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Zenith: I The Rumor (fixed)
Posted By: atrox<atroxd@gmail.com>
Date: 24 October 2004, 1:31 AM


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Zenith: I The Rumor
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      Ryan Briggans always knew that becoming a fighter pilot in the UNSC would be difficult but for crying out loud, he had just managed to ace the in-flight test, a test to try to shoot down one of the current leading pilots. Yes, I may have been flying in restricted air space set by the UNSC but wasn't it worth it if I managed to have the top fighter pilot in my missile lock. The answer was no, and inside as Ryan was flying back to the UNSC star cruiser he knew that he would be reprimanded for it.

"Send Lieutenant Briggan into my office please", demanded Captain Peter Connor.

"Yes sir, right away", cried the new recruit.

      The door seemed to open very slowly and Ryan lost focus of where he was until, "Briggans...the Captain would like to have a word with you, and he seems pretty ticked off. What did you do now, another flyby, or did you manage to destroy your jet again??" Ryan wanted to punch him in the face but restrained himself, recognizing that he was right in front of Captain Connor's door. Ryan walked into the room with a straight posture, unwrinkled pants, and his crisp haircut, hoping to God that he wouldn't be expelled from the UNSC. The room was well lit, and the Captain's desk was in the center of the room, the ship A.I was proudly displaying itself to the right side of the desk. One would almost get the feeling that the AI was looking over the Captain's shoulder to see the contents of his desk.

"Oh, well if it isn't the pilot that thinks he is above the law around here", yelled Captain Connor as he raised his head from under a heap of star maps, and flight logs.

      Ryan saluted and then went back into his standing military posture. He was bracing himself for one hell of a punishment and he knew it.

      Ryan walked out of the office, a good fifteen minutes later, still as a pilot, but as a pilot that had his flight time decreased to a bare minimum so the law abiding pilots could get their chance at improving their skills or at least that's what Captain Connor said. He knew he deserved what he received, and knew not to argue over the Captain's decision because that would just fuel the Captain's anger. He walked to the main hanger and since he wasn't on schedule to be flying again anytime soon, decided to watch other pilots take off. He stayed there watching a few training groups leave and then come back, until he felt a tap on his shoulder.

"Hey Ryan, I heard you got a beat down from the Captain, so what's the punishment" asked Ryan's old friend Tom.
Tom was a friend of his from the military academy on Reach; they were both top of their class, and graduated with honors.

"Hey Tom, it could have been worse, but I did get my flight time decreased", muttered Ryan.

"Well, I have some good news, there's a rumor going around that this hunk of junk might actually be seeing some action soon, I've heard that this starship is being sent to protect a massive fleet convoy headed for earth!!", said Tom.

"How did you pick up all this information, didn't you just get assigned to this ship only a week ago?", Ryan said inquisitively.

"It's not so hard to get some information out of people if you're actually willing to ask, you know? Why do you always avoid people anyway Ryan?"

"That's not important, and I don't want to talk about it."

      This was a great opportunity for Ryan to regain his respect with Captain Connor. If this fleet is important enough to have escorts we can bet that the Covenant will be very eager to stop it. In times of crisis, all of UNSC's pilots were needed, punished or not. Either way there was nothing Ryan could do at the moment, it was still just rumors and after a long day he was starving.

"I'm off to the mess hall then, you coming?"

"Well why not, it's not like there's anyone in this hanger that would know anything of the UNSC's plans."

      Ryan looked down at his plate, not the most appetizing meal but a healthy meal, designed to get all of the human body needs into a single meal. Ryan laughed to himself knowing that some of the worst tasting food he had ever eaten was also the best for him. After he got through the line he took a seat at one of the empty tables in the back, hopefully trying to avoid being seen by any other pilot. He was almost finished with his meal when an unscheduled intercom announcement screeched out of the nearest intercom. The announcer had a familiar voice, it was Captain Connor.

"Attention all members of the UNSC aboard this ship, there is a new assignment for this cruiser. We are no longer a UNSC training cruiser, due to the upcoming battle of Reach we are being sent to protect an important star fleet on its way to planet Earth. We must keep the fleet out of the enemies' grasp, or the human race as we know it may cease to exist. All members of this ship from now on must be on full military alert, the Covenant are not to be under estimated."

The rumor was confirmed.





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