Chapter 38

Location: Covenant Outpost - Inner Perimeter

Date: May 12, 2534

Time: 0830 Hours

The Covenant outpost was a maze of sharp, angular structures and glowing alien tech, the whole place buzzing with the eerie hum of their energy weapons. We had breached the outer perimeter, pushing forward through a hailstorm of plasma fire, but the hardest part was still ahead. The Covenant wasn't about to let us stroll in and dismantle their operations without a fight.

My heart pounded in my chest as I motioned for Bravo Fireteam to take cover behind a stack of crates, the cold metal of my rifle steady against my shoulder. The rookies were holding it together, but I could see the strain in their movements—the way they hesitated, the way their breaths came faster than they should. They were green, no doubt about it, and this mission was about to test every ounce of their training.

"Cass, we've got a turret up ahead," Alice's voice crackled over the comms, her tone sharp. "We need to take it down before we can move forward."

I peered around the corner of the crate, my eyes locking onto the heavy plasma turret embedded in the far wall of the outpost. Its barrel glowed with the sickly blue of charging energy, ready to tear us apart if we made a wrong move.

"Barnes, you still got that launcher?" I asked, glancing at the rookie who had taken up the rear of our formation.

She nodded, her grip tightening on the M41 SPNKR as she hoisted it up onto her shoulder. "Locked and loaded, Sergeant."

"Good. Take out that turret, then we move."

She didn't hesitate, lining up her shot with the precision of someone who had trained for this exact moment. The rocket streaked across the battlefield, hitting the turret dead-on and sending a fireball of blue energy cascading through the air.

"Turret's down!" Barnes called out, her voice cracking with the adrenaline.

"Move up!" I ordered, pushing forward with my rifle raised.

We advanced quickly, moving through the narrow corridors of the outpost, clearing rooms and taking out any Covenant forces in our path. The air was thick with the smell of burning plasma, and the sound of distant gunfire echoed through the hallways.

Alice and Alpha Fireteam were just behind us, their movements fluid as they secured the rear. She had been quiet since the mission began, her focus entirely on the task at hand. I admired that about her—how she could shut everything out, no matter how bad things got.

But I wasn't sure I could keep doing the same.

Every step I took felt heavier than the last. The weight of the past year—the constant fighting, the endless loss—was dragging me down, and no matter how hard I tried to push it aside, it kept creeping back in.

I couldn't stop thinking about Sam. About the daughter I'd never met. About the rookies who had come and gone under my command, their faces blurring together in my mind. How many more would I lose before this war was over?

The thought made my stomach twist, but I shoved it aside. There was no room for that here. Not when we were in the middle of a fight.

Location: Covenant Outpost - Central Command Room

Date: May 12, 2534

Time: 0900 Hours

We reached the central command room, the heart of the Covenant outpost, after what felt like an eternity of fighting. The room was filled with alien consoles and holo-displays, their strange glyphs glowing in the dim light. The place was crawling with Covenant forces—Elites, Jackals, and Grunts, all bristling with energy weapons.

"Get ready," I muttered into the comms, my voice low. "We're going in hard."

The rookies tensed beside me, their fingers hovering over their triggers, waiting for the order. Alice gave me a nod from across the room, her rifle already aimed at the nearest Elite.

"On my mark," I said, my heart pounding in my chest.

Then, all at once, we opened fire.

The room exploded into chaos. Plasma bolts and bullets flew in every direction, the sound of energy shields flaring and weapons discharging filling the air. I moved through the room like I'd done a hundred times before, my rifle kicking against my shoulder with each controlled burst.

The rookies were doing their best to keep up, but I could see the cracks forming. They weren't used to this kind of intensity—not yet. They were holding their own, but only just. And I could feel the weight of responsibility settling over me again.

I had to keep them alive.

But that was easier said than done.

As I fired at an Elite charging toward our position, something caught my eye—movement in the corner of the room. I turned just in time to see a Jackal lining up a shot on Barnes, its plasma pistol glowing with deadly energy.

"Barnes, get down!" I shouted, diving toward her just as the shot fired.

The plasma bolt seared past me, missing by inches as I slammed into her, knocking us both behind cover. My ears rang from the impact, but we were alive.

"Thanks, Sergeant," Barnes gasped, her eyes wide with shock.

I nodded, pulling her to her feet. "Stay sharp. This isn't over yet."

Location: Covenant Outpost - Aftermath

Date: May 12, 2534

Time: 0930 Hours

By the time the dust settled, the Covenant forces were either dead or retreating. The command room was a mess of broken consoles and smoldering debris, but we had secured the objective. We had won.

But it didn't feel like a victory.

I stood in the center of the room, my chest heaving as I surveyed the damage. Around me, the rookies were catching their breath, their faces pale with exhaustion. They had made it through, but barely.

"Good work, everyone," I said, though the words felt hollow. "We did what we came here to do."

Alice came up beside me, wiping the sweat from her brow. "Another mission down," she muttered, her voice flat.

"Yeah," I replied, though the sense of accomplishment I used to feel after a successful mission was gone. Replaced by something darker. Something that gnawed at the edges of my mind.

How many more of these could I survive? How many more could I lead before it broke me completely?

The war wasn't ending anytime soon. And with each mission, I felt myself slipping further away from the person I used to be. The person I wanted to be.

I thought of Sam again. Of what she would have said to me if she were still here. I didn't know. I couldn't even imagine it anymore.

And that scared me more than anything.