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Absolution: Chapter I
Posted By: Havok<detoxpunk@hotmail.com>
Date: 17 July 2004, 5:07 AM
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ABSOLUTION
CHAPTER II
Sergeant Heines sat in the back of the transport, duffel bag under his seat. The compartment was empty save for him. The Pelican decelerated and initiated docking procedure. Retro rockets fired, and correctional thrusters twisted the transport around, nestling it securely into the bay.
The hatch opened, and Heines stood, grabbed his duffel, and walked over the bay's second floor to the main corridor. His combat boots clattered over the titanium grating, attracting the attention of several nearby spacecraft technicians. A liaison officer met him inside the corridor entrance.
"Good evening, sergeant. Welcome to Galleon Station." The man peered up at the looming Heines, suddenly feeling slightly intimidated. The man was huge, built like a pro boxer, and the scars that peeked from under the camouflage cap only served to reinforce the man's sinister disposition. This was not a nice person.
"I...if you will follow, me, the general is waiting for you." The officer turned and walked down the corridor, beckoning for Heines to follow.
They proceeded to an elevator, which took them a kilometer into the belly of the Section Command Headquarters.
The liaison left the sergeant in front of a set of double oak doors. The man returned to his desk, and some urgent paperwork. The slightly bewildered Heines left his bag by the liaison's desk and stepped up to the doors. The last five days had been an extremely puzzling affair. The transport that had delivered the replacement drill sergeant had orders to take him to the North American space command center. From there, he had been escorted to an ONI Prowler vessel and promptly put in cryogenic suspended animation. When he was awoken, he was in deep space, and the prowler was approaching a massive space station.
Through these doors is the answer to this little adventure. He took a moment to square his shoulders, and edged closer to the doors, which slid open for him. He stepped inside, and found himself in a conference room. A general was sitting at the head of a long table, with an admiral on one side. The were sifting through some documents, and looked up as he entered and stood to attention.
"At ease, sergeant" the general gestured at the seat in front of Heines. "Please, sit"
The sergeant remained standing. "If I may, sir, I'll stand. I've been on my ass for the last few days."
The general nodded acquiescence and got down to business. "You no doubt are wondering why you are here, and why unusual method of transport."
Heines said nothing.
"First off, why don't we tell you exactly where here is." The general leaned back as the lights dimmed and the holoprojector warmed up, displaying a model of the galaxy. "Galleon Station was assigned to Section Three command of combat operations." An arm of the galaxy was highlighted, and Heines noted that it was the arm adjacent to the one containing the solar system. "Unfortunately, we took some moderate damage in a surprise Covenant assault and had to jump to deep space to effect repairs. When repairs are complete, we will jump back, and you will be coming with us. Before the assault, a recon flight found something most intriguing."
The image of the galaxy blurred and disappeared, and the image of a solar system took its place. Seven planets, mostly gas giants. A single planet, however, stood out. A white planet. The image focused on the planet, which seemed to follow no orbit.
The Admiral cleared his throat with a rumble and took over the briefing. "Gamma Epsilon System. A flight of prowlers entered the system on its patrol run. Section Three Command is new in this area and we are currently engaged in mapping previously unexplored systems and searching for any signs of the Covenant. Part of Operation: Absolution."
Heines nodded, familiar with the operation. After the fumbled Covenant attack on earth, a desperate push was made back against the enemy lines in an effort to regain control of Sol System. The Covenant advance was stonewalled and slowly pushed back, which gave the Admiralty time to launch several counterattacks and give humanity time to regroup and regain control. After a stable base of protected systems was formed, Command launched Operation: Absolution, a program to scour the solar system for Covenant outposts and uninhabited worlds for colonization. So far the operation was a stunning success, yielding dozens of planets ready for human colonization, and hundreds of Covenant outposts destroyed. The UNSC had gotten the ground and strategic positioning it needed to rebuild its power base.
The Admiral cleared his voice again and continued. "The recon flight noticed this planet," the white planet zoomed into focus and rough jagged mountains came into view. "Which really cannot be classified as a planet at all. It follows no apparent solar orbit. ...It's just...well, floating around." The admiral pushed his glasses up farther on his nose. "We believe it may be artificial. Of Forerunner construction. Sergeant Heines, this planet needs to be explored and its secrets found."
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