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Halo: First Contact

Chapter 1: Mysteries

Inside the HEV, the ODST began to sweat underneath his armor as the interior temperature started to spike, which meant that he was likely entering the atmosphere of the target planet. The pre-mission brief said that the planet had breathable atmo and was an arid desert world, which meant that he would have to conserve his supplies until he found the crashed raven. He was supposed to be dropping within a few kilometers of the dropship, but HEV's had a tendency to either overshoot or undershoot their predestinated coordinates so the soldier wasn't really counting on that. There was also an extra pod dropping with him that carried additional rations, ammo, and medical supplies since there was no telling when he would be able to find the ship or what he would be facing once he hit the dirt.

But Liam didn't care about the danger. What was life without a little risk?

Soon the inner compartment of the pod began to cool down and he began to hear the piercing howl of wind as the HEV ripped its way through the air and towards the ground like a giant dagger. The pod began to tremble as it hit severe turbulence and the ODST was roughly jostled in his harness, wrapping his armored gloves on the hand rails welded onto the sides of the pod. The small window in front of him showed the tannish surface of the planet as it slowly began to dominate the viewport the nearer the pod became.

The light next to his head flashed slowly from orange to yellow and finally to green. Once the emerald glow suffused the small compartment, he slammed a fist onto the button in front of him and the HEV jolted suddenly as it deployed its secondary drag-shoots. As soon as the shoots deployed the pod's descent slowed rapidly and the ODST was violently tossed around, barely able to keep himself from smashing into the armaglass port.

He waited a few more moments and then grabbed a pulley like mechanism above him, yanking it to deploy the primary flaps and shoot. The pod shuddered again and he checked the small bank of rectangular screens to his sides and saw that he was close to hitting the surface. But something must have malfunctioned or perhaps the HEV hadn't been checked thoroughly enough by the HEV crew because both the primary and secondary shoots gave out without warning, resulting in the pod falling the final thousand feet at full velocity. That would have certainly resulted in his swift and fiery demise, but the HEV's breaking rockets activated and slowed the fall considerably, but not enough to make the landing smooth.

There was a massive upheaval of dirt that sent a billowing cloud of light orange dust shooting into the air as the pod slammed into the ground viciously. Liam's head smashed against the font of the pod and everything went black.

Fox ran through the familiar dry savannah his home planet, followed by his team and their venomian pursers. The attack had come without warning, catching the gathering cornerian fleet in orbit with their tails in the air. The fleet had been rallying over Papetoon to prepare for a retaliatory strike against the venomians after their attack on Fortuna. But it looks like yet again the venomians had been one step ahead of them.

Fox and the others had been on the surface, resting on one of the small bases littering the arid world when the attack commenced. Before they could get to their ships, they had been run off by the swarm of venomian infantry and heavy vehicles. Somewhere along their fighting withdrawal they had linked up with a small group of cornerian marines. They had lost their pursuers, but there was no telling when they would be found again. And they needed to get back to the base and retrieve their arwings. But at the moment they didn't have the resources to accomplish that task.

As the orange vulpine ran ahead of their small party, he spied a small outcropping of rocks that looked like it led into a cave that should shelter them from the heat and any prying eyes.

"Hey, over there, it's a cave." He called to his friends, pointing a paw at the cavern.

Falco, who had been running alongside his friend, nodded as he panted heavily, wiping a blue and red feathered hand across his brow. "Well, at least we can get out of this damn heat!"

"Yeah, I agree with feather brains over here, I may be a cat, but this kitty doesn't like the heat." Miyu agreed as she used her long reedy furred tail to fan herself. Fay and Krystal, who had been jogging alongside the feline were panting from exertion as well and copying the cat's smart use of her tail.

Poor Slippy didn't respond, to busy gasping in breath as he wiped at his head with a sweaty cloth. The marines however, seemed to be in better condition then the team of pilots, even though they were weighed down by heavy and cumbersome armor.

They all hurriedly slipped into the cave and plopped down on the hard ground and taking their much needed break. Fox sat beside the mouth of the cave and looked to his friends, taking in their battered appearance. The flight from the overrun compound had really taken it out of them. They were all in good shape, relatively if you counted Slippy, but they were pilots. They spent more time behind the stick of an arwing then out on the field. This was more than they were used to, and Fox was impressed they managed to do so well this far.

"Damn venomians." Falco grumbled as he sat next to Fox and tried to cool off. "They always seem to show up when they're least expected or wanted. How did they know about the fleet?"

Fox shook his muzzle uncertainly and began to fiddle with his blaster. "I don't know, but I would pay a thousand credits to know."

"Hey Fox, what are we going to do now?" Miyu demanded from her place farther in the recesses of the cave where it was coldest. She sat with the other girls, a thin sheen of sweat making her fur shine in the darkness. All Fox could see were her glowing golden eyes.

"I don't know, let me think." The vulpine replied after a moment.

"Well take your time, I'll just sit here and try not to die." Slippy muttered as he wrung out the cloth he had been using to wipe away his sweat.

Fox smiled softly at the toad's reply and began to think about what they were going to do next. "Hey Krystal, you sense any venomians nearby?" He asked, turning to the bright clue furred vixen sitting next to the lynx and spaniel.

She closed her eyes for a few moments before opening them to respond. "No, but I am sensing something nearby, something I've never sensed before. And its intentions are unknown." Her muzzle had an uncertain expression and her tail fluttered at her side erratically.

The orange vulpine slowly nodded his head. That was a bit of information that wouldn't help them at the moment. But he would take any info at this point. Fox looked to the leader of the marine squad with them, a grey wolf with a deep scar running across his muzzle. "How are your men Arden?"

The wolf shrugged as he hefted his carbine in a paw and replied in a gravelly tone. "They'll live, we've been through worse....although I can't say the same for some of us." He chuckled and turned to the rather weighty toad with a grin.

"Hey!" Slippy cried in outrage making them all laugh.

"It's just a joke Slip." Fay placated her technically minded friend, placing a snowy white paw on his shoulder.

Slippy grumbled and looked down at the rock floor. "I wish Peppy was here, he wouldn't let you guys make fun of me."

Falco leaned back onto the smooth and cool wall, folding his feathery hands behind his head. "Yeah well Peppy is a little busy being the General to help out here Slip. You should fend for yourself."

The toad gave the avian a hard look before turning away with a scoff.

Fox slugged the bird on the arm and scolded him. "Come on Falco, let up on him will ya."

"Alright, alright...I'll leave him alone." He squawked and clutched his injured arm. "I'm just trying to lighten the mood."

"Well, there are better ways of doing that." Krystal remarked as she looked to the avian disapprovingly.

"I can see that now." He grumbled before changing the subject. "So, joking aside, what actually is the plan?"

At that Fox sighed and looked out to the rocky environment outside the cave. "I don't know Falco, I don't know."

Liam slowly regained consciousness, shaking his helmeted head and waiting until everything returned to focus. Once he stopped the spinning in his head he examined the HEV. The hull of the pod was crumpled and a section of the twisted alloy was pinning his leg painfully to the shell. The ODST tried to wrest his leg from its prison but immediately stopped and let loose a hiss of pain as he felt a sharp lance of searing hot agony. The dull throbbing encasing the limb now made itself aware to him informing the soldier that his leg had been broken or at the very least the bone was deeply bruised. That was bad, an injury like that would severely hamper his combat effectiveness and make it that much harder to accomplish his mission. Thankfully, the pod appeared to be right side up, so he was able to hit the release bolts and pop the hatch.

The bolts fired and sent the hatch airborne, flying away from the HEV and instantly bathing the interior with a harsh bright light as the world's sun began to bear down on him. The ODST groaned and unbuckled the harness keeping him restrained to the seat. He was forced to catch himself before gravity pulled him forwards and he reached down to pry the warped metal off his leg. After using all his strength, he managed to peel the steel away and freed his leg. With that done he saw the condition of the limb and winced.

The twisted steel had plunged into his armored calf and he could see a thick stream of crimson blood seep out of the hole. There was no doubt now that his leg was broken. The ODST managed to limp out of the HEV, leaning onto it for support as he grabbed his sniper rifle from the clamp, glad that it had escaped the impact relatively intact. There were a few dents and scratches on it, but nothing that would impede the lethality of the sturdy rifle. Liam was also happy to know that his other weapons escaped harm, but the medical supplies inside the pod were trashed. The kit had been crushed from the substantial force of the impact. But that would not be too much of a setback considering that there was a pod with supplies somewhere down here with him. Liam stripped the pod for anything else of use before getting ready to move on. HEV drop pods had a decent supply of weapons, ammo, and other supplies inside them. But he would still like to have more options available to him.

The ODST accessed his HUD and searched for the location of the supply pod and found that it was only a kilometer and a half away from him. That would have to be his next objective. After setting an objective marker, the soldier used his sniper rifle as a crutch and began to walk across the desert like environment he found himself in. This planet was mostly rocks and heat, and the color would make his black armor sick out like a sore thumb to any of these aliens that might be there.

This made the man think. What would these aliens look like? And what kind of weapons could he be expected to face if he was forced to fight? From what he had been told before the drop, their ships used energy weapons, if he was lucky, those would only be restricted to their vessels. Otherwise he was not anxious or eager to test his ODST battle armor against a laser. All he wanted was to get to the pod, fix up his leg and his annoying headache, and recover that raven.

The hike to the supply pod was made arduous by the steep incline he was forced to cross and the unbearable heat that sought to cook him in his armor. His armor clung to his fatigues and he could feel the slick sweat under his clothes and he knew he was going to have a rash before this was all said and done. After several quite minutes of marching, he saw the pod in the distance, a trail of dust in the air acting as a natural beacon. The sight caused him to speed his limping crawl into a hobbling sprint as he crossed the open plain and stopped in front of the pod.

He stepped up to the control panel and input his code. Once it was accepted, the hatch slowly popped open exposing the racks of equipment and a few extra guns. Sparing no time, the ODST reached inside and grabbed one of the medkits, cracking it open and taking out the container of biofoam. He jammed the nozzle of the thing tubular canister into the hole in his armor and filed his wound with the frothy mix of antibiotics and tissue regeneratives. As it expanded his growled in pain as the feeling of a thousand tiny knives dug into his wound, but the agony was quickly washed away by the painkillers.

Liam tossed the empty canister to the ground in a puff of dirt and closed the medpack, replacing it and grabbing a fresh one, snapping it to his thigh in an armored case. The ODST tested his leg and was satisfied when he was able to walk a short distance without any serious pain. He plodded back to the pod and grabbed a few clips of ammo and a couple fragmentation grenades before resealing it with his code again. He was tempted to grab the M90 inside or maybe even the rocket launcher, but he would become overburdened. Instead he locked the location of the pod in his NAV and decided he could always hike back. He also fiddled with the reserve fuel canister inside the HEV and made it ready to deploy at a radio signal. The fuel should give it enough juice to jump to a new closer location once he found the raven.

With what he needed, the ODST turned from the pod and pulped up a map on his datapad built into his right bracer. He searched it until he found the approximate location for the downed raven and input that into the NAV system in his HUD. He would have contacted the fleet, but he was supposed to maintain radio silence until he recovered the raven. There was no telling if the aliens could pinpoint his location by tracing the signal and he was unwilling to take the chance. For the moment he was completely on his own, which was to be expected of a RODST.

Recon ODSTs were the best of the best, the next level of the helljumper core. The only other infantry that surpassed them were the spartans. RODSTs went through intensive and rigorous one-on-one training. Before you could apply to be one, you needed several combat deployments under your belt and a certain kill ratio per mission, nor could you have previously failed one. If you met those requirements you were shipped to reach and dropped off at Hell's Gate. And assuming you made it through the training process, after two months you became a RODST.

Shouldering his sniper rifle, the soldier marched away from the pod and in the direction of the downed raven. It was almost fifty kilometers away, meaning that his HEV had shot way of course, missing the target zone by at least thirty kilometers. Mentally and physically preparing himself for a grueling slog through the desert, Liam started his journey.

Fox was the lookout for the group and stood outside the cave atop a stony hill. He was using one of the cornerian marine's long range viewfinders to scout out the nearby landscape. As he scanned the area, he saw two strange clouds of dust in the distance, far away from each other. He was curious to know what created those as he knew there were no bases in that direction. Maybe the venomians were searching for them there. This would be great considering that that was exactly where they were not. But knowing their luck so far he doubted that was the case.

If anything that was probably the advent of a terrible sandstorm that Papetoon was known for having. The vulpine set the viewfinders down with a sigh and sat crossed legged on the rock. This day had not started how he hoped it would. If everything had gone to plan, they would be launching a strike on the venomian controlled world of Eladard at this very moment.

Yet the venomians had beaten them to the punch, launching a preemptive attack on their fleet. The vulpine prayed that the fleet was holding out up there, otherwise there was a chance no one would be coming home from this.

And Fox was too young to die here, and so were his friends. At that moment, he missed the fatherly presence of Peppy. He could certainly use the venerable hare's advice at the moment. But Peppy was fat too busy controlling the cornerian navy. Pepper had stepped down after the aparoid war and Peppy had taken his place, filling the old bloodhound's role easily.

Fox thought back to when he had been the leader of a group of bandits that harassed Andross' imperial guard so many years ago. That had been before he revitalized his father's mercenary team and started on the road he found himself today. It had been a crazy couple of years since then and a lot had changed for both good and ill.

As he mused, Fox spotted a flicker of movement to the east and brought the viewfinders up. He saw a flash of black and red, and knew that the venomians were close by. And they would find their little hideaway soon. Fox got up and turned to run back to the cave to alert his friends.

Once he arrived he barged in, grabbing their attention.

"The venomians are closing in!" He warned.

"Ugh, here we go again." Falco said with a sigh as he stood up, brushing off his suit.

"They don't just let up do they?' Miyu asked in resignation as she stood up with the others.

"I'm tired of running Fox." Slippy told to his friend as he walked over.

"I know, but we have to keep moving." The brotherly vulpine replied as he placed a comforting paw on the shorter toads shoulder. "Just for now..."

"Alright Fox, I understand." The toad turned to follow his friend towards the exit.

As they moved, the first one out, one of Arden's marines, was struck on the shoulder by a red laser and fell the ground growling and clutching the wound.

Arden snarled and backed up, tossing out a grenade as he pulled the wounded feline back using the detonation as cover. "Looks like the party came to us!"

Fox grimaced, realizing that his warning had been too late. They would have to take out the venomians here and hope they could leave before any more arrived.

"At least we don't have to wait any more." Krystal smiled weakly as she clutched her staff in her paws. Fay and Miyu walked up behind her and brandished their small blaster pistols.

"For once, we're thinking the same thing." Falco grinned as he pulled out his large custom blaster.

The marine squad and Starfox team took positions around the cave mouth and saw the large party of venomian shoulders taking cover in the rocks below. Fox nodded to them all and motioned for them to attack.

Liam topped a rise and looked down at a small ravine that snaked outwards into the distance. If he was reading the NAV system right, and he hoped he was, the raven was only a few more kilometers ahead of him. As he gathered his bearings, he saw flashes of light in the ravine.

The ODST glanced down and used his VISR mode to zoom in; spying several red and black shapes firing at a small cave with laser weapons of some kind. Liam couldn't see who was in the cave, but it was possible that they were crew of the missing raven. They might have tried to take refuge inside the cave. He took a minute to debate with himself if firing on these aliens would be a shrewd idea. He could try and go around, but finding a way across the ravine could take hours, maybe a whole day, time he might not have.

With a fatalistic sigh, the ODST went prone and set up the bipod for his sniper rifle, hoping that he wasn't making a colossal mistake. Liam synced his HUD with the scope of the SRS and glared down into the ravine. The sniper rifle had superior magnification then his VISR mode and so he could actually see the aliens in all their glory.

There appeared to be two visible races, reptilians of some sort and what looked like earthen primates. But they were bipedal and could hold menacing black rifles. Their armor was thin and black, covering most of their bodies except for their heads, which was a fatal flaw on their part.

Liam steadied his breath and aimed the scope at the center of a simian's forehead. "Well, here goes nothing." He mumbled quietly to himself as he pulled the trigger.

Fox ducked as a flurry of lasers hissed past his head, splattering on the cave's ceiling and making the rock glow red hot. He popped back up and aimed his blaster at the ape who sought to take his head off, knocking him to the ground as he landed three bolts.

The vulpine turned to his left and saw another ape, aiming right for him and there wouldn't be enough time to dodge. Fox glared defiantly at his killer and waited for the blows to land. But instead he was shocked when the ape's head suddenly exploded in a shower of gore and the lifeless simian dropped the desert floor like a sack of bricks. As the corpse dropped, so did another three venomians in rapid succession, each had their head burst like a ripe melon.

The sudden deaths made the firefight falter, neither side having pulled the trigger. But it was quickly rejoined as the venomians sought to deal with them and their mysterious benefactor. Yet as another met their end with a savagely devastating cranial detonation, they knew they were outgunned. They tried to retreat but the unknown sniper was ruthless, gunning them down as they ran. As the last body dropped, Fox looked to his companions in shock.

"Who did the cranial fireworks?" Falco wondered. "I'm not stepping out there unless I know they're friendly.

Fox looked to Arden. "Are there any cornerian units out here? Maybe a base nearby?"

The wolf shook his muzzle as he looked at the sudden carnage with a frown. "No, the nearest base is more than a hundred kilometers away."

"Then who was our mysterious shooter?" Miyu muttered to herself in puzzlement, flicking her spotted tail curiously.

Krystal entered the consideration with a strange look on her muzzle. "I am sensing the unknown entity, it is nearby."

"That could be it." Fox muttered forlornly to himself.

"I don't think we should step outside then." Slippy suggested.

"I think he's right." Fay nodded in agreement.

Fox thought about that, but they couldn't stay in here forever, and so he took a chance and walked outside.

"What the hell are you doing Fox?!" Falco squawked as he watched his friend stroll out into the sunlight, the others watching in horror.

But the vulpine didn't answer as he stood in the heat and looked around. If he was a sniper he would go for the high ground. Fox looked to the left and saw a large hill way in the distance and his vulpine eyes picked up a black figure lying on the top. As he stared at the figure, he felt a deep seated anxiety as he remembered that he had just thrown his life on the line. And Fox was starting to think that was a poor decision.

Through his scope, Liam locked eyes with the strange furred alien standing out in the open, his crosshairs hanging right between its eyes. It looked like a standard red fox but was bipedal as were the others aliens he had seen so far. The ODST sighed and groaned. He had just killed a number of aliens as they fought with other aliens. This fox was obviously not a member of the raven that had been shot down and he considered slotting the thing.

But after a moment he decided that he might as well let it live after going through the ammo to make sure that happened. The human stood up and slung his sniper rifle onto his shoulder. He had two choices here, he could take his chances and go down there, or he could take the long way around. Neither sounded like the best plan and so after a last look at the furred alien, he walked back down the hill he came from.

"Back around it is." He said with a sigh. That would slow his progress considerably and he would have to watch his back in case this alien tried to follow him. But he didn't fancy trying to establish first contact.

Fox watched as the figure stood up and walked away, releasing a pent up breath he didn't know he had. He stood unsteadily on his feet after that and teetered a little as he realized just how close he had brushed with death.

Falco decided that he would go to his friend and stormed out of the cave with a glare, flapping his arms in a very avian way. "What the hell is your problem Fox?! You could have gotten yourself killed!"

"But I didn't." Fox said with a weak grin. And it looks like our mysterious sniper is friendly."

By this time the others exited the cave and stood around Fox. Arden stepped over to the corpses and observed one with its head and neck completely vanished and the surrounding pool of blood, nudging it with a boot. "That's one hell of a rifle I'll tell you that."

"Where is this sniper?" Krystal asked worriedly, scanning the surroundings. At her question the others began to look a little nervous.

Slippy fiddled with his webbed hands and looked to Fox and stuttered. "I-is it s-still here?"

"No, whoever they were they left. I watched them go." Fox replied, pointing to the ridge where he saw the figure. "I think we should follow them."

"Follow them!" Falco exclaimed, almost choking at the word. "We should be heading in the opposite direction."

"That takes us closer to the venomians..." Fox replied determinedly. "This way takes us away from the hunters." He pointed towards the hill. "And besides, we might have an ally if we go that way, and we could use all the help we can get."

"I hate to say it..." Miyu said with a sigh as she flicked her orange and brown spotted ears making the hoop in the left one jangle. "But Fox is right. That might be our best bet."

Arden added his two cents. "It does look like the best of a bad set of choices, and we have to stay ahead of the venomians which means we have to get moving soon. One of my soldiers is wounded and that will slow us down considerably.

The wounded feline looked embarrassed to be a part of the problem, his tail dragging in the dirt as he was held up by the other two other soldiers.

"So that's it then?" Falco grumbled in resignation as he lowered his arms in defeat. "We're going to follow the possibly psychotic sniper...alright then, let's get this over with." He growled, starting to move past the bodies and towards the hill.