An hour earlier while Genesis and Max are walking around the ARK.
Catherine: Elizabeth.
Elizabeth: What is it?
Catherine: Do you see... Jack...as our brother...you know?
Elizabeth: You kidding me? What makes you think I see that Rust Headed dude as "our" brother?
Catherine: Come on Elizabeth, he may not be our blood brother but he's still one of a kind to me. Back when we were kids he tried his best to make you see him as a brother!
Elizabeth: All he did was make you distant from me... that's it!
Elizabeth walks ahead of Catherine while Catherine stops walking for a sec while she gets a little mad.
Catherine: At least he understood who I was.
They both walk for a little until they stop in front of a big mysterious door.
Elizabeth opens it with her key card and the door opens, as they go in they hear some smooth piano and violin music with an old woman sitting in front of a big desk, looking through a telescope.
???: Could've knocked.
Elizabeth: Sorry but we have some interesting news...and guest.
???: Hmm, and what might this guest be?
Catherine: Oh shit, h-hey Ma!
Dr.Halsey (Catherine and Elizabeth's biological mother and Jack's mother figure)
Dr.Halsey hears a familiar voice and she drops everything on her hand to the desk as she gets up slowly. She turns around to see her young daughter behind her at disbelief.
Dr.Halsey: C-Catherine?!
Catherine: Uhh, hey!
Halsey hugs Catherine without a second thought and holds her tight, leaving Catherine no choice but to hug back.
Dr.Halsey: My god...it's been...how long? Two years?
Catherine: Yup! Two years I guess.
Elizabeth: It's not even "I guess" you left for two years.
Dr.Halsey: Elizabeth..your sister is here and she looks wonderfully well! How you've been honey?
Catherine: Pfft, good! Just being myself, if you know what I mean.
Dr.Halsey: hmm, and your brother?
Catherine: Uh-ummm, well you see...
Elizabeth: He's here as well Mom.
Dr.Halsey: Is he now?
Catherine: Surprise, oh forget it.
Dr.Halsey: If he's here then there must be a reason why...with you.
Catherine: Mom, I know this is gonna sound strange and unheard of but...him and I need your help with something.
Dr.Halsey: That is unheard of from you and him, and this problem is?
Elizabeth: They brought a Sangheili Mech that is somehow involved with-
Dr.Halsey: The Mother?
Catherine: Yeah, how do you?
Dr.Halsey: Saw it on the news a few days ago.
Catherine: If you know about the Mother then how come it was such a surprise to you Elizabeth?
Elizabeth: I haven't been on TV for awhile.
Dr.Halsey: So, what do you need from it?
Catherine: We need your help to repair it and help us gather some information from it's memory camera and we also need some Covenant tools to do so. Think you can help us?
Dr.Halsey: Heh, now this will be a easy thing for me but it'll be more easier with you guys here. Bring it here and we'll get right into it.
Catherine: Thanks Ma!
Catherine contacts Jack
Jack: Please tell me your calling me because she's not here.
Catherine: Luck isn't on your side bro
Jack: Damn it!
Catherine: Bring the Mech here in Mom's lab we're gonna do it.
Jack: What?! Me?! Oh no no no I thought you said you was gonna bring her here and then I'll leave.
Catherine: Jack it doesn't really matter just bring it here. PLEASE!! Just see her for a sec and get it over with!
Jack: Yeah and then it'll lead to an argument which you don't like!
Catherine: Well you better make sure you keep your inside voice in at all cost. Just bring the damn thing!
Jack: Ughh fine! I'm coming and getting outta there.
Catherine: And try to say hi for at least a second
Jack: Yeah yeah, Jack out.
He hangs up
Catherine: Damn he's such a Rust Headed bastard...my Rust Headed bastard!
Few minutes later.
Jack: Alright....damn this thing is heavy.
Jack starts breathing heavy non-stop cuz of the large box luggage he had to pull all the way to Dr.Halsey's lab.
Catherine: Oh I forgot that thing is heavy, sorry!
Jack: Sorry my...ass.
Jack stops for a sec to catch his breath and strength but sees Dr.Halsey looking at him with a disappointed and a little mad face on her as Jack looks confused.
Catherine: Psst
Jack: Hm?
whispering to Jack
Catherine: Say "hey Mom"
Jack: i'm not gonna say that.
Caterine: Just say it please.
Jack: ugh, h-hey Mom, It's been awhile.
Dr.Halsey: Yes... it's been two years you know.
Jack: Uhh, well at least I can say one thing heh heh....sorry.
Dr.Halsey: Sorry for taking Catherine with you without making a call to us?
Jack: Oh geez, I-I did say I was gonna join the U.N.S.F to become a pilot with Max.
Dr.Halsey: But you didn't tell us that you were gonna take Catherine with you.
It gets awkward in the lab that makes Catherine uncomfortable and tries to get into topic.
Catherine: Hey Ma, look at this.
Catherine powers the Mech to shows her what they need from it's memory camera but it's very fuzzy and hard to see.
Catherine: This is what we from you Mom. Inorder to get some information we need to repair the Mech with some of your Covenant tools.
Dr.Halsey: Hmm, your right...I can understand what they are saying but it's too damaged. I can translate it for you guys when it's fixed.
Jack: Alright good! I'm gonna go.
Catherine grabs Jack by the shoulder, stoppinghim from leaving the lab.
Catherine: Oh no you don't, your gonna stay here and do the heavy lifting for us.
Jack: What?! But...
Jack checks his watch to see how long they've got and finds out that the timer on his watch has already ran out.
Jack: Hggh alright, let's do this shit.
Catherine: That's my brother!
Catherine punches Jack but instead hurts her knuckles trying to.
Catherine: Arghh fffuck!
Jack: Heh, dummy!
They all start working on the Sangheili Mech as they use different Covenant tech.
Catherine: Geez Mom, where'd you be getting all this shit?
Dr.Halsey: Military, labs, illegal black markets in different planets.
Catherine: Oh.... ILLEGAL BLACK MARKETS?!
Using more Covenant tech, Elizabeth looks inside the Sangheili Mech's main control for some fixing and accidentally feels something soft in there.
Elizabeth: Hm, What's this?
Elizabeth picks up the weird soft thing and finds out that it's a dead Sangheili's hand and drops it immediately in shock.
Elizabeth: AHHHHHH!!!
Jack: Ha! Looks at this Catherine, it's a hand!
Catherine: Ahh cool...give it to me!
Elizabeth: I thought you said you guys cleaned it!
Catherine: Well...a scientist can make a few mistakes!...even if they are quote "mistakes"!
Elizabeth looks at her sister in disappointment and anger.
Dr.Halsey: Mind telling me what you're gonna do with that disgusting hand?
Catherine: Me?! You know I'm gonna throw it away. I just wanted to uhh...
She hides the Sangheili hand behind her, lying to her Mom of course.
After awhile of hard work and heavy lifting for them, they finally got the Mech fully repaired and power fully ready.
Catherine: phew... finally... thanks for the lifting Jack!
He looks at Catherine in a sarcastic face.
Jack: Yeah...your welcome.
Elizabeth: Alright quiet, Mom is gonna have to focus when they she hears them talk.
They power on the Mech and they go into the memory camera as it lights up a holographic screen for them to see.
Catherine: It worked! We can finally see clearly.
They see the POV of the Sangheili walking in through a hall way inside a ship.
Elizabeth: fascinating, this is what it looks like inside a Covenant's ship?
Jack: Meh it ain't that special, I've in it multiple times before...before the ship is destroyed.
The Sangheili continues to walk until he enters a big door that opens and reveals a big room.
The room is full of Grunts, Kig-Yar Storms, and of course Sangheilis.
Grunt: [SIR, h-he's h-h-here]
Grunt
???: [Good, over here mercenary]
Jack: What did he say?
Dr.Halsey: He just called him "mercenary".
Jack: Mercenary?! That whole time I was fighting a mercenary?
Elizabeth: Shh, there's still more.
The Sangheili Merc walks up the main control of the ship to speak to this unknown Sangheili.
???:[You found it, didn't you?]
Sangheili Merc:[Yeah, yeah I know where it is. Soon as I get from him we'll do what you ordered us]
Dr.Halsey: "Soon as I get it from him then we'll do what you ordered us to do" hmm, strange.
???: [You know why I hired you, right? They say your the best of the best and you know how to get the job done. This budget I'm giving you better be worth what your doing...find the Flood]
Dr.Halsey: "Find the Flood"
Jack: The hell's the "Flood"?
This unknown Sangheili turns around to reveal himself with silver armor and a cape on him.
Catherine: Holy shit.... it's the Arbiter!
Arbiter
Jack: Damn, that's what he looks like?!
Arbiter: [Go, and do your part]
The Sangheili Merc follows his orders and leaves the room to his own Covenant ship with some other Sangheili Mercs waiting for him.
Catherine: This is too much, we find out that this thing is a Mercenary and the Arbiter is involved with this!
Jack: Hold on, we need to find out what this "Flood" is and who the is the Merc getting it from.
After a few moments of the Merc traveling through space and lands on an unknown planet full of big trees and mountains.
The Sangheili Mercs are in their Mechs walking as Jack sees a familiar ship on top of a mountain.
Jack: Wait a minute...I know this planet!
They continue to walk until they appear they're stopped by two Titans on top of two mountains pointing a gun at the Sangheili Mech Mercs.
???: STOP RIGHT THERE!
Sangheili Merc: SLONE! It's us.
Slone
Jack: What The Fff?! SLONE?! Max is gonna hate this shit! Hold on, if she's there then that means...
Catherine: The Apex Predators?!
Dr.Halsey: Now this is interesting!
Slone: Came here for that disgusting tentacle shit?!
Sangheili Merc: Yeah.
Slone: Follow me.
The Sangheili Mech Mercs follow Slone as they see a bunch of Apex Predators standing around observing the Sangheili with some death stare.
They stop in front of a building that has Apex Predators soldiers standing around looking at the Sangheili Mercs behind Slone.
Slone: Yo Kuben! They're here for it.
Kuben Blisk
This unknown man walks from the building, piloting his Titan holding a big tube.
Jack: GODDAMN IT!! I knew he was gonna be there.
Sangheili Merc: Got right there?
Kuben: Don't worry mate, it's riiight here!
Kuben hands the Merc a giant tube with an unknown weird disgusting tentacle that's moving like a worm but soon as Jack sees it he remembers what it is.
Jack: That's the antenna thing I was talking!
Elizabeth: But what is it?
Kuben: Be careful, that thing was hard to get when we found it, yah? This "Flood" thing could destroy our enemy we're all facing.
Sangheili Merc: Do not think this is as a "work together thing". Soon as we destroy the U.N.S.C we'll still have the same war as ever. The Apex Predators against the Covanent and the Covenant against the Apex and of course the Reconoids against all of us. It'll be a whole triangle instead of a whole square once the U.N.S.C. is gone.
Kuben: Yah, yah but teamwork will always be there in life, yah?!
Sangheili Merc: Say what you must Kuben, you'll understand what I speak of.
Kuben: Hope I do mate!
The Sangheili Merc takes the giant tube with him to his ship and leaves the planet to go to a different unknown planet. The ship lands on a different planet as the Sangheili Merc flies up in the air with the giant tube and looks for something.
Jack: The hell's he looking for?
The Merc stops flying and lands on top of something that looks to be a mountain but something's off. He walks to the end of it and uses his plasma sword to cut into the it like a dead flesh.
Jack: Wait a minute...
He then takes out the tube and grabs the tentacle out to place it inside the cut as it lights up with electricity and attaches itself to it.
The Merc waits for a little until the ground starts to rumble like a living giant, giant wings coming out of the ground as it lets out a roar, finding out that it was a dead Mother.
Jack: Now I understand.
The Mother flies up in the air towards space as the antenna lights up to communicate with other Reconoid hives, ready to attack earth.
To Be Continued