozoa stood out of his chair looking at the sight before him, a slipspace whole lay near the earth, and the covenant seemed to be going through it. "Tozoa?" Pace said, "What now?" Tozoa walked up to the controls and Samantha flicked on the holo-display, "well?" she said. "We don't wanna' be late." Tozoa said. "Let's blow this Popsicle stand!" Pace said pushing the ignition switch as the ship hurtled towards the hole.

Kevin hugged the alleyways wall as he hurried through the bodies that littered its narrow corridors, Mendez was ahead of him limping a bit but still moving like Hell, Dave was behind Kevin and Gab behind him. Mendez held her hand up and signaled for them to rest, Kevin tore off his helmet and sweat beads shot off his hair, Gab removed his hat and wiped his brow, Mendez stood breathing heavily and Dave had his hands on his knees breathing air in like a fan. Mendez turned to them and nodded them over to her, she whispered, "there's a pelican depot just a click that way," she said nodding behind her, "we may be able to get into that thing that opened in the sky." Kevin hadn't noticed the portal before, it seemed only Mendez had, everyone looked at it in awe, "so what we do once we're through?" Gab said putting his hat on, "we finish this war." Mendez said cocking her assault rifle and jogging down the alley; Kevin slipped his helmet back on and headed down behind her. Zrk watched the humans in the ally as they ran away from his cloaked body, his camo deactivated and he stood holding his chest with his left hand and gripping an energy sword hilt in the other, if arbiter was right, he could trust them, Zrk headed off behind them into the dark.