Halo: The Dunes of 2560

Chapter 13: Power Move (Or The Tragic Men and Women)

Long ago, in 2506, The Orion Project was cancelled due to the lack of results from the Spartan Program. This subsequently caused a splinter effect throughout the UNSC at every level, to where the UNSC had to develop a department that would never fail to meet expectations. Since long even before that, Humanity had developed Technology behind closed doors to stay ahead of even their own technology. Stuff on the surface. These departments and organizations have their roots on Earth, in locations in the mid-west of the United States, or inside remote Mountains no one would climb. At that time when the Orion Project had dissolved, one of the splinters would be the creation of the SFA. Though, nobody knew who founded it, the task of the SFA has always been the same. Stay ahead in tech, stay in the shadows, and eliminate all threats to the SFA. They were so successful at this, that even the Covenant's upper echelon sought that it would be in their best interests to conduct business with the SFA. It was Intergalactic capitalism in their intentions, on both sides. When Number 19 was acquired in 2530, it would be their most sophisticated and financially beneficial acquisitions. It cost the SFA around 59,444,000,000cr worth of Gold. However, it was a much more complicated deal, because the Covenant wanted the Sangheili race living on that Planet, to groom them for war. The SFA cracked them a deal to let them experiment on the Sangheili and make their warriors far more powerful, and to let them conduct these programs for up to five decades. By that time, they would let the Covenant have these genetically modified Sangheili for war, and would thus have much higher chances of winning the war against the UNSC. And in turn, the Covenant would pay the SFA back, with interest, in theory this would total at around 129,888,000,000cr in Gold. The reason they would have to pay them this much would be due to covering costs of construction, labor, and the product. 

Where this all fell out was when the Jiralhanae Chieftain demanded the genetically modified Sangheili immediately. This power move made sense too, as these Sangheili were ignorant to everything happening off world of Number 19. They would be capable of controlling these Sangheili far better than any Sangheili from Sangheilios. And the SFA decided to stab the Covenant in the back in the most barbaric and diabolic way possible. Mass genocide. 

Matilda wrote everything David was telling her on her transparent tablet device, the furrow in her brow showed to him how visibly disgusted she was at this entire situation. David checks the time, "I should get Pilot and Khyvo down here, huh?" She sighs, "Yeah, we need to do this now rather than later. Get them down here please." He contacts Pilot, and tells him to beam to his locations in 15 minutes.

Matilda stood up to stretch from her office chair, "You really went in too deep David." He gulps, "I know, I never did anything to that level, you know that." She turned to the window, "Did you form your team after you were nearly put in prison for 300 years?" He nods as he looked down, "Around 2557, yeah. You really saved my metal fucking back, hah..." She turns to him, scoffing at him, "You're the most innocent guilty man I've ever met that isn't my Ex-Husband!" He laughs out loud, "There's no way I could be worse than Charley, right?" "Shut up, you are far worse! I mean... Okay, at least you didn't kill anyone that didn't deserve it, right?" He nods confidently, "I was also the guy who could deny orders and not be disemboweled for it. They would never do anything to hurt me... Until now? Sort of?" Matilda shook her head at the ground, "Is Thel 'Vadam available?" He stands up, "Yeah, why?" "We might need him for testimony too. No doubt he has important shit to say. Right?" He inhales deeply, the smell of the carpet and the candles she collects calmed his nerves a little, "He's being watched, 100%. It's best if we teleport him, and not call. But he doesn't have much on the SFA, he's got more on the Flood though." She recoils, "What? The Flood?" "I'll explain it later. I'll be right back." He went to get coffee from the kitchen in Matilda's Law Firm. 

Khyvo and Pilot gave their testimony to Matilda while David had to be transported to Thel 'Vadam's location, which was New York City. David met him at the apartment the UNSC gave him, the door slid open, "David, what are you doing here?" David recoiled to see Thel 'Vadam in human clothing, Thel shook his head, "They didn't have anything else for me. Come in." 

David would explain to Thel 'Vadam that his immunity would be so short-term, that he'd probably need to come back to the Spark. He really disliked this idea, not because of the luxuries he was granted, it was due to him being older, and tired, "David, I'm around sixty in human years. I'm exhausted, with having to be on the run for almost a decade. Do you know what I had to do to eat?" David looked down, "Being stuck in an escape pod for about a week, I wonder how you survived without water?" Thel just face palms, "You are very ignorant." David just laughs, "Come on give me a break, you know I'm no Trent! Look, we need you Thel. We're going to take them down." He turns to look David in the eyes intensely, "I will only if you tell me what's really going on here." David knew, but played dumb, Thel just sighed heavily, "Don't." He gulped, "Okay. Well, get your nice clothes on, we're going to my friend's office to talk about it, okay?" He's still looking at him, not moving or reacting, David throws his hands in the air, "Fine! I'll tell you there."

Khyvo, and Osa were talking to Matilda in her office while Thel and David talked outside her office, they sat in chairs next to each other, David looks to Thel, "What are you expecting here?" He doesn't look at him back, "I expect you to be honest. I spent years hearing the SFA's lies, me and John met an Agent who tried to manipulate us by trying to get us to distrust each other. It didn't work. The way you talk reminds me of him." David's heart started racing, he looked up to Thel 'Vadam, much like the rest of them, he considers him a hero. He shook his head, "There must be a good reason for that.. huh?" "As you humans say, you're beating around the bush." He looks away from him, "Well, I used to be an SFA Agent, before I won against the UNSC in Court to become a UNSC Captain, and started my own little Platoon. My plan initially was just to lie low on The Dunes, make some new friends, and chill. I lost my life over a decade ago Thel, they destroyed my fucking life. I'll show you." David stood up and turned around, he lifted his marine armor over his head, lifted his shirt to show Thel his back. Thel 'Vadam examined his back carefully, "How much left of you is an Organism?" David flexed his shoulders, lifting them over his head, Thel sees these mechanical control arms and shoulder blade shaped plates that look like the suspension of a car, scaled down and put inside a human's back, contract and tilt upwards. In this position, his Metal spine is revealed, there are clear wires with a yellow pin-point thin wire within them coming out of every crevice and hole in the spine. David brings his arms down quickly, and the mechanism retracts smoothly and swiftly, "All you see is what you get, as far as I know. I know my front torso bleeds blood, I seen it. As for my limbs, I'm afraid to find out more." Thel looked away finally, "Put your clothes back on. And tell me now about your Sangheili." David twists to look at him, "MY Sangheili? What is that supposed to mean?" Thel doesn't back down, "Give yourself some credit, he looks up to you. What did they do to him besides the Massacre?" He puts his marine armor back on, and sits down, "His mother was subjected to experiments on him while he was still an Egg." Thel recoiled, "What the fuck?" "I know. The SFA is very fucked up, and I knew about him for a long time, he was the only one from the experiments on Number 19 that survived and became a refugee.  He raised himself, but had a handler; Frederick. He was SFA as well. I read his reports before his death, Osa is a force that can't be explained, he's not an android, or a Spartan, but a..." Thel's eyes looked sunken to David, he swallowed before Thel finished his sentence, "A tragedy." David had coughs, and looks at Pilot again. Thel notices, "Why do you keep looking at it?" He raises his eyebrow, "It's not just Osa, my friend. And what do you mean by 'It?'" Thel stood up, "It doesn't matter. We need to finish this up here, and..." His attention was drawn to something down the hall, David turned. A few shadows appeared at the bottom of the door down the hall, behind the door it seemed to them like someone was behind it. Thel's eyesight was better than David's, and he saw that behind the door are several Spartans. "Do you have a firearm?" Thel asked David, he stands and reveals he has a handgun, "That's it. You?" Thel reveals a Needler. They not to each other. 

In Matilda's office, Khyvo explained to Matilda what we all already know about him, Pilot on the other hand, was visibly nervous to talk. Khyvo had removed his helmet when talking to her, he held out his hand, "I'll hold your helmet for you, if you want?" His display of empathy and tenderness made Pilot feel strange, Pilot removed the helmet. Khyvo was was very surprised to see a Sangheili face under the helmet, Pilot handed him the helmet, "Thank you. I'll talk to the human lady now." Khyvo whispered under his breath as Pilot sat down, "They took a fema...?" 

Pilot sat down, "My name is Vasi 'Vuzam, I'm also know as Pilot 3. I don't know much, I apologize in advance." David had walked in with Thel, Khyvo turned to him, he points to Vasi "The SFA did this to a female Sanghe-?" An explosion rocked the entire office floor, knocking them to the ground.