Noble 7

"Be advised: Kilo 3-3, your current LZ is too hot."

"Roger that," Carter said. "Dot, standby to receive and respond."

Although the seven Spartans had their heads in the game, they couldn't ignore the sheer beauty of the environment around them. The sunlight glinting off the sparkling Esposz sea below, the majestic mountain ranges taking up the background, and the ancient Babd Catha ice shelf, one of Reach's oldest known landmarks. It was all absolutely breathtaking. Too bad they weren't here to sightsee.

Noble Team's Falcon eventually passed the last of a series of small rock formations that were jutting up out of the water. With them no longer obstructing the view, all of Noble could see a Covenant warship sitting in plain sight, deploying Phantom and Spirit dropships and firing down on the ONI base below.

"Yes Commander," the team's field AI responded. "Coordinates received. Initiate immediate course correction."

Auntie Dot continued by briefing the team, "The Office of Naval Intelligence Sword Base is currently under siege by a corvette-class Covenant vessel. Due to the sensitive nature of this facility, use of orbital rounds has been, for the moment, prohibited. Regrettably, my efforts to obtain relevant data on enemy forces has been unsuccessful. However current defensive forces are insufficient. ONI has requested Noble Team's direct intervention to help secure Sword Base."

Carter addressed the team as the Falcon appeared over Sword Base's courtyard a few moments later.

"Alright people, we're stuck with that ship for the time being," Carter explained, looking at the six Spartans in front of him as though deciding which chess pieces he ought to move and to where. "Let's focus on the hostile infantry, give those troopers a hand. Kat, Six, you're out here. Jorge, Emile, you're next. Get prepped."

Seven noted that he broke the team up into duos, and briefly wondered where his place would be as a medic in all this. Probably something behind the scenes, helping with the wounded. He wasn't afraid of battle, but he wouldn't mind healing for a change. Or perhaps protecting the ones doing the healing and the saving and such. Those types often had strong convictions regarding their philosophies on life, but it's incredibly inconvenient to be a pacifist when one's life is threatened.

The baby blue Spartan with the prosthetic arm cocked her pistol, looked to the pink one, and yelled, "Let's move Lieutenant!"

In response, the pink Spartan stood up with her DMR ready in one hand and grabbed a handhold with the other. Seconds later, the Falcon flew low to the ground and the two hopped out. It was back at its original altitude just as fast and en route to their next destination. Carter turned to Jorge and Emile.

"Kat and Six are going to be working with ONI Sword control on this one. You both will report to me."

"Mission, sir?" Emile asked.

"Major Burke and Whiskey-One are outside the Renewed Hope emergency hospital fighting the Covenant while troopers and local law enforcement evacuate the civilians. We're headed there now to relieve and retrieve him, and you two are going to finish what they started."

"Which is?" Jorge asked.

Carter elaborated, "Burke and his team held the Covenant off, you two are going to drive them back and destroy wherever it is that they've set up."

"Solid copy."

"Understood."

The sprawling four story hospital soon came into view. A Pelican had just flown away from it, probably full of civilians, and another one arrived and landed on its rooftop helipad. A company sized gathering of Reach Army troopers trotted out of the Pelican's open troop bay, onto the roof, and down into the building. Out in front of the hospital on the ground floor, a helmeted soldier was standing around with a squad of orange helmet-striped ODSTs. Noble's Falcon lowered and landed close by.

"Well, well, well. Long time, no see," the soldier commented in friendly sarcasm as he finally walked away from the ODSTs and approached the metal bird.

Seven didn't know the guy personally, but he recognized that half helmet and dazzling white smile from way back when he was a kid, on posters and footage and pretty much anything ONI sold to the public to assure them that the good guys were indeed winning. Despite all their fluff, Major Burke truly was the real deal. Way before the days of the upgraded serum and armored suits, Burke had been the ORION Project's most celebrated super soldier. Hands down.

Most of the other Spartan Is were put back into circulation with the general population, but not Burke. Colonel Holland had taken a special interest in him. The Major's overly publicized career didn't exactly jibe with ONI's notoriously secretive agendas, and his handlers were only too eager to be rid of him once the Spartan IIs were actively in service, so Holland happily took Burke off their hands. He regularly deployed him as a first response infiltration unit, separate from but often working in conjunction with Noble Team. Burke even operated with the same AI unit: Auntie Dot.

Jorge and Emile climbed out and both acknowledged him like old friends as they passed. He reminded them to kick some ass. Seven noticed that he wore the standard Army trooper's combat attire, but still sported his custom Mjolnir powered assault helmet. It was a modified security variant, with the mouth covering that normally went underneath the visor completely removed. Burke climbed into the Falcon and took his helmet off, revealing a suntanned complexion and mostly bald head. What remained of his orange-red hair was a short mohawk.

He patted Jun's shoulder as he climbed aboard and nodded to Carter once he sat down.

When he looked at the green Spartan II he'd sat next to, he said, "You must be Seven."

"Eh, that's what they call me," Seven replied with a shrug as the Falcon flew back into the air.