[Halo] New! San Angeles RPG

[Hells Sniper]

Jacob sat there, listening to Nighthawk. Most of it made sense. His entire operation on Mars, the random events with random "ONI operatives." And all of this. The data, DARK Facility, Kolya, Spender, Black Team, the Spartans. It all added up, and the key to everything working out sat in his pocket. Jacob's hand reached to his pocket, he pulled out the data chip and set it in his hand. He looked at Tye, then at Frost, their faces dormant, the decision laid to him. Jacob didn't want to see them die, nor his friends on the planet, and definitely not his family. Abigail, his wife, living on Earth, with his two children. Junior and Heather, barely three by now. He thought of them, their faces, their loving touch, how he longed to see them again. How he longed to hold his children in his arms and smile at them. He thought of them, and began to retrace his steps. His dad and mom, still living peacefully on Reach, far away from the wars difficulty, and surely, the farm was booming. Their crop output must have been up a few dozen percent. His dad would have to hire new workers and that fresh scent of his home came back to him. His mom would surely be cooking up the favorites after a long day of work, some fresh, wild Moa on a plate of greens. He smiled, thinking of how he would send his parents out to see their grandchildren on his next leave. Even his brother came to mind, Dallas, someone he hadn't seen in a few years. Yet, someone he had always come to love. He thought of everyone he ever knew, all of his friends came to mind. Texas, Tiffany, even Pinestar, his first love, and all the others from his ODST training. The Trust would hunt these people down, starting with his friends and moving to his children and wife. Jacob winced, he could never allow this to happen. Jacob sighed, he was obviously deep in thought, and every second he continued thinking, he wasted even more time. Jacob: Captain, Commander... Jacob looked at Frost and Tye. Jacob: Do what you will with me, but this isn't to save my ass. Jacob looked at Nighthawk and put his hand out, the datachip laid in his palm. Jacob: It's to save all of our asses... Jacob nodded. Jacob: I would rather die, than see anyone else die in my stead. The data is yours Nighthawk. I just hope ONI won't execute me before I can see it come to use.

[Naked Crook]

Nighthawk shook his head. Nighthawk: Trust me Jacob...I know what I am doing. Nighthawk took the chip, and held it in his hand. Nighthawk: You took this from a DARK facility. Chances are that all of the intel on this data chip is encrypted. It is standard procedure. It is to prevent unauthorized operators from downloading information. There are ciphers that are required to decrypt this information for use. Even though I have the physical medium that the data is stored on, I cannot make use of it until it is decrypted. Don't worry though...I made it good practice to collect most, if not all, of the ciphers used by ONI. I should have this opened in a matter of minutes. Nighthawk gestured his head, instructing everyone to follow him. Nighthawk: Come on...I'll explain what I am going to do. Nighthawk turned, and walked out the same way he came in. Tye, Jennifer, Jacob, and Anaconda were in tow. Nighthawk: I am willing to bet credits that once The Trust gets their hands on this information, it is going to be destroyed. While it will no doubt be possible to get another copy of this information from another DARK facility...The Trust will want to take this information out of this arena, and make sure that we never get our hands on it. They want to keep this intel from me and Anaconda. Nighthawk paused. Nighthawk: I plan on copying this information. Once I make a copy...Jacob...you will surrender the original to Kolya, you will deliver the copy to whoever you need to deliver it to, and I... Nighthawk paused. Nighthawk: I am just being a good Samaritan who accidentally keeps a copy for himself that none of you will know about... Nighthawk led everyone outside, back towards his Vulture. Nighthawk: Everyone wins...nobody dies...yet.

[Hells Sniper]

Jacob followed Nighthawk. He didn't really like what he was hearing, and he didn't really like the situation at all. But, as long as Frost and Tye were in tow...so was he. Jacob: But, then...why would ONI want the data in the first place? Jacob shook his head. Jacob: What was the point of the goddamn mission!?

[Naked Crook]

Nighthawk stopped. He turned to Jacob. He then shook his head. Nighthawk: I don't know. I have no idea who authorized this mission. I doubt anyone in The Trust gave the green light to the mission...because they want this intel gone. They have too much to loose. It does not make sense for them to send you to retrieve information, when they could of done it themselves. They wouldn't even mention you, or consider you, because you are not part of their inner circle. They would of sent Black Team, or Kolya, to do this mission. They DID send Kolya, but you beat him to it. Nighthawk paused. Nighthawk: Whoever flaggged you for this mission...did this for the right reasons, not the wrong ones. Someone knew the value of this information. On top of that...someone knew that this intel could be found at a DARK facility. Whoever gave you this mission...may very well have up to date information on current events. That suggest close proximity of the origin. Nighthawk thought for a moment. Nighthawk: Be very specific with your next answer Jacob; when did you get this assignment? I need to know every detail, as accurately as you can recall it.

[Hells Sniper]

Jacob shrugged. Jacob: It wasn't like big news or anything. It was right after White River fell...after we escaped from Regional HQ Bravo and regrouped at airfield Mayweather. Jacob paused. Jacob: After Harrison get in contact with all of us again, he gave us all a fresh batch of orders in the command tent.

[Naked Crook]

Nighthawk thought for a moment. He then shook his head. Nighthawk: Very odd. This suggests that Harrison got the order from someone, and he relayed them to you. Nighthawk paused. He continued thinking. Tyber: Well, for now, that does not matter. As long as we get this information back to the Vice-Admiral...we should be in the clear. If we are certain that Harrison got his orders from a legit officer, then that is all we need. As long as the right people have this...we should be able to toss a wrench at "The Trust"...whoever those guys are. Nighthawk: Agreed. Nighthawk turned and continued walking towards his Vulture. Anaconda, on the other hand, stopped, and took a look at the Phnatom that had been landed further down the airstrip. He recognized the Phantom, as he had seen it before. He could recognize the unique red and gold trimmings on the Phantom. Anaconda then looked forward and again continued walking forward. Nighthawk walked into the cockpit of his Vulture, and placed the datachip into the dashboard of the Vulture. Nighthawk: First off...we gotta see if this thing can be read. Nighthawk entered in a few commands on a small control panel on the dashboard. He ran a quick analysis of the information. Nighthawk: Well...there seems to be a LOT of information on this datachip. In fact...it is nearly at full capacity. Nighthawk looked at the information on the chip. He recognized some of the file integrity. Nighthawk: Jacob...by any chance...was all of this information condensed into an interactive avatar...or was it basic dossiers and intel?

[Hells Sniper]

Jacob nodded. He remembered Ed. Jacob: There was an artificial intelligence at DARK Facility who was helping me along the way...Eternal Darkness. Moments after Jacob spoke, the datachip came to life and all of the systems in the vultures seemed to reset. A few seconds had passed before a hologram of a small orange moon came from the holotable of the vulture. Ed: So...this is the infamous Nighthawk and Anaconda's vulture. Jacob turned around to face the moon, it was Ed. He smiled. Jacob: Ed!? The moon flashed twice. Ed: Acting Agent Sharpmen, wonderful to see you are alive and well. Jacob shook his head. Jacob: I ordered you to destroy yourself? The moon flickered. Ed: I did...in a way. I transferred myself onto the datachip, while leaving only a remnant of myself in the Facility to run the rest of the self-destruct sequence. The moon flickered again. Ed: I am "kicking," as you like to say. Jacob laughed, he couldn't believe Ed was still active. Jacob: Everyone, this is Eternal Darkness, or Ed. He was helping me throughout the mission. Ed: Captain Frost, Commander Vernette. I am glad the comms are not sending false information. It is good to know the two commanders are alive and well. The moon flickered a few times. Ed: And Nighthawk and Anaconda. You're system is very secure, I cannot seem to do any digging. The flickered to green, red, and then back to it's original orange. Ed: Another AI helping you along the way I suppose. Jacob turned back to Nighthawk. Jacob: I only interacted with him for a bit, but...he is the one who can help you sort through all the data...

[Naked Crook]

Nighthawk looked at Ed. He then looked at Jacob, and then back at Ed. Nighthawk: Yes...there is another AI at work. He maintains our cyber warfare. Nighthawk paused. Nighthawk: However...Jacob seems to think you can help us sort through all the information. Normally, I would just do this myself, but time is a factor...so...Ed...let's see how useful you can be. Nighthawk paused. Nighthawk: Ed...do you have the ciphers necessary to decrypt the intel on this storage medium? Meanwhile: Yates and Black Team were still on the Vigorous Inferno. The five men were still together, just roaming the corridors. It was at this moment that Yates had a thought. Yates: Hold on... Black Team stopped. They turned back and looked at Yates. Yates: I have been giving thought to Harrison, and our very poor "professional association" with him. Black 1: What do you have in mind? Yates: I need some privacy... Yates looked around. He could see officers roaming the halls, carrying out their business as usual. Yates also took note of the Marines that had been following the group. Yates looked at Black Team. Yates: Elevator. Yates and Black team walked towards the nearest elevator. Yates pressed the call button, and within a few moments, the door opened. Yates and Black Team stepped in. Yates randomly pressed one of the buttons, and the elevator began to move. After a few moments, he pressed the stop button. Black 2: What are you doing? Yates: I dislike eavesdroppers. Yates pulled out his PDA, and checked it. He double checked the comm frequency for Captain Reynolds. Yates adjusted his comm frequency, and sent a message out on Reynolds private channel. as Yates waited for a response, Black 3 looked around the elevator. He saw noticed a small security camera in the top corner. Black 3: Sir...look. Yates looked up at the camera. Yates: Cut the feed. Black 3 nodded. He drew his automag and took aim at the camera. He pulled the trigger, and destroyed the camera. Yates: Now...now we have privacy. Yates waited for a response from Reynolds.

[Kairu]

The bridge crew of the Mind's Attrition had resumed their stations and previous operations. Reynolds had been sitting in his chair aimlessly staring at the holotable recollecting everything Yates and him had discussed. Reynolds: 'Was this something I'm willing to do? He admitted ONI has done some rather immoral and questionable acts that the UNSC would take too long to delegate and discuss to only deny an action. Then again, the UNSC has been losing this war and ONI sounds like they know what to do.' Before Reynolds could finish his recollection of the talk, a bridge officer interrupted him. Bridge Officer: "Captain, a channel is requesting to be opened to you only. The subject and sender are unknown but it's coming in on the frequency 91.17 Thz." Reynolds recognized the frequency and immediately ordered it to his office. Reynolds entered the office and immediately had the door locked behind him, he sat in his chair and opened the channel from his terminal. Reynolds: "Vice-Admiral, what may I do for you?"

[Hells Sniper]

The hologram of the moon flickered. Ed: I do. I can do just about anything regarding any and all information on this data storage device. The moon flickered again. Ed: However, I cannot begin a transfer to you without prior authorization. Jacob began to speak, he knew what he needed to do. Jacob: Authorization ID: S-J-0-2-8-R-0-6. Authorization Code Charlie-0-6-2-Zulu. Eternal Darkness, you are now to help Nighthawk in the decryption of this data storage device. Jacob waited for a response from Ed, only after a few moments did the moon flicker. Ed: Authorization, cleared. Nighthawk...what are you looking for? Meanwhile: Harrison was still coordinating with his teams on the ground, and preparing for the ODST infiltration missions to begin when he received a call from his security team. Corporal: Admiral, sir. Vice-Admiral Yates and the ODSTs just jumped into an elevator, we-- The marine was interrupted by Murphy. Murphy: Admiral, elevator seven just came to a halt. I have visual that Yates and the ODSTs are inside. Wait... Murphy paused and shook his head. Murphy: One of the ODSTs just shot the camera, I lost visual sir. Harrison cursed under his breath. Harrison: Security teams posted at all decks that elevator seven could stop at. VI, try and get me audio on what's going on inside that elevator. I want anything.