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Halo: First Contact

Chapter 6 : Training Days, Part One

UNSC and Cornerian Fleet, In Transit To Corneria...

One week after Liam's mission briefing, the humans and a portions of the cornerian fleet departed the recently retaken world of Papetoon. The UNSC left their surviving corvettes and the_Midsummer's Solace_ to watch over the planet and finish quelling the surviving venomian troops. The corvettes would scour the wreckage of their fallen brothers and retrieve any vital information and bodies while the cruiser supplied the men on the ground. The cornerian defense fleet stationed the majority of their remaining naval strength and only brought a battleship and three cruisers. Admiral Mark was going to use their own form of FTL to reach their homeworld, but in a show of military power, Mathias offered to open up slipspace portals for his and the cornerian fleet, as their method was much faster. Interested, the cornerian admiral agreed and gave the coordinates for Corneria. When the massive swirling purplish and bright ruptures formed at the head of the combined fleet, the cornerians were awe struck.

The human's technology was incredible. While so different from the cornerians own, they were not as inferior as they had thought. Before the battle had moved away from the planet, they had seen the ballistic tech used on their ships to pronounced effect, and their armor plating could withstand obscene punishment, making up for their lack of shields. If they managed to get their hands on shield tech they would be a force to be reckoned with. That aside, it seems that they had the means of tapping into interdimensional transit. That had been nothing but a pipe dream for the cornerians, they had spent countless resources and manpower to try and achieve it and these humans already had it.

The cornerian admiral realized the astronomical tactical advantages of being able to appear practically anywhere in the galaxy. You could plan your strike from your homeworld and then simply ump into the enemy system, bypassing defensive fleets and long range sensors. Neither Venom nor Corneria had any protection against an attack such as that. It was unattainable for them as well. The closest thing they had was the Beltino Orbital Gate System, and that requires massive rings over the planets you wanted to travel to. These humans had no need for such devices. If they were to for whatever reason, go to war with humanity, they would immediately be at a vast disadvantage.

Admiral Mark was thankful that the humans started off in friendship. They would be a terrible enemy to face.

The Great Fox...

It has been a week since Liam first became an interim member of the Starfox mercenary company and humanity's existence was made public in Lylat. Liam had still to leave the ship, staying inside with Krystal, so he had only the team's information to gauge the public's response from whenever they returned from their jaunts into the city. They told him that it was varied, although most opinions were in the green. The story of their valiant intervention during the surprise invasion of Papetoon scored them some serious points. Although some of the people were distrusting, Fox had muttered grimly. But after he had explained the aparoid wars, Liam could understand their wariness. He had no idea how he would respond to aliens after fighting a genocidal race that attacked for no reason besides conquest.

So instead of seeing the sights, he had spent the last six days receiving flight lessons for the cornerian high-performance fighter, the arwing. In that time, he had become a descent pilot. The ODST would not be winning any medals, but he could hold his own fairly well. Liam grasped the controls easily since they were similar to that of a longsword interceptor, although the arrangement was foreign and took some getting used to. Personally, he considered the arwings too small for his tastes. The longswords were many times bigger and more lethal, but he had to admit that the arwings were much faster. It was after such a training run that he found himself.

The helljumper was currently landing his craft after a long and tedious lesson in flight mechanics and weapons systems. The man climbed out of the cockpit and took off his helmet, deciding to wear his armor instead of the flight suit they proffered him. His armor was rated for vacuum and so he wanted to use it. Liam swiped a hand across his brow, removing the particles of sweat that had accumulated upon it due to the armor's stuffiness. Then he looked to the blue wing of his ship and rubbed the insignia he had spray painted on it, the helljumper logo superimposed with the UNSC eagle. "So, now that you have flown it a few times, what do you think?" His flight instructor inquired.

Liam turned to the orange vulpine in his own green suit and white ribbed jacket. "It flies pretty fast, but I prefer the heavy armor and armaments of the Longsword."

"Power over speed huh?" Fox muttered as he looked over his own ship, ears flicking idly as he scratched behind one.

"Yeah, I appreciate ships that can tango with the heavy weights and deal some serious damage. You have not lived until you've one in action. Those interceptors have saved my ass more times then I care to admit." Liam pulled away from his ship and walked over to Fox. "But I will say that these could give one a run for its money."

Fox's emerald eyes flashed and he grinned. "Perhaps one day we could see how they compare in a little duel?"

Liam chuckled and turned away to lead the vulpine into the ship's proper with a vague answer. "Perhaps."

The chuckling vulpine followed after him, with one last glance at the hanger. When he turned back around and entered the corridor he saw Liam's armored form wrapped up in a loving hug by a decidedly happy cerulean vixen with an equally cheerful tail. Fox was a little surprised to find out that Krystal liked Liam, and a little saddened. But he was not that upset, there were always more cats in the alley as the saying goes. And he was happy to just have her as a friend.

"How was your training Liam?" The vixen inquired, her voice muffled from the fact her muzzle was buried under his chin.

"It was fun and I just might become a good pilot with Fox here to show me the ropes. He is the best pilot I have ever seen, and that's saying something." Liam answered as he pulled away a little bit to hear her better.

Fox's tail wagged softly at the praise. "I have had years of practice." The vulpine muttered modestly.

"Nonsense, training can't account for the skills I witnessed today. I am pretty sure that they don't train pilots here to weave in-between asteroids. That was truly remarkable. A Longsword would never be fast and maneuverable enough to do that." Liam replied sincerely, looking to Fox and giving him an authentic grin.

"Fox was always too embarrassed to accept praise." The vixen chuckled mirthfully as she looked to the bashful vulpine.

Uncomfortable with the accolades, Fox changed the subject. "In any case, we have been training you with the arwings, so when are you planning to teach us how to fight people like the insurrectionists?"

"Well I need a few days to create a lesson plan. I've never had to teach others before." Liam checked the tac-pad on his bracer, activating it with a lite touch. "It should be ready in two three days tops. I don't want to do a bad job. Think you can wait that long?"

"Sure, can't wait." The vulpine answered eagerly, tail swinging with anticipation. It had irked him to no end having failed so many times in finding and fighting those they had encountered on Papetoon. So he was leaping at the chance to learn how to fight such a shadowy foe. He would take anything that could even the score.

The trio headed for the cafeteria, Liam and Krystal walked together while Fox guided. "So Krys, what have you been up to?" Liam inquired as he gazed down at the vixen walking beside him.

She looked up into his face and smiled brightly, tail lashing with a will of its own. "Nothing much, just talking with Miyu and Fay."

Liam frowned internally. They better not be divulging his mission, the last thing he heeded was an irate vixen. He did not want to have her worry about him and just enjoy the time they had now, because it was most likely that his days were numbered. "Sounds like fun." He finally replied distantly.

Krystal frowned. "Something's bothering you, I can sense it. What's the matter?"

"It's nothing important, just idle thoughts." Liam responded calmly, making sure to control his emotions.

She stared hard at him for a minute before relenting. "Alright keep your secrets mister." She pouted, before smiling viciously. "All that means is you owe me extra snuggle time later."

"Oh, the absolute sheer terror." Liam deadpanned and rolled his sapphire eyes.

Krystal growled playfully and bumped into him. "Yes, be terrified!" She cackled villainously, surprising Fox and Liam, who gave her odd looks. "What?" She demanded, turning pink under her azure fur.

"Nothing." Both men responded quickly, focusing their eyes back on the proceedings in front of them. It was then that Fox stopped at the door to the cafeteria.

The mercenary leader opened the door and walked in, closely followed by a smirking Liam and blushing Krystal. "Looks like the gangs all here." He announced.

Indeed, Falco was sitting at the table, mowing down on a hotdog. Slippy was fiddling with Liam's extra tac-pad. And the two girls were gossiping as they sat near Peppy, who was content with reading a small paperback novella.

"Back so soon?" Falco asked, putting down his decimated meal and looking to the approaching group.

"Yep, Liam here is a natural. He should have become a pilot instead of a ground pounder." Fox replied with a small laugh.

"Sorry Fox, if I had to pick between hurtling through space and hurtling out of space, I would still choose the latter option." Liam voiced as he sat down besides the avian and stole half of his hotdog, swallowing the portion before the avian's horrified eyes.

"WHY? WHY?" He demanded, grabbing Liam's harness and shaking him.

"Because...I was hungry." He answered simply, causing the avian to grasp his chest above the heart in pretend pain.

"Vile fiend, this act shall not go unpunished!" He swore in mock outrage.

The group laughed and Falco pretended to sulk, grumbling to himself. To appease the beast, Liam got back up and selected a hotdog from the machine. When he got it he came back and placed the fresh one in front of the bird. "Gut essen mein freund."

Falco narrowed his eyes and dragged the tray closer possessively. "What does that mean?"

"It means, eat well my friend." Liam replied as he sat back down. They chatted for a little bit before there was a disruption.

All of a sudden, Fox's communicator went off and he brought it up to his muzzle. "Fox here."

An excited voice cut in. "Hey Fox, buddy; you'll never guess where I am right now!"

"Bill?" Fox exclaimed in surprise. He had not heard from the bulldog in a few weeks. Last he heard, Bill was stationed in the capital.

"Yep, I am at the capital's square with General Pepper, Lieutenant General Dante, and Prime Minister Sanders!" The voice replied, still in his excited tone.

"What, why?" The vulpine inquired.

"Haven't you seen the news bro, the aliens are coming down to the square! You got to turn on your TV dude!"

Liam looked up from the table in surprise. He had no idea that the admiral had planned to make an appearance. In fact he thought sullenly, the admiral left out a lot of things.

"Alright Bill." Fox accepted, using his bracer to activate the TV built into the front wall of the cafeteria. "It's on." The very first channel had the square; in fact every channel had it.

Corneria, Orbit...

The UNSC and cornerian fleet entered orbit above corneria, the large armada of vessels emerged from the swarm of slipspace ruptures and would have caused the 1st defense fleet to panic if not for the pre-warning of their arrival. Notice aside, the 1st defense fleet was awed by the collection of alien vessels grouping outside. Most of them were larger then cornerian dreadnoughts. And the centers of the piece were the two massive vessels at the heart of the formation. The larger one was at least three and a half kilometers long and had massive cannons along the spine and underbelly. The smaller yet still mind boggling large ship was two and a half kilometers long but had very little visible armament.

Probably sensing that the defenders would be uneasy, the alien ships moved off, floating to a position farther away from the planet. With them were three cornerian ships with the coloring of the Papetoon defense fleet. These ships split off from the large alien ships vessels and moved closer to the fleet. Inside the battleship, Mark sat at his command chair, awaiting the imminent call from his fellow admiral. The bridge was quiet as the crew went about their duties with a silent efficiency. "Admiral, we have an incoming hail from Nero." A male ferret broadcasted from his station.

"Put him on the holo." Mark ordered, and seconds later the visage of a grizzled wolf popped into view.

"Greetings Mark, it seems that your...description of our new friends did not do them justice." The wolf said with a humorous tone as he looked at his old friend.

"I think that no one could give them a proper introduction. They are a league of their own." Mark replied as he watched his ship draw nearer.

"You may be right on that, those portals were certainly something else. Still, the prime minister would have had a fit if he had not already been informed prior to your arrival. And I fear he may still have one. I bet it will be an interesting address to the populace." The wolf chuckled.

"I wish I could be there to see it."

"Oh you will. He wants both you and the leader of these humans to be there when he delivers it in three days' time. I cannot attest to the wisdom of his decision, but it has been made. Your crew is granted shore leave for the remainder of their stay here at the capital and a small delegation of humans must be selected." Nero informed as he scratched his fuzzy salt and pepper chin.

"I will inform the human admiral." Mark replied.

"See that it is so," Nero grunted and disconnected.

Mark chuckled quietly at his friend's abruptness; it was a trait that had stuck with him since cubhood. "Sarah open a line of communication with Admiral Mathias, we have much to discuss."

..............

It took several hours for them to iron out the details. But in the end, Mathias decided to bring a squad of ODSTs with him and a few of his captains, the ones he could trust not to start an interspecies incident. The brand new delegation took a pelican to Mark's battleship while Mathias had ordered for the fleet to keep their distance until such a time as they were allowed to get closer.

Once they were allowed onto the battleship, they swapped the pelican for a cornerian transport and after a little more preparation, headed down for the surface while the cornerian admiral took a separate one. The cornerian transport had large transparent windows in the roomy hold and so the humans got a good look at the center of cornerian power.

It was a beautiful cityscape; there were many parks and residential areas. And in the outer layer were skyscrapers that truly seemed capable of scraping the skies. As the craft got closer to its destination, the Admiral and his retinue could begin to make out individual cornerians. "Amazing, this is absolutely amazing!" One of the captains, a younger man by the name of Cornelias Thatcher, commented excitedly as he practically stuck his head out the glass. He was the captain of the marathon heavy cruiser,Legacy. Cornelias was a newly promoted captain, but he was also a brilliant tactician. This was only his second posting; his first was at a planet in the outer rim. He had proved himself when repelling a massive pirate attack with nothing but his heavy cruiser and two corvettes.

"Calm down Cornelias, we haven't even landed yet." The calm voice of Captain Thomas broke into the other man's enthusiasm with his usual no nonsense demeanor. Mathias had selected Thomas because he needed a prowler captain to come along to maintain an ONI presence and he was the only one he had any modicum of trust in. "We need level heads in this situation."

"Thomas is right; we must act with the professionalism that this job requires." Mira Silverado, captain of the strident_Syracuse_, agreed as she stood at attention beside the admiral. She was one of the more stringent captains in his fleet, a good person to have during any negotiations.

"Settle down children." Mathias chortled. "It would not do to have discord amongst us, level heads prevail, and we will need level heads for what is to come. This will be a day of many firsts. Try not to make humanity look bad."

The windows showed that the ship was beginning to land in a heavily populated square. There were thousands of cornerians behind holo tapes and armed security. On the side of the line that the transports were landing was a large stage with what looked like a normal pulpit with microphones. To the side of the stage almost directly behind where they were going to land was a small party of individuals. There was an older lion with several armed guards and two officers in the same type of uniform that Mark had, although they were a tad different. The shuttle touched down and the engines cycled down, allowing the humans to hear the noise of the massive crowd waiting outside. "Wow, no pressure." Cornelias chuckled with an uneasy grin.

"Just conduct yourselfers as befitting your rank and station and follow my lead." Mathias ordered, trying to settle the nerves his subordinates, a hard task considering his nerves were fairing little better.

"Don't worry Admiral, we won't let you down." Mira assured determinedly, although she was fiddling with her grey uniform nervously.

The all noticed that the ten ODSTs that were standing quietly at attention in the front shoed not a lick of any emotion, standing stock still and holding their weapons at attention, faces concealed by their obfuscating black helms. They were slightly jealous of their guards' ability to remain calm under such intense pressure. But they were hand picked veteran shock troopers and not even such an event as this could shake them.

With a sharp crack, the ramp disengaged from its lock and began the slow process of coming down to rest on the pavement of the square. Clicking their heels in unison, the ODST honor guard marched down the shuttle's ramp and took positions on either side. At their arrival the crowds went silent. With a deep breath, Admiral Mathias composed himself and walked down the ramp with as much noble bearing as he could manifest. With great reluctance, his captains followed suit.

Once they all treaded down the ramp they were greeted by the sight of the silent crowds only meters away. It was such a vast collection of species that it boggled their minds and. And every single eye was on them. "Uh Admiral, can I request to wait aboard the ship?" Cornelias whispered.

"Request denied." Mathias uttered under his breath in response before leading the group over to the well-dressed lion. As soon as they drew away from the ship, their guards followed, on both sides. The party stopped in front of the lion, Mathias gave a salute. "I am Admiral Mathias, leader of the UNSC 1st expeditionary fleet."

The lion bowed formally and spoke in a soft and powerful voice as he studied the strange human in front of him. "And I am Prime Minister Sanders, leader of the cornerian people. I extend to you are most heartfelt thanks in assisting us in these most troubled times. We have long hoped to find a friendly race among the stars." Sanders managed to give a welcoming and friendly smile, impressive considering his impressive dental armory. He stuck out a large padded paw in an obvious gesture.

Without hesitation, Mathias gripped it firmly and shook, causing the crowds to erupt into cheers. "My people have never thought to find other life among the stars. But we are happy we did."

The lion's smile widened as he released the human's smaller hand. "Excellent, now if you would allow me to introduce my faithful friends." The lion turned to the two behind him, a bloodhound and black lab. "This here is General Pepper, our leader of all military matters." Sanders pointed to the older bloodhound.

"It is an honor to meet you." Mathias shook the dogs paw.

"Likewise." Pepper replied simply, returning to his stationary position. He noticed that the old dog was eyeing him up, judging his carriage. After a few moments he nodded to himself.

"And this here is his second in command, Lieutenant General Dante." The black lab was younger with a sleek black coat and had a visible aura of excitement as his tail wagged uncontrollably.

Mathias repeated his earlier statement and shook the dogs paw as well. The dog returned the shake with startling enthusiasm. "The honor is mine; I always hoped I would be there to greet an alien race!" Dante fired back excitedly.

Mathias was a little caught off guard, much to the group's amusement. "Yes well, good for you." He spoke kindly.

The lab looked about ready to keep going but Sanders saved the day. "Yes, how about we continue this at the stage. Let the public hear all of this for themselves." The lion turned to head towards the stage, followed by his escorts and the two commanders.

Mathias nodded and followed with his own retinue in tow, a little surprised. The USNC did not have important discussions within the reach of the public ear. It did not constitute for a secure gathering. But he supposed that this was just how they handled their affairs. All Mathias knew for sure was that they were not handling this like the UNSC or even UEG would have. He had a bad feeling that this was turning out to be like a press conference, he hated those.

The new merged group walked up the steps to the large stage and the humans naturally gravitated towards the back while the cornerians moved to the front. The ODSTs went off to the sides; their ebony helmets may not have shown anything, but on the inside, they were active, as the soldiers used their HUDs to check rooftops and suspicious activity. Two of the men, Sergeant Baker and Corporal Hudson separated from the others and stood to attention behind the Admiral. Their job was to ensure his safety and extract him by any means if something untoward were to happen.

Mathias tried not to think like that as he shifted his attention to the cornerian president as he walked up to the podium. The lion cleared his throat and fixed the strange microphone. "Dear citizens, today is a day of celebration. We have found another galactic race like ours. They have already unconditionally helped us when the foul war mongers from Venom laid siege to our world of Papetoon. Without their help, I fear that we may have lost it. But with their intervention, it was saved. And even after they helped, they stayed to continue to do so and assist in the quelling of the remaining venomians that had so callously and underhandedly attempted to cause as much destruction as possible. Truly it is a great day; we have found an ally in the lonely expanse of space. May our two people prosper, and one day we can live together in peace."

When he finished his address, the crowd roared in approval. Mathias and the other humans had to hand it to the lion; he was a powerful public speaker. It was easy to see how he had been elected. The only thing that slightly bothered Mathias was with the ease he and the cornerians had accepted them. Maybe that's just how they were. After all, they were different.

The lion then handed the podium over to another speaker, a female feline of interminable species. Then he walked back over to Mathias. "It seems like your peoples' approval rating is high." Sanders chuckled.

"Well it may be because of a master orator." Mathias replied.

The lion shrugged his large shoulders. "Perhaps, but do not forget I spoke nothing but the truth." Then sanders looked to him and smiled. "How would you feel about interviews?"

The Great Fox...

They all watched the TV as the prime minister finished his introduction address and handed it over to Carol, the head of the department of foreign affairs. The few reporters allowed closer to the stage began to raise their hands and she was there to answer questions.

Liam watched only for a few minutes before he got up and walked out. They were so interested in the events transpiring on the television that none of them noticed his departure. The helljumper marched straight to his room and closed the door behind him. Liam peeled the armor off his body and piled it up in the corner besides his rucksack, leaving on his fatigues. Then he collapsed on the bed holding his head in his hands. Why did the admiral get to do that? It was all just so unfair! While Mathias got publicity and fame, Liam would soon be sent on a secret mission that could only result in his unnoticeable death, on orders from that very man so brazenly standing on that stage!

The only bright side of this was that it would soon be possible for him to leave the ship. It was a bad consolation prize. With a sigh he leaned back on the bed, closing his eyes and hoping that oblivion would find him. And after a few moments he drifted to sleep.

From what the team saw, most of the questions were supposed to be directed at the humans. Probably seeing this, after a few minutes, the human in a pure white medaled uniform strode confidently up to the podium. The foreign affairs head stepped down to allow him up. Mathias gripped the sides of the podium and spoke. "I am Admiral Mathias, provisional speaker for the United Earth Governments and United Nations Space Command. We are a united people, spreading to the stars in search of our past and our future." The entire crowd and even the people on the stage were hushed as they listened to the alien speak. "We stumbled upon your worlds during our first true expedition into the vastness of deep space. For many months we traveled from system to system, searching for precious resources and planets for colonization. It was such one search that allowed us to find you. And when we saw the evils that these venomians were committing, we could not stand idly by. Your president spoke truthfully; it is our wish for both our peoples to exist in peace. I know you all have many questions, but for now I can only answer a few."

At that signal, countless hands...or rather paws were raised. A little daunted by the assembly, Mathias picked a female cheetah in the front. She looked a little surprised and elated that she had been the first chosen. Quickly, she stood up and began to speak. "Hello, I don't want to seem rude, but did you really just help us because it was the right thing to do?"

The Admiral pondered her question. "You are not being rude, it does seem a little farfetched, but it is true. I take pride in the goodness of my crew. I only chose those who I considered pure of heart. It matters not where they come from or who they were before, as long as they prove themselves worthy, they may join. So when the time came to answer the call of justice, there were no hands lacking."

The woman nodded thoughtfully and stepped back down. The paws came back up and Mathias chose a small male mouse in the back. The jittery fellow stood up and spoke in a soft tone that barely carried over. "How many of you are there?"

"I cannot give a proper estimate. But at the time we departed on our expedition, we laid claim to over eight hundred worlds, although not all of them are colonies." Mathias responded, shocking the assembly and cornerians watching on the televisions. Eight hundred worlds was staggering, there were only eleven planets in the Lylat system.

"Eight hundred?" The mouse inquired, baffled.

"Yes, we have been colonizing planets for hundreds of years, and we have achieved much in that time. We are not strangers to hardship, and it has not always been easy. But we remained strong and have triumphed." The human Admiral spoke with a fiery passion, a great believer in what he had to say. The mouse fellow with his question answered, but not as how he expected. Once more the paws were raised and he selected a female lemur.

"If your people are united, does that mean that there is no more war?" She inquired curiously.

Mathias sighed heavily. "There will always be war. It is true that we are united, but there are certain elements who desire separation. And they would go to great lengths to achieve it. We call them insurrectionists. These individuals are terrorists and use the ideal of more freedom to press their own agendas. Their leaders are mostly corrupt politicians grasping for more power. It is only by the sacrifices of our soldiers, our men and women that they have not, and will not, succeed in their ignoble pursuit."

"How big of a threat are they?"

"It is much to our dishonor that at first we considered them nothing but a small band of firebrands. It was due to our lack of attention that they were able to detonate a nuclear device in the colony Mamore. Over two million of our people were killed and a further eight million were injured. That is when we took them seriously. That is when we understood the deprave depths they would sink to." Mathias looked down to the wooden podium, face haggard. The memories of the event were firm in his mind. A young captain Mathias had been one of the first respond to the incident; he would not become an admiral for many years. And what he had seen, even from the imagers of his ship, would haunt him forever.

"What did your people do in response?" The lemur asked, with a soft tone.

Mathias lifted his gaze from the podium, expression controlled. "The UNSC went to great lengths to protect our other colonies and snuff the growing power of these dangerous monsters. Several programs were instated, but those are classified." The lemur sat back down. "I am afraid that this is the end of the questions for today." Mathis stepped away from the pedestal and turned back to his fellow humans.

The head of foreign affairs retook the pedestal and began the end speech. The team zoned it out, too busy contemplating what they had heard from the human onscreen. "That sure was interesting." Fay declared excitedly. Then the spaniel began to look around. "I am surprised that Liam didn't say anything during that. In fact where is he?" The snow white canine inquired.

They all finally noticed that he was not in the room with them. "Krystal. Where is he?" Peppy inquired, looking to the team's telepath.

"...He is in his room...sleeping." She replied, worried and confused as to why he had left. Krystal stood up. "I'll go check on him." Bidding the team goodbye, she exited the cafeteria and walked down the corridors to his room. The closer she got, the more she could feel of his emotions. Even asleep, he was broadcasting an air of bitterness and despair. Alarmed, she sped up her pace; sandals flopping loudly as she quickly arrived at his door. Without hesitation she opened the door to his room and walked inside.

Liam was lying on his bed, armor on and atop the blankets, sleeping. She moved to the side of his bed and sat down. Krystal watched his expression as he slumbered. He looked peaceful; the only tell of his internal struggle was his tightly closed eyes and the slight frown marring his face. Softly, the vixen placer her paws on his shoulder and shook him gently while whispering his name. It had no effect so she pushed a little harder and rose her voice a few decibels.

"Mrrfltebel." He mumbled, half asleep, and turned away from her prying paws, waiving his gloved hand at her.

She giggled and pressed harder, placing her muzzle over his ear and nipping it gently before adding a few wet licks. That woke him up. Liam sat up suddenly and began to wipe her saliva away from his ear, giving her an evil glare.

"What was that for?" He muttered sullenly.

The blue vixen snickered. "I tried to wake you up and you wouldn't, so I...improvised." She smiled sweetly and flicked her tail.

"Fine, I'll accept you excuse...this time." He finished wiping his ear and flicked the saliva off of his glove. "So, what did you want?"

"I was worried about you. You up and disappeared during the broadcast, so I decided to check on you. Why did you leave?" She asked, her emerald eyes studied him deeply.

He wanted to tell her why, he felt like he could tell her anything. But if he told her why everything he wanted to keep secret would be revealed. And he had no intention of dampening her mood or upsetting her. "It was nothing. I was just a little tired is all." He replied as evenly as he could.

"Okay, I was just concerned that it was more than that. Besides, if you were tired you could have told me. I would have loved the chance to snuggle for a little while. After all, you do owe me." Her smile widened and her tail's pace began to pick up as she looked at him hopefully.

"We cans still do that if you want to." Liam suggested.

His answer was a happy yip and a warm fuzzy ball colliding with his chest. She wrapped around him and got comfortable. Liam chuckled at her antics and lay back down. He was glad that he had distracted her from her questions about his current plight. He caressed her back as he let himself fall back to sleep.

Cornerian Capital Building, Conference Room A...

Mathias and his captains sat on the left side of the conference table. Their ODST guardians were behind them, as they always were. On the opposite side was Prime Minister Sanders, the two generals, Admiral Mark, and their bodyguards. They had been in discussion for several hours. Their first order of business had been to establish a lasting peace accord until further diplomats could arrive from the UEG. That had been the easy part.

"So you are telling me that you have already made plans to assassinate the leader of Venom." Sanders inquired from his seat, paws clasped under his muzzle. "And who would you entrust to complete this dangerous and monumental task?"

"I have given this task to my most experienced and brilliant soldiers." Mathias replied confidently, his hands lay in his lap and he sat with a stiff posture. "Lieutenant Liam is a veteran of countless engagements and has endured great hardship. He is the only one I think capable of such a daunting task."

"Yet he has no intelligence on venom or even a means of escape if he were able to complete his objectives?" Sanders inquired curiously.

Admiral Mark coughed and grabbed the prime minister's attention. "That is not so sir, he has been given information on the planet and his objective. And we already have an operative on the planet, so exfil should be possible. Besides, we have been meaning to get them out of there."

Sanders considered this, his furred brow creased in thought. "You truly believe that this is the right thing to do, and that he is capable of such a task?"

Admiral Mathias nodded. "If we want to show you our commitment to be allies, allow us this chance. Let us show you how we deal with threats."

The prime minister sighed and leaned back in his brown leather swivel chair. "Very well, but I want to meet this man and judge him myself. Have him go to the training academy here in the city in three days hence. He will be responsible for teaching a class of cadets for that day. They will have a chance to meet their potential allies and I can see this soldier's skills for myself."

Mathias relented. "It will be done. I will let him know immediately."

"Excellent. Now, Admiral Mathias, I myself was an Admiral before I was elected prime minister. So your people will be free to come down to the planet. I know the rigors of deep space voyages. They could use the time planetside. But I will have to request that they have guides at all times to keep them out of trouble."

Mathias smiled at the friendly gesture of trust. "Thank you sir, I am sure they would be delighted to hear that."

"I'm sure they will. Now," The lion rolled the chair backwards and stood up, collecting the reports filed by Admiral Mark. "Let me show you the sights of our fine city. Perhaps you would be interested in the naval museum?"

"Absolutely sir." Mathias answered, standing up from the table, his captains followed suit. The Admiral turned to Cornelias. "Head back to the fleet and let them know that they should prepare for some shore leave. When I return I will select parties to head down."

He was a little bummed out that he would be missing a detailed tour of the alien planet, bur he knew to follow orders. "Of course sir right away sir." The man replied with a salute.

"I will have Admiral Mark here escort him back to the transports. No doubt he would wish to go back to his ship." Sanders declared, gesturing for the hound.

With that the party split into two groups. While Sanders and his guards led the way, Mathias activated the communicator under his lapel.

*****

Liam heard an annoying beep emanating from his helmet lying on the floor besides his bed. "Turn it off." Krystal groaned sleepily from her muzzle, which was burying itself under his armpit. The vixen's ears were plastered onto her skull, no doubt trying to block out the irritating sound. If Liam found it annoying, the vixen with the sensitive ears no doubt thought it more so.

"Sorry Krys, but I have to take this." Liam apologized, untangling himself, with great protest from her, and crawling to the side of the bed. As soon as he left she submerged under the dense layer of sheets, until all that could be seen was her tail as it puffed out from the sound reducing fort. Liam chuckled softly at the image as he picked up the helmet and placed it on his head. He looked to the long range comms light on the left of the HUD and blinked twice, activating it. "This is Lieutenant Liam reporting in." He answered. The ODST was curious as to why he was only just now receiving a call from his superior.

"Liam, this is Admiral Mathias." The familiar voice hissed over the radio.

At the sound of who was calling, he frowned but did not let his displeasure show. "Admiral, what do you require of me?" He grunted. Well he didn't let all of his dissatisfaction show.

The Admiral knew why he acted that way and let it slide. "Your mission has been updated. In three days you are to arrive at the Cornerian Military Training Academy. I am sure that the team you are with knows the location."

Liam was surprised at the strange order. "Why am I heading there, sir?"

"The Cornerian prime minister wishes to see your capabilities for himself. You will be training cadets for the day with the minister and his attendants watching." Mathias explained.

It took an extreme effort of will not to scoff. These were the strangest orders he had received in his entire career. And that was saying something. "Are these orders for real?" The helljumper could not hold back all of his disbelief.

"Completely, three days soldier." Mathias cut the transmission. With a sigh he took the helmet off and let it fall to the floor where it rolled to a stop next to the desk.

"What was that about?" He heard Krystal ask.

He shifted his body to see the vixen's snout peeking from a small slit in the covers; her jade eyes were looking at him questioningly. "It would seem that I am supposed to head to the Cornerian Military Training Academy in three days to give lessons."

"Sounds like fun." She said with a snicker before her snout receded into the covers.

Liam rolled his eyes and then smiled deviously. With all the stealth he could manage, he snuck under the covers and searched for her foot. When he found it he seized it and began to drag her out of her fortifications. She yipped in surprise and tried to escape, but he was much stronger. Yet she was not defeated yet, with a sudden burst of speed she pounced out of the covers and collided into him, knocking the large man off the bed. She straddled his waist and looked down in victory. "I have slain the mighty human, not even his technology could defend against such might." She gloated over him.

But this was all planned. He grabbed her sides and turned her over so that he was on top. "It would seem that the little fox fell for this hunter's trap." He chuckled.

She cut his laugh off by catching his lips in her own. She held him hostage like that for a full minute before pulling away. He looked at her and smiled, only to take a slap in the face by her puffy tail. Disoriented and spluttering, he was no match for her counterattack. She wriggled out of his hold and rolled away. Just as he was gaining his sense she sprang at him, smashing into his ribs. With a gale of expelled air he folded. Now breathless he stared up at the victorious vixen. "It seems that I have underestimated my opponent." He groaned.

She smiled and gave him a quick kiss. "Many have, you are the only one to live."

Liam nursed his wounded pride. "Where did you learn to fight?"

"My parents made sure to train me, I spent many days with the best instructors on the planet. I was to become a guardian before..." She trailed off, frowning sadly. The shining green eyes that had so enraptured him were dull with heartache.

Seeing this he wrapped her in a comforting hug. "I'm sorry. I did not want to upset you."

She looked up from his hug and smiled. "It's okay. Besides, I have you here now. That makes it more bearable."

Liam admired Krystal's strength and resilience. The small vixen had more than half the soldiers he had ever known. He helped her up and they both headed to the bed, their scuffle had ended by the doors of the closet. The tired couple slipped under the covers and snuggled back up.

******

The next three days passed in a flash. Liam prepared for his day of training the cornerian recruits, a task he held no love for. He had to draw off most of the experiences he had from his days at the ODST academy on Reach. So he brushed up on tactics and physical fitness as well as a half a dozen other courses. With a small chuckle he considered the fact that they would not be preparing be ejected in small pods of metal sent screaming to the planet's surface.

It was on the third day that he was inside the gym on the residential level. He was using the bench press, lifting an excess of 350 pounds. It was a little less then what he usually did, but it had been some time since he last worked out so he was taking it easy. The helljumper was wearing his PT gear, a pair of black shorts, a black undershirt, and his only pair of sneakers. It was early morning and he was trying to get his workout in before he had to leave in a few hours.

As he was lifting, the doors opened and Falco walked in, wearing an outfit that closely resembled his own. The avian had not noticed that the room was occupied as he had headphones on his ears, plugged into some alien device. The sound of drums and a guitar could be faintly heard as he headed over to the treadmill. He was whistling to himself as he walked over and typed the specifications into the device. The machine started up at a lite jog. It was not until five minutes into his own workout that he noticed Liam was in the room.

When he saw the human lifting weights he took out his headphones, letting them lie on his chest, and greeted him. "Hey there Liam, haven't seen you in here before."

The human grunted as he lifted the heavy weight and brought it up to lock in, allowing him to sit up. When he did, he took a swig of water from his bottle and wiped his head with a white towel, turning to Falco. "Yeah, I have been meaning to catch up on my routine, and I thought that before I left would be a good time to start."

"Better late than never." Falco agreed before returning his focus on his own machine. Several silent minutes later, Falco looked at Liam curiously. He could not see from over where he was, but it looked like the human was lifting a lot. The avian was not curious enough to ask so he let his curiosity die.

Just before Liam finished his session on the bench press, the doors to the room opened once again to admit a brown and black speckled lynx and the orange furred Fox. Falco groaned, displeased with the arrival of his friendly rival. Miyu on the other hand smirked at him and walked over, taking the only other treadmill. She upped the speed to an amazing rate and jumped on with little effort. "How's it going birdbrain?" Miyu probed with her breath even. The exotic cat had a lot of stamina.

Falco, who by this time was growing a little tired, looked at her with a scoff. "Everything was great until now."

"Oh you wound me." She gasped, bringing a paw to her considerable chest, her running unfazed. "Hear I thought you would enjoy a little fellowship." The avian was silent for a moment before replying

"Yeah well go bother someone else." Falco grumbled, uninterested in her banter.

She huffed and turned her attention back to her machine. But the cats idle gaze waivered to the room within a few minutes, scanning it with her deep golden eyes. Fox was using the last bench press, and using the first one was Liam. The human cut an impressive and hypnotic figure as he lifted what seemed to be a big load. Interested, the feline turned off her machine and jumped off lithely, landing with the grace of a dancer. With her predacious eyes locked on target, she meandered over to the human. It did not take her long to get over there, and when she did, she was baffled by the amount of weights he was lifting. "Go easy there tiger. Don't over exert yourself." She purred, grabbing his attention as she leaned over him with a smile.

Liam swiveled his head to the feline and greeted her openly. "I usually bench more than this, but it's been awhile so I thought I would take it easy."

"Take it easy?" She chuckled in disbelief. "How is 350 pounds taking it easy?"

Fox, who was lifting 200, looked over with a smile. "I've learned that his version of easy and our own are quite a bit different."

"Well I am an ODST, we function on another level." Liam explained, setting the bar back on its rack and sitting up. "ODSTs are the best humanity has to offer, or at least they were." He added a little disgruntled.

This sparked an interest in Fox and Miyu. "So, who are the best?"

"Spartans, humanity's super soldiers." Liam replied with a little anger in his voice. The man had no personal hate for them, but it rankled Liam to no end that they were propelled to near mythic status and the ODSTs and marines and their sacrifices were downplayed because of that. There used to be news almost every day about their exploits, but when the spartan program was released to the public, the heroics of the common soldier faded into nothing. No longer could one hear that thanks to an ODST platoon, an insurrectionist outpost was eliminated and a colony was liberated. Now all you heard about was how a spartan single handedly did the same thing, without horrendous casualties.

"Super soldiers?" Fox wondered.

"Yep, the best of the best, soldiers selected from the best and given the best. There has never been a spartan reported KIA, they never die." Liam sounded...disconsolate. The same did not hold true for the other soldiers, for his friends. Flashbacks of Caldernum zipped through his mind. That was the place he had first met a spartan, and where his brother died. He always kept that mission recording; it was his penance for his failure as an older brother.

"That is pretty impressive." Fox had to admit.

"Yeah, it does." Liam got up from the bench and toweled off. "I better get ready to leave. I have a lot to work on." The man retreated towards the doors and disappeared.

Falco looked up from his machine and looked at the duo with suspicion. "What did you guys say?"

"Nothing...I think." Miyu responded defensively before her features scrunched up in a frown. Something had bothered him. And it had to do with these spartans.

******

Liam went to his room and took a shower, cleansing himself of the sweat from his workout, and trying to wash away the resurfacing memories from the most stressful and painful time in his entire life. Caldernum had been a crucible of suffering for the young man. There was a reason he never took his shirt off in front of people. Liam leaned on the wall of the shower and tried to relax under the cascading hot water. It took a considerable amount of time.

Unknown to him, while he was finishing up in the shower, a curious vixen was heading towards his room. She had been looking for him all over the ship and when she found Falco and the others they told her he had left in a rush. She knew that he would be heading towards his room and so she went there.

She opened his door and stepped inside, just as Liam was walking out of the bathroom. The two froze as they stared at each other. Liam was surprised to find her there and she was stunned. His chest was scarred heavily and spoke of trauma that most could not come back from. His chiseled body was marred by what could only be scars from a precision scalpel. And she could see the burn scar of the wound on his chest that had been meant for her "I...uh..." She tried to formulate an apology for her abrupt intrusion but was cut off by the stone faced human.

"Krystal, please leave." His tone was hard and held an edge to it.

But the vixen refused to let him win. She would not let him push her away. "No." She denied stubbornly, sitting on his bed.

He stared at her angrily until he realized that she was not going to budge. Then, with a defeated sigh he gathered his clothes and went back in to the bathroom, not reappearing until he was dressed once more, scars concealed under his fatigues. Liam sat next to her in silence, not knowing what to do. She had not seen his scars before, and he wanted to keep it that way for as long as possible. But it would seem that plan failed.

The vixen was playing with her tail until she got the courage to talk. "How did that happen?" She asked hoarsely. She was mortified that her lover had never told her about the scars and wanted to know.

"It was my fifth deployment as an ODST, on a world called Caldernum. They had recently suffered a full-fledged uprising and we were there to suppress it. We were stranded on that planet for three weeks, and I was captured. For seven days they held me, and those were just some of the results. The rest I rather not talk about." Liam told her, looking down at his lap. His expression was pained, just telling her that short tale hurt him.

She leaned on him, wrapping her tail around his waist and letting it lay on his lap. Liam patted it affectionately and sighed. "You don't have to say more." She whispered.

"Thanks, but I fear that I will have to do more. One of the standard requirements for cadet training for the UNSC is an unabridged video of a combat mission from the trainer. That is the only way that one can be truly prepared and take their trainer seriously. The only mission record that I have ever kept was that one." He looked frightened. Whatever lay inside that recording was something he did not want to face again. But his expression shifted to a determined one. "I'll do though; I can't allow it to haunt me anymore."

"Then I will be there with you, to support you." Krystal stated firmly, and with an adorably determined expression, fuzzy brows furrowed cutely.

It made Liam smile and kiss her on the nose. "I wouldn't have it any other way. Now, let's get going, I haven't seen the city yet and I want to stretch my legs." He gathered his armor and donned it quickly and efficiently, the process was further sped up with Krystal's help.

When he was ready, he grabbed his helmet and exited his room with Krystal in tow. He had no access to one of their communicators so he asked Krystal to summon the team. He thought that if he was supposed to be instructing cadets then they might as well tag along for the first lesson. Besides he owed them, he was behind on their training as well.

The couple arrived at the hanger first, Liam grabbed some of his equipment from a locked container at the side of the hanger. He selected a MA5C assault rifle, sniper rifle, and the M90 shotgun with his pair of magnums. Liam figured that he would probably have to demonstrate with the weapons. Once he was equipped he waited with Krystal. Within minutes, the rest of the team arrived. Liam smiled as he saw Slippy and Peppy walk in, one excited and the other tired. He had not had the time to talk to them for the past two days. Slippy was locked away inside his room, studying some things that Liam had given him and Peppy had been reading and watching over the accident prone toad.

They all knew about the plan to head to the academy. And Fox was not looking forward to it for some reason. Curious, Liam had inquired why as the others entered the dropship. The vulpine's response had been strange. "Bad memories." Was all Fox had said with a breathy sigh as he walked in with Liam in tow. Even more interested, he took the co-pilots seat and talked with Fox as he began the flight to the academy.

The small transport shot out of the bay and into the skies of the capital. "So Fox, what's the deal? Why are you so upset? I thought you wanted to get training." Liam began as the ship glided through the midafternoon air. This was his first time seeing the city in all of its glory so he was so preoccupied he almost didn't hear Fox's quiet response.

"There was a...girl. She and I were close, but I realized that she wasn't the one for me. I just wanted to be friends. She didn't take it well. After out fallout, she became an instructor at the academy. She has never been rude, but things were too awkward between us. I had hoped that time would make it easier, but I have no idea if it did. I guess now is as good any time to find out."

Liam nodded in understanding. The only girl he had ever been with was Krystal, and he was happy with that, so he had never had to deal with a problem like this. But he supposed he could understand what it would be like. "Man, if you told me I'm sure you could have waited this one out."

Fox shook his head vehemently, sharp green eyes glowing with conviction. "No, I have to do this! I have to own up to my actions. Perhaps we can still be friends."

Liam smiled at his friend, patting him on the back. "Well, I am certain that your father would be proud to hear that. It takes a lot for a man to do that. And I think you can. I see in you great things." Liam chuckled at that last part.

Fox looked to him and laughed along, rolling his eyes. "Whatever, mister philosopher, let's just get this over with."

Liam grinned and looked back out of the viewport, his task of cheering up his friend complete. He watched as they neared a massive structure. It had a few courtyards in the center and a green field that streamed to stretch on forever. The ODST could see figures dotted all over it, and a few vehicles. That was probably the training fields. The place was even bigger than the ODST academy on Reach. Although, ODSTs were not exactly numerous, nor did they tend to live very long. Not wanting to dwell on such awful thoughts, he tried to drown them out with his fascination with the cornerian people.

They were so unlike humanity in appearance and personality. Since almost day one, they had been friendly, accepting, and developed attachments easily. Maybe it was just because he had been in the army for so long, but Liam had never really seen anything like that back home. Home, he wondered what his mother was doing right now. She was probably resting in the den with his sisters, watching the news and thinking that her son had been there when humanity discovered a new species. He couldn't wait to get back home and see her for himself. Perhaps Krystal could tag along, he was sure that his mother and sisters would love her. All he would have to do is work out some way for that to be allowed. If he survived this crazy ass mission that Mathias has him tasked with the old man would owe him one.

The shuttle jolted as it landed, jarring him out of his pleasant thoughts. With a marginally disappointed sigh he unstrapped himself from the hard backed seat and followed Fox out of the cockpit. The others were already walking down the ramp when the duo emerged. Krystal looked back and smiled at him reassuringly before she dropped out of sight. Feeling better about all of this, Liam grabbed his helmet and gear, sealing the helm atop his head and slinging the sniper on his shoulder. As he prepared to step down, he heard Fox take a sharp intake of breath and turned to the vulpine to see him with a grimace.

"She's here." He muttered and stood up straight taking a deep breath and walking down the ramp. Curious to see what caused all his friends emerging nervousness and despair he marched down the ramp with purpose, assault rifle in rest position as the parts of his armor clanked quietly. The stock of the sniper pattered on his backplate, next to his shotgun, adding to the small cacophony of militaristic noise.

At the bottom of the ramp, the ODST looked up to see a collection of young individuals standing at attention in emerald and bleached uniforms, led by a striking russet red vixen with a most curious set of ears. Her sound detectors were almost a foot long, and they swiveled with a mind of their own. She had a muscular yet lithe build, almost like a gymnast. And he hated to admit it, but she had some nice 'assets'. Although her expression was...unpleasant, the vixen's hackles were faintly raised and she her long narrow white muzzle was raised in a scowl. She was definitely not pleased with Fox, which was pretty obvious considering that she was staring at him openly. He saw that his friend was wilting under her glare, and he did not like that.

Liam strode over to her with as much intimidation and lethality as he could radiate, and the veteran ODST had an excess of that. When she noticed the large muscular black armored figure storming over to her with a purpose, she flinched and drew her attention away from Fox. The orange vulpine gave Liam a quick thankful smile. He stopped only inches away from her and saluted briskly. "Lieutenant Liam Callahan, Blood Dragons First squad, 4thbattalion." He barked firmly, his voice was slightly distorted from the helmet, making his already low voice deeper. The helljumper had seamlessly slipped back into his military training.

The vixen before him took only a second to collect herself. He had to hand it to her; she handled that better than most. He had been quite the terror for the newbies joining the battalion. "Lieutenant Fara Phoenix, Cadet Instructor." She fired back with a salute, giving him a fierce smirk.

Liam chuckled and smiled underneath his helmet, she had guts. "So it is, I believe you have been briefed for my arrival?"

"Correct Lieutenant, Your Admiral and Prime Minister Sanders are already inside." She gestured to the double doors at the far end of the airfield. It seemed that they were late to the party.

"You may lead Lieutenant." He motioned for her to take the lead. The russet vixen twirled on her heals and marched for the doors; her youthful cadets stumbled after her, distracted by the intimidating and strange alien that would be their instructor for the day. They had been excited to see some of the aliens up close. The only ones they had seen so far were in the city and had guides. Now they were going to be taught by one, and meet the Prime Minister!

Liam followed after the vixen and her cadets with a stiff posture and confident pace. The Starfox team was slightly stunned. The man had undergone an instantaneous transition from a normal person into a soldier. They had almost forgotten why he was truly there. Krystal was the most affected, she could not fathom why, but she felt a stinging twinge of jealousy when Liam talked to this Fara woman. She just didn't like her at all.

They buried their thought and followed after the group. The team went through the doors only a minute after Liam and the cadets, and followed them. The party traveled through a winding ensemble of corridors for several minutes. As they walked, they could see other trainees going about their business, either staring at the legendary members of the Starfox team or at the tall black armored figure in front of them. A little miffed at his distance, Krystal closed in and tugged on his shoulder. The ODST turned to Krystal and spoke with a smile in his voice. "Hey Krystal, what's up?"

She found herself somewhat relieved that he talked in such a normal way. She had feared that he would be cold and distant to her. "Nothing, I was just wondering if you are okay."

"I'm alright, just a little worried. I have never had to teach cadets before. But I am sure that with you and the others here, I'll be okay." The two did not know, but they had an observer, Fara's ears were zeroed in on their conversation.

Personally, she had been surprised and unsettled by the strange soldier and his aura. But she had to also admit, as much as she did not want to, it also made him quite interesting to her. He was tall strong and confident, much like Fox had been like to her. At first she had thought that Krystal was just Fox's new hussy, but now she was forming a different thought. It would seem that these two shared an intimacy. Something she lacked in her life.

Fara's musing was put on hold when they stopped at the room near the edge of the building near the fields. She opened the door and let the cadets stream in. After them came the strange alien and Krystal, and finally the rest of the Starfox team and Fox. She gave Fox a cold stare and was a little satisfied that he was forced to look away. She did not hate him, but he did break her heart. And she was still upset over it. She was the last one to enter, moving to stand beside the front wall. At the back of the huge classroom were the human Admiral, Prime Minister Sanders, and their respective bodyguards.

******

Liam entered the room with Krystal and looked around. The cadets were taking their seats and in the back he could see Mathias and a primly dressed lion talking quietly. Behind Mathias was a group of soldiers he had not expected to see. With a grin he sped over to them and grabbed the sergeant firmly in a brotherly hug. "Baker, you big old son of a bitch! What are you doing here?" He asked with a laugh. Liam had not seen the other helljumper in a few months. He had no idea that he was stationed in the fleet too.

Liam could hear the grin in the older soldier's gruff voice. "Liam! I didn't know that you were the poor sod who had to teach these fellows how ODSTs fight. It's good to see ya lad, and to answer you question, we were handpicked by Admiral Mathias to be his bodyguards on this most fanciful expedition. And the boys and I have seen quite a bit."

"No doubt, things have truly been strange." Liam replied, firmly slapping the old veteran on the back.

Every eye in the room watched as the soldiers reunited. Mathias smiled as he watched. He had hoped that the appearance of some familiar and friendly faces could make the soldier more agreeable, and he felt that he owed him that much.

They would have talked longer if not for Mathias calling him over. Reluctantly, he pulled away from his old friends and headed to the table Mathias was sitting at. He stopped at the head and saluted. He thought that the admiral was going to say something, but it was the lion. Liam assumed that he was the cornerian prime minister. "Tell me soldier, what is your name." The lion's voice was friendly and he had a pleasant smile on his face,

Slightly suspicious, Liam relinquished his name. "Liam Callahan, sir."

The lion nodded to himself and continued his interrogation. "How old are you Liam?'

"Twenty two sir."

The lion nodded again. "Excellent, and how long have you been in the military. "Five years, sir."

"Would you say you have descent amount of combat experience under your belt?" The Lion's eyes were studying him carefully, ready to judge his next response.

"More than most, sir." The ODST replied confidently. He had been fighting for a long time. And he knew he was a good soldier. He just had no idea if he was a great one.

The lion seemed satisfied with the answer. "That is good to hear Liam, thank you for your time; you may begin your lesson." The lion dismissed him with a thoughtful glance.

Sorely confused, the helljumper dismissed himself from the table and headed to the front of the room. He looked for his friends and spied them at the side of the room standing, or in Slippy's case, sitting. Krystal gave him an encouraging waive and he was tempted to waive back but there were many people there so he simply nodded, expressing his emotions to the vixen. She seemed to have gotten the memo because she smiled.

He headed towards the front of the room and stood next to the fox women named Fara. She conceded the floor to him with a short dip of her muzzle as she backed up. Liam stood in the center and looked to all the cadets sitting in the college type semicircular desk. There were at least fifty of these teenagers staring at him openly. There were cats, dogs, birds, ferrets, badgers, bears, a proverbial ecosystem of observers. He felt hounded, and the last time he had felt it this bad he had been hunted by a mountain of insurrectionists on Caldernum after he was separated from his unit. Liam took a deep breath and began to speak.