Canon: Halo

[unsc_rabbit]

Glad to be back in action, sir. May I recommend reading through my personnel files again to ensure full compatibility, sir?

Just point me at the action and I'll be there.

Thank you for the opportunity to serve.

Comments

[masterchief]

087.

[This sure is an acknowledging nod.]

[unsc_rabbit]

Sir. [ She pulls two fingers across her faceplate; the Spartan Smile ] Good to see you.

[masterchief]

[Smiling always was Kelly's thing. Good to see some things never change.

He doesn't return the gesture, but the tension eases across his shoulders a little bit.]

Likewise, Petty Officer. What's your status?

[unsc_rabbit]

[ And being a good CO was always John's. Still, it's good to see him relax around her. There weren't many of their siblings left after all. ]

Fully combat ready, sir. Awaiting orders.

[masterchief]

[Far too few. But they went down fighting, every one. That's something they can all be proud of.

He nods, but only once.]

Expecting deployment?

[unsc_rabbit]

[ Proud of, yes. But you never get used to the loss. You carry on. But it never gets easier. ]

Waiting on the higher ups, sir. They've just reopened my file to get a feel for how we'll work together.

[masterchief]

['Theirs not to reason why, Theirs but to do and die.' He's hardly poetic, though the parallels are appropriate enough.]

Hm.

[It's a quiet noise of consideration, and he doesn't speak for a moment. Then,]

Good hunting.

[It's never 'good luck' with them. But the sentiment is similar enough, between comrades.]

[unsc_rabbit]

[ They were the last line of defense after all. Their mission was to protect, at all costs. ]

And to you, sir.

[ They trained together almost every day of their lives, he doesn't need to say it. She already knows. ]

Hope our parameters run parallel, we're more efficient as a team than singly.

[masterchief]

[Beneath the faceplate, his jaw tightens. It's the barest sign of frustration.]

I've been taken off active duty, Petty Officer.

[unsc_rabbit]

[ She doesn't have to see his face to how that must make him feel. ]

Any reasons cited?

[masterchief]

[Unbidden, he thinks about Sam. About having him back on the team for those few short months. John knew he'd changed from the time he was a teenager, but he'd never taken a step back to realize how much until Sam. Fourteen was a far cry from forty. Fourteen was a far cry from the bloodiest years of the war, the ones that had shaped them all.

Samuel was his brother. But he was hers, too.]

Game wasn't a good fit. That was over a year ago.

[There's a beat, barely perceptible.]

034 was stationed with me.

[unsc_rabbit]

[ Kelly had thought about Sam everytime they'd lost another. He'd been the first of them to go down in combat all those years ago. If she'd had the experience then that she had now, would she have been able to save him? Stop him from getting hit? ]

Makes you wonder at the innocence of these 'muns' doesn't it? That they can sit and 'play' at our lives.

[ She freezes, eyes wide for a moment behind her visor. ]

Sam? How- Was he alright?

[masterchief]

[Come on, Kelly, that's John's job. Wondering at the what ifs.]

They're harmless. Nothing we haven't seen before.

[An old song and dance, where they're concerned. His words are confident, however, and meant to bolster. Chin up, soldier.]

He was.

['I don't remember being that young'. Simple words. Too much. He's never been the type to divulge his feelings. He'd still considered Sam a soldier at fourteen, but-- it was so much easier to see him also as a child. They'd gotten in more than one fight about it, too. Which, given their training was little more than terse disagreement.]

I was taller.

[One of those brief, rare flashes of desert-dry humour.]

[unsc_rabbit]

[ Please, she's always been faster than you, bro.

Oblivious would be more accurate.

[ She's a Spartan. There isn't room for sadness or regret in her thought process. ]

Good.

[ They had never been young. Once the Chief got a hold of them, they were soldiers, adults. The two of them were the only ones who would disagree about anything out of all their siblings. Kelly suspected it was because they were so underneath it all. ]

Was he full grown?

[ A slight smirk behind her visor. ]

[noblefive]

Kelly.

[And here's a hulking figure you probably don't expect.]

[unsc_rabbit]

[ O hai there, bro. Say, didn't you die back there on Reach? Not that she isn't glad to see you or anything. ]

Jorge? [ Straightens, remembering his rank. Hell, he outranks John. ] Sir. It's good to see you, sir.

[noblefive]

[Screw ranks. He's just gonna walk on up and grab you in a hug, Kelly.]

Less of the sir. We're technically not on duty.

[unsc_rabbit]

[ Jorge always was a hugger. Still, it isn't unpleasant, even if the clank of their armour is slightly incongruous. She returns the hug easily. ]

It's been a long time, Jorge.

[noblefive]

[Sam was always the biggest, with Jorge not that too far from it. He was always the more touchy-feely of the group, though.]

Too long. Far too long. How've you been?

[Of course, just because he was the more huggy one doesn't make him any less dangerous.]

[unsc_rabbit]

[ Not that Kelly had a problem with that. If you couldn't hug your brother who could you hug? ]

Nothing to report really. You know how it is, hit the bastards whenever we can, wherever we can.

[ She kind of also managed to collapse a few major organs and get trapped in a shield world. But we don't need to talk about that, do we? ]

[noblefive]

As hard as we can.

[He's just going to pull on back and look at her.]

Nothing to report, huh? I'll bet.

[He might not know what's going on, but you're a SPARTAN, Kelly. There's always something to report.]

[unsc_rabbit]

Oohrah. [ Hey, she can do the dry humour just as well as John. ]

Well, nothing beyond the norm.

[ Can you feel that tiny little smirk she's giving you through her helmet, Jorge? Can you? ]

[noblefive]

[Always, Kelly. Always.]

What is normal?

[unsc_rabbit]

[ Good then. Wouldn't want you to think she isn't teasing you or anything. ]

Hit them hard, take them out. Whatever the costs. Who needs two whole lungs anyway?

[ Not her, nossir. She did just fine with just one. And like blood in your liver is totally cool okay? ]

[noblefive]

Isn't the armour supposed to stop that from happening?

[Says Mr. torn-apart-by-a-singularity]

[unsc_rabbit]

Well, bailing from a Pelican that just barely entered the atmosphere tends to do that to you.

[ Well, you win on that score. She just fell down a bit. ]

[noblefive]

I'd ask Noble Six about that. They seem to have good methods of dealing with drops like that.

[unsc_rabbit]

Noble Six?

/all the late. I'm sorry!

[noblefive]

My team-mate. Last I saw, I'd just tossed 'em outta a covvie carrier.

Quite alright, Spartans have busy lives after all. xD

[unsc_rabbit]

[ A pause. She'd never gotten all the details of Noble Team's mission, but she knew Jorge was gone. And it sure sounded like how he'd go out. ] You get a lot of the sons of bitches?

[noblefive]

Blew up a super-carrier. I don't know anyone else who's managed that.

[unsc_rabbit]

Well, that's a fair trade then. [ Almost. They've already lost too many Spartans, damn it. ]

[noblefive]

You're seriously comparing me to two Covenant space-ships?

[He's totally grinning under his helmet]

I'm worth an entire fleet, Kelly.

[unsc_rabbit]

Hah. Well you're gonna have to come in so we can blow the rest of the suckers out of the sky then.

[ Oh she knows, she's grinning too. STOP BEING FUNNY, JORGE. IT'S AGAINST PROCEDURE. ]

[noblefive]

[Screw proceedure. If anyone wants to complain, they can do it to his 7'8" high face.]

Sure. You figured out how to bring people back from the dead yet? Afterlife gets kinda boring.

[unsc_rabbit]

[ That'll be fun to watch. Kelly will just be standing off to the side with the stepladder. She's nothing if nor helpful. ]

Well I heard there was this one kid to punched the walls of the universe so hard it spat him back out. Why don't you give it a try? If a kid could do it, should be a cakewalk.

[noblefive]

I don't suppose you know where the nearest wall of reality is, then?

[unsc_rabbit]

You're not being very helpful.

[noblefive]

And since when did you need help?

[unsc_rabbit]

Linda's the loner. A rabbit's dead without her team backing her up.

[noblefive]

[If Kelly's the rabbit of the team, that makes Jorge the approximation of a bear. Only 10x smart and fierce.]

You've got a point.

[unsc_rabbit]

[ Well that's why he always got all the biggest toys isn't it?]

All this and brains too. Looks like Dr. Halsey did something right.

[noblefive]

[Snores like one, too. Bet that's one thing you don't miss]

Well, I'll say one thing. I probably wouldn't be as smart as this without her.

[unsc_rabbit]

[ As if they'd ever been safe enough for them to sleep deep enough for him to snore. Not since boot, Jorge. But yeah, your snoring can make the earth shake. ]

Or Déja. Always hated advanced calculus though.

[noblefive]

[There's always been the odd occasion between missions. And he's never heard anyone complain.]

It was always History and Political Science for me.

[unsc_rabbit]

[ Probably because when they were safe enough everyone would sleep like the dead. ]

Those were fun. Not immediately applicable. But you can't tell me you didn't love hearing about all those wars, learning all the stratagems,

[noblefive]

I suppose the strategems were worth it, but listening to how everyone fucked it up wasn't.