Cyberpunk: Spartan Walker

0510 hours, September 13, 2552, military calendar (corrected date)

In the slip space, aboard the combination ship Gettysburg-Infinite Justice.

All Spartans and some Helltroopers were ordered to report to the Officers' Club - Rebecca was specially invited by General Whitcomb, so she happily went. Normally, that's the sergeant's restricted area. Of course, their environment has not been normal for a long time.

There was a huge oak table in the Gettysburg's officers' club. Hundreds of burnt grooves were left there because cigarettes were carelessly placed on the table while smoking. There was a counter with many wine bottles with broken chips stuck on them, filled with colorful wine. The walls inlaid with walnut panels have been polished to a high shine, and gold-rimmed blue flags are hung along the walls. In addition, gold and silver medals for bravery and prowess in battle are hung;

Photos of senior officers and successive captains of the Gettysburg also hang there. What interests Rebecca the most is the picture of the capture of the bridge made by imitating the daguerreotype. The picture shows: soldiers wearing khaki patchwork clothes are seizing a bridge with only iron cables left, and the shell guns in their hands are risking the fire. Flames and sporadic wooden boards were burned, and the soldiers moved forward with firm faces.

General Whitcomb and Sergeant Johnson entered the room, followed by Rebecca. The Spartans who had been waiting for a long time stood at attention with a snap. Sir is here! the Master Chief shouted, and they raised their hands in salute at the same time.

Rebecca smiled triumphantly, which felt like a salute, so she straightened her back even more.

Relax, General Whitcomb said. Please sit down.

The Chief took a step forward. With all due respect, these seats cannot bear the weight of our equipment, General.

Of course. The general said, Okay, you can do whatever you want. This is not a formal meeting. He snorted, I just want to see who is alive on the ship. He looked towards the open door of the officers' club. , Colonel Price will be arriving shortly. He is investigating the location of Corporal Locklear's accident.

Rebecca's smile fell. She had thought that the idiot, although a little reckless, was still very sane - until he died suddenly and senselessly.

The holographic display on the counter activated in a flash, and Cortana's slender body appeared. Several broken chips on the display table refracted part of the light, so her image was distorted. It seemed that half of the parts were fused with each other, and the refracted arc of light was cast on the wall.

Sergeant Johnson walked over to the counter and cleared the display table with a bang.

Thank you, Sergeant, Cortana said, looking up and down as she regained her normal shape.

You're welcome, he replied with a grin.

Cortana faced the General. Sir, she said, you will be pleased to hear that I have not detected any signals, residual radiation, or erratic enemy ships. This is exactly what you would expect from a normal slipspace flight.

General Whitcomb nodded, sighed, and slowly sat down in a leather-backed chair in front of the table. Well, that's a blessing.

And there is evidence that Dr. Halsey's crystal was indeed destroyed. Tommy walked in and said. He stopped and closed the door behind him.

Tommy laid a small plastic bag flat on the table and walked into the group of Spartans. I found Corporal Locklear right where Cortana said: B deck, medical supplies storage. room. Electrical overloading at the scene indicated that high-energy radiation had occurred and was the cause of the burns on Corporal's body.

After a pause, he continued: If this means anything, it is that he died suddenly. And these, he tapped the plastic bag on the table, are the crystal fragments I found at the scene. At first glance they appear to have exactly the same characteristics as the crystal found on Reach, he shook his head, but the ones I found are only part of the entire crystal. So, unless it turned into powder and left no trace - - and this fact is inconsistent with the larger fragments at the site - otherwise the rest of the crystal must be somewhere else.

Cortana's foot tapped the display table and she raised an eyebrow. If the radiation spike detected before our jump was related to the destruction of Dr. Halsey's crystal, she said, then there's another The explanation is for reference. Because the interval between the explosion and the sudden radiation was only 47 milliseconds, and the crystal has the characteristics of distorting time and space, the lost fragments may have been 'squeezed' out of the spacecraft and fell into the slip space.

Tommy asked with some disbelief: You mean, how many pieces of the most significant scientific discovery in human history-- He nodded toward the outside of the Gettysburg's bulkhead, fell into the slip space and disappeared. ?”

Yes. Cortana answered. She shrugged, I'm sorry, Colonel.

At least the Covenant can never get it again, General Whitcomb said. He flicked the plastic bag with his thick fingers, Or if they could get it, all they'd find would be a bunch of scraps of little use.

I wish I knew why Locklear did what he did, Tommy said.

Everyone fell silent. John and the other Phase II Spartans shifted uncomfortably in their heavy Mjolnir armor.

Sergeant Johnson cleared his throat, This guy is a little upset. He has been through so many storms, and that kind of reaction should be expected. But he is a hell paratrooper - as strong as steel nails, and sharper than ever. It's twice that, and taking hits is a regular occurrence. He's indestructible. He's got to have a reason for doing it.

There's no doubt about it, Dr. Halsey, Tommy said, narrowing his eyes. She must have arranged this.

Second. No one knows why Dr. Halsey asked Locklear to destroy the crystal. Captain Noble said, This is consistent with her style on Reach.

John wants to defend Dr. Halsey, but he restrains himself from arguing with Tommy in public. Yes, her behavior is baffling: she sneaks away with Kelly, leaves them when they need her most, and delivers alien artifacts to Locklear. However, John still wanted to believe her. Maybe everything she does is done with the greater good in mind.

Let's not dwell on this, the general said. I don't want anyone's opinion to be affected by the many 'whys' and 'what ifs' we have to ask about the current situation. Let's discuss it when we get back. He said with a look from the corner of his eye. He glanced at the counter with his peripheral vision and smacked his lips subconsciously, It should be very peaceful to sail from here to the earth. We can finally relax.