Halo: Noble Freelancer

Part Eleven: Hidden In The Fog

I sit on my rock until I feel that's time to get moving. Reading the sun it has to be about six o'clock, with little light. The fire is no longer glowing inside the cave, instead it smokes and is full of ashes. I stay perfectly still and wait for the sun to rise just a little more. The moisture in the air is thick and cold, fog rolls in slowly from the direction of where I need to go.

I try to move, hearing a crackling sound, I stop. I make a fist and watch as a thin layer of ice shatters. More ice breaks around my neck and helmet as I look at my body to see even more ice. I stand as huge chunks fall from my legs and arms and then I walk to the cave.

I kick them all in the legs and arms to get them up quicker than a simple shake. "What's that on your armor?" Connecticut asks. I stay silent and shake the majority of it off. "Wait, did you stay the whole night out there in the rain?" York asks. I pick off the remainder of the pieces, "I did." "Why, you could have just stayed in here with us." South adds. "Let's just say I didn't feel welcome." "You should be use to that by now." Carolina says bumping my arm as she walks by.

I ignore her and start to place my weapons in their rightful areas. My swords on my back with the energy swords lower, right above my belt. Pistols on my sides, along with my knife, and chain wrapped around my body, over one soulder and under the other. SMGs stick to my thighs while grenades connect to my belt and hidden blades fuse with the back of my hands. The sni... Wait, where the fuck is my sniper rifle? Great, I must have lost it when the tree was collapsing on top of me.

The others finish what's left of the meat and collect their guns. "North?" I get his attention. "Yes sir." "What were you doing last night when you got up?" "Oh, I was trying to get Theta to calm down so I could sleep." he answers. "Sounds reasonable." I say turning around and seeing the fog closer than it was before.

I glance across the creek and notice the leftovers from the animal I gutted last night. "That's not good." I say walking over to it. "What?" Tex questions like she doesn't really want to know. "Last night I took them far from the camp." "What's them?" Delta asks. I walk over to the guts and what's left of the head, "These." "What's the big deal?" Washington joins the conversation. "I took this, all of it, far from the camp." "So?" "So, that means we're being hunted." Tex answers for me.

"Stay close and don't fall behind." I order as I run into the fog. "I can't see a thing." Wyoming says in his British accent. "Can't we just go around?" Washington asks. "The fog is moving in from this direction, if we went around eventually the fog would surround us. That and we don't know if what was near the camp last night is still tracking us." I explain. "Great." South says sarcastically. "Don't worry, as long as no one gets lost again or disobeys my orders we'll be fine."

Only things a few inches away can be seen and even then they are smokey. This reminds me of when I was with Noble. Running through ashes of fallen ships and smoke so thick you could run in a circle and never know it. A low branch appears in view and I shout "Heads." Everyone ducks past it and then we continue deeper into the mist.

I take a few more steps and hear another crack like the ice this morning. I stop to wipe my shoulders and legs, trying to get it off my armor when Florida suddenly bumps into my back. I am pushed forward but catch myself, unlike Florida who falls on his back. I look down to give him a hand but notice the moving soil under him.

The crackling sound grows. "Nobody move." I command, listening to were it is coming from. I look behind us. Walking through the group, I see a dark figure nearing as the crunch gets closer. I look down and quickly realize it's not dirt we're on, but ice. "Run!" I command as they start to sprint. The figure gets close enough to see and stands on it's hind legs, pounding them in front me and roaring.