The Infilitration

The barren surface of Phaeton Minor stretched out before them, a desolate wasteland of rocky plains and jagged cliffs. The planet's atmosphere was thin, the sky above a dull shade of gray that made everything below seem lifeless and cold. But Marcus knew better. Somewhere beneath this seemingly abandoned world, the Covenant were digging, and they had found something—something dangerous.

A soft hiss broke the silence as the drop ship touched down on a ridge overlooking the site. Marcus stepped off the ramp, his boots sinking into the loose gravel as his eyes scanned the landscape. Alyssa was right behind him, her rifle held at the ready, her expression tense. Lachlan followed, his usual laid-back grin replaced with something more serious.

"Looks like a ghost town," Lachlan muttered, peering through his visor at the expanse before them. "Too quiet for my taste."

Marcus nodded, his hand tightening on his rifle. The Covenant presence wasn't visible yet, but he could feel them. The system had been buzzing in the back of his mind since they entered the planet's orbit, a constant, low hum that set his nerves on edge.

[Energy: 90%.]

The number blinked in his vision, but it wasn't just the energy level that bothered him. There was something else—something deeper. Ever since the encounter with the artifact on Phaethon, the system had felt different. More aware. More intrusive. And now, standing on this desolate world, it was as if the system was reacting to something nearby, something powerful.

"Are you picking up anything?" Alyssa asked, glancing at Marcus. She had grown used to relying on him for intel, even if she didn't fully understand what the system was doing to him. But there was an unspoken trust between them, a bond forged in the heat of battle.

Marcus hesitated for a moment, focusing on the faint pulse at the edge of his consciousness. The system was trying to tell him something, but it wasn't clear—just a vague sense of urgency, a feeling that they were close to something important.

"Yeah," he said quietly. "There's something down there. Something big."

Lachlan raised an eyebrow. "Big like 'run for your life' big, or big like 'we'll be fine with a few grenades' big?"

"Big like Forerunner tech," Marcus replied, his voice flat.

Lachlan let out a low whistle. "Right. So, the fun kind."

Alyssa shot Lachlan a look, then turned back to Marcus. "If the Covenant found another artifact, we need to move fast. The longer we wait, the more likely they'll secure it."

Marcus nodded, already moving toward the edge of the ridge. Below, the ground sloped down into a series of rocky canyons, and nestled within the crags was the entrance to the Covenant dig site. From their vantage point, Marcus could make out the faint glow of energy shields and the small, insect-like forms of Grunt patrols scurrying around the perimeter.

"We go in quiet," Alyssa said, crouching low as she surveyed the terrain. "No need to pick a fight if we don't have to."

Lachlan grinned, checking the charge on his sidearm. "What's the fun in that?"

Marcus didn't respond. His focus was on the dig site, his mind already mapping out their approach. The system was feeding him information—terrain analysis, enemy patrol patterns, possible entry points—but it all felt distant, like it was happening to someone else. The buzzing in his head was getting louder, more insistent, and with it came an unsettling sense of anticipation.

They moved quickly and silently down the rocky slope, sticking to the shadows as they made their way toward the Covenant base. The wind howled around them, carrying with it the faint echoes of alien machinery and the rhythmic pulse of distant energy fields.

As they reached the outskirts of the base, Marcus held up a hand, signaling for them to stop. The entrance to the dig site was just ahead, a large metal door built into the rock face, guarded by a pair of Elite soldiers and several Grunts. They were heavily armed, but their attention was focused inward, likely expecting an attack from above, not from within their own perimeter.

"Take the guards, then we move in," Alyssa whispered, her rifle trained on one of the Elites. "Keep it clean."

Marcus nodded, steadying his breath as he raised his weapon. He could feel the system guiding his aim, the crosshairs settling perfectly on the Elite's head. The buzzing in his mind grew louder, and for a moment, he felt a strange sense of clarity—as if the system was aligning his actions with something larger.

Alyssa's rifle fired first, the suppressed shot taking out one of the Grunts before the others could react. Marcus fired immediately after, his shot piercing through the Elite's helmet in a single, precise strike. Lachlan followed up with a quick burst from his sidearm, dropping the remaining Grunt before it could raise the alarm.

The guards fell silently, and within seconds, the entrance was clear.

"Too easy," Lachlan muttered, stepping over one of the bodies as they moved toward the door.

"Don't jinx it," Alyssa replied, her eyes scanning the surrounding area for any signs of movement.

Marcus didn't say anything, his focus still on the system. As they approached the door, the buzzing in his head reached a crescendo, and a new message flashed across his vision.

[Warning: Unknown Forerunner Energy Source Detected.]

He froze for a split second, his mind reeling from the sudden intensity of the system's warning. The last time he had felt something like this was on Phaethon, just before he touched the artifact.

"Marcus?" Alyssa's voice snapped him back to reality.

He blinked, shaking off the daze. "There's something in there. Something powerful."

Alyssa frowned but nodded, trusting his instincts. "Then let's be ready."

They slipped through the entrance, descending into the heart of the Covenant base. The narrow corridors were dimly lit, the walls pulsing with the faint glow of alien technology. The deeper they went, the more oppressive the atmosphere became, the air thick with the hum of energy fields and the distant sound of Covenant machinery.

And then, they found it.

The chamber was vast, its walls lined with strange, glowing symbols that Marcus couldn't read but somehow felt familiar. At the center of the room, suspended in mid-air, was a massive Forerunner artifact, its crystalline structure pulsing with a soft, eerie light. Covenant engineers moved around it, working furiously to unlock its secrets.

Marcus felt the system surge to life inside him, its presence overwhelming as the artifact's energy pulsed in sync with his own. His vision blurred, his body tensing as the system tried to process the information flooding into his mind.

[System Override: Artifact Analysis in Progress.]

He stumbled, his breath catching in his throat as the weight of the artifact's power pressed down on him. His fingers twitched involuntarily, his body responding to the system's commands even as he fought to stay in control.

"Marcus!" Alyssa's voice cut through the fog, her hand gripping his arm. "What's going on?"

"I... I don't know," he gasped, the words barely escaping his lips. The system was pushing him harder than ever, and he wasn't sure how much longer he could hold on.

"Get it together, mate," Lachlan added, his voice uncharacteristically serious. "We're not leaving here without you."

Marcus took a deep breath, forcing himself to steady. But the artifact's pull was too strong. The system was reacting to it, syncing with it, and he couldn't stop it.

And then, the artifact pulsed again, brighter this time, and everything went dark.