The Good, the Bad, and the Didact

Pursuit

Another unspecified amount of time passed. I no longer felt the Didact's arms around me. I opened my eyes and looked around. I was lying in an empty room with piles of ash on the floor. It didn't take long for me to realize I was back on Ivanoff station. I quickly got up to my feet.

"Didact? Didact!! Where are you?!" I cried, tears were coming fast as I ran from one side of the room to the other. The station was quiet, from the result of everyone being composed. Why did he leave me here? What did I do? I was crying once again, he had left me, and betrayed me. That's all I could think of. Why would he let his evil side take over him once again and leave me like this?

My current actions were not helping. Stop crying Emily; you're going to go after him. You love him too much to let him go. Standing here won't accomplish that. You're going after him! I thought as I tried to wipe my tears away. I had to be confident. I could only guess that the reason he left me behind was: He realized what I was up to on the station and thought it was an attempt to bring back the good in him, but at the same time he was testing my feelings for him. He was still trying to figure out how he felt about me, and his evil side prevented him from that. Perhaps he believed "If you love someone, but don't know if they love you, let them go. If they do love you, they'll return to you."

I knew that had to be the case. I don't care if he tries to kill me; I'm going after him and stop him if I must. I told myself, and then I headed for the station's hangar.

A large fighter that resembled fighter planes back on Earth was docked. The words Broadsword were written on it. I had my driver's license back home, so how hard could flying be? I climbed into the cockpit and analyzed the controls. A handle that looked like a steering wheel, no pedals, and triggers on the handle which I assumed was for guns and missiles, and something for full thrust. I buckled up and prayed the Didact had not gone far. Mantle's Approach didn't look like a ship that moved very fast.

I started up the fighter's engine and tried to stay calm. You can do this; just think of it like driving a car that flies. I thought, and then within a few minutes I was airborne. I pulled on the thruster and exited the station through the open shield.

At first I had no idea where to go, outer space was far too vast to determine where. I flew Broadsword upward out of the asteroid field and away from the Halo. The fighter didn't have an AI, nor did it have a tracking device. How would I find the Didact? I flew further and further away from the Halo and saw a pod-speck in front of me. Mantle's Approach? I could only hope. I kicked in the afterburners and flew after the ship.

My flying was still rusty. The fighter tilted from side to side as I closed in on the larger vessel. As soon as I got closer, I recognized the shape of it. It was Mantle's Approach. He had not gone far after all. I flew closer and knew I had to find a way to get inside the ship. He was going to Earth all right, and I had to stop him, whether he liked it or not.

A slipspace portal opened in front of him, it looked like a black hole. Broadsword's shields were definitely not suited for slipspace but Mantle's Approach was. Master Chief could have come up with this. I thought and then sped up towards the vessel. Soon I was hovering just above the ship's outer hull. The shields went up. I felt safe inside; as long as I stay below the shields. I thought, and then I observed the area around me. The outer hull of Mantle's Approach looked tight with tons of pieces. Finding a way inside was not going to be easy. Then I had an idea. The Composer, and then I began to fly forward along the surface.

As I flew along the outer hull, I found myself in tight quarters. Do not crash, just focus on finding where the Composer is located. Maybe I can get inside from there. I thought as I steered carefully around every post and tower I saw. It didn't take long for the Didact to be aware of my presence.