(I do apologize for not being able to post consistently, my life almost came to an abrupt end of October 4th, car accident via T-Bone.)
The chapter begins with the cool crisp air of the Ark brushing by, whispering and rustling the leaves of trees and plants. The footfalls of the marines thumped heavily as they and the UNSC personnel swiftly approached the Mastodon. The quiet comms of the ODSTs kept the tension low before arriving.
The voice of the Spartan cut through the tension, voice low while he observed his surroundings, the glimmer of his helmet-mounted flashlight illuminating parts of the forest.
"Everyone on, we're leaving."
The doors of the Mastodon opened, letting Milo and Anders to climb on first. His eyes drooped for a moment before a yawn escaped, a high pitched sound that earned a glance from the nearby ODSTs.
"A-ah.... w-well, t-today was fun."
Milo hummed adjusting his glasses before taking a seat. Anders and Finch sat beside him, inclining their heads. Anders spoke first, her tone dry while her brows seemed to unfurl.
"I suppose 'fun' is one word for what today was... we managed to aquire a fair amount of information to report on."
Finch nodded just as the last of the team climbed into the Mastodon, that same floral scent drifted through the air, barely noticeable for all but the Spartan and the paranoid ONI agent.
"Yeah... let's hope Captain Cutter calls this a success instead of another ONI headache."
That earned a quiet giggle from Milo, shoulders softly trembling before a hand shot to his lips in an attempt to quiet himself, the other adjusting his glasses. Finch spared a single glare, half hearted.
Her expression slowly relaxed, softening even. Her dagger-like gaze softened, becoming unexpectedly tender.
"Oh? I didn't know you could make that kind of expression Agent."
Finch shot a glare to the smirking Professor beside her, a scoff escaped her before she could supress it, a tint of pink rising to her cheeks.
"Oh please."
Then the rumble of the Mastodons engines began, a low and heavy vibration that shook it's passengers.
Spartan Jerome closed the door, shouldering the rifle, the click of his safety echoed.
"S-so.. u-um... what do you guys think about the information aquired? It's... amazing, b-but."
Anders spared a glance, her smugness vanishing.
"Yeah, the map of the Ark, it had our, and banished assets listed, as well as.. whatever we're dealing with."
Finch brought a hand to her chin, her gaze returning to their normal dagger shape. A slow exhale escaped after.
"What we do know is that they are not like anything we've ever seen, tech akin to the forerunners, bodies and physiology unlike we've ever seen and munitions vastly different to banished and covenant yet immensely similar to the Forerunners and the Prometheans.... when we return I'll make a report to the Captain."
"Sh-shouldn't we try investigating the other locations the map revealed?"
The eyes of everyone present landed on the young researcher, his glasses sliding down before being removed by him, his hands lowering and holding onto the hem of his jacket.
"Th-the only way to learn more is to take chances, nothing v-ventured-"
Anders finished it for him, a small quirk of her lips rising.
"Nothing gained... you are right Milo, an investigation is needed... however we have plenty of information acquired from this outing. I think we should take time to debrief and learn what we can before going on another expedition."
His eyes widened glowing brightly with the twitching of his lips, his cheeks warming with color while his head tilted to the side.
Then with an easy jerk the Mastodon began to move, shaking and rumbling into the forest of thr Ark. The floral scent dissipated but never gone, like a thought at the back of the mind, but never forgotten.
------
Minutes turned into an hour, the rolling of the Mastodon continued its slow trek toward Theta Base, it's rumbling echo of the engines a steady and consistent calm. The light of the Base's floodlights illuminated the Ark's surface in the distance, it was accompanied by the distant echo of comms and shifting of heavy machinery.
The Agent leaned forward, hands rested on her knees as the vehicle came to a slow halt. The spartan rose to his feet and opened the door, Anders followed while dusting off her shoulder.
"We're back... let's get that report going, the quicker we do the quicker we can get back to investigating."
One by one the ODSTs lept off, flashlights illuminating the immediate area, Milo hoppped off after. He let out an exhale upon touching the grass.
"Ah, th-there.... y-yes let's get going."
Finch and Anders turned to Milo as he jogged over, fiddling with the hem of his jacket. Then he stopped mid step, turning his head toward the Mastodon's rear. The agent's gaze sharpened, her jaw tight.
"Milo, what do you see."
Milo said nothing, reaching up to adjust his glasses. Finch approached, steps muffled by the grass below. By the time she stood beside him her eyes fell on what caught Milo's attention.
A handprint on the Mastodon's rear fender, flickering, glimmering with various ever shifting sparkles like the stars above, the Agent fell silent before taking a slow inhale through the nose... and there it was... floral, Fragrant... yet pungent.
Her hand twitched to the holstered pistol on her hip moments before her gaze darted to the Arks darkened ground beyond the base's floodlights.
"Well then.... seems we were followed...."
Anders approached, observing the handprint that seemed to shift colors.
"Definitely consistent with what we've been seeing so far. Milo, think you can-"
She was cut off when Milo put on some gloves and pulled out a Vial for sampling before leaning toward the handprint.
"A-already on it.."
Milo gently scraped the lip of the vial against the handprint, acquiring the sample. He glanced over to the others, his expression shifting, brows furrowing with a slight jut of his lower lip.
"H-how were they able to do this... do you think th-they were on top of the mastodon, perhaps behind it?"
Finch approached, her gait slow while her eyes observed the handprint.
"Perhaps, but this poses a security risk. Milo, cap the sample and get inside. Spartan, I want a double sweep of the immediate area."
Milo nodded, his bangs falling infront of his eyes. He reached up and pulled it back behind his ear and adjusted his glasses.
"I-ill see you inside Mom- I-i m-mean finch."
The young Doctor walked off, with the ODSTs and Anders behind.
-------------
Several minutes passed and the group had entered the Observatory module's research laboratory, the signature scent of sanitization and ozone filled the room. Milo had taken a seat the sample already beneath a Microscope.
The older Professor slid into a chair beside him, her gaze maintaining focus on the slide now holding the sample.
The microscope's light switched on, illuminating the sample with multi-colored hues of pastel and opalescent blues. Milo leaned forward his off eye closing while he rested on the microscope.
"There it is, th-the same activity as the previous sample. Pluripotent and Totipotent Metacell activity."
He began before his head lifted to face Anders, scooting over so she can see the sample.
"N-now that we're mostly positive that what we're dealing with isn't flood, d-do you think we'll be able to acquire more samples in the future?"
Anders scootched over, eyes hovering over the lens.
"It's a gurantee, all it is, it's a matter of 'when', not if. Though if I'm honest, those glyphs were much more interesting."
Milo's eyes seemed to glow as he reached for his satchel, unzipping it with a quick motion and revealed the video camera from before. His movements jittery with excitement,
"H-here, let's get this set up. Maybe we can get the cipher kickstarted."
The Professor rose, her grin widening.
"Let's get started."
Milo leaned over to the Console and plugged in the data chip the Camera had. With a few quick fingers a hologram arrived with an album of videos ready to be analyzed. The young doctor adjusted his glasses, lips slightly parted while the reflection of the hologram illuminated his coat.
Anders rose a brow and leaned forward, her chin resting on her knuckles.
"Hey Milo."
A quick gasp arose, his head darted to her.
"Y-yes?"
Her lips nearly quirked further up.
"I'm curious, how did you get assigned to the ARK. Considering your mom is a ONI agent."
Her eyes narrowed into dry daggers. Milo's eyes widened, cheeks pinkening.
"O-oh, u-um its nothing important r-really."
Anders' gaze hardened, her lips widening. She knew something juicy was present, but just how juicy was something she wasn't prepared for.
"O-ok... u-um."
He paused leaning over to Ander, his voice dropping into a near whisper, his expression changing to something akin to seriousness, or as serious as he can.
"T-technically i-i-i'm not allowed to tell you. B-but.. u-um."
Milo paused and Anders gaze shifted from amusement to something more serious.
'ONI was hiding something'
"I-im an unofficial ONI s-section 3 Xenobiology specialist, officially attached to Trent and the Dauntless. Unofficially i-im here to study the Xenobiological mysteries occurring on the ARK."
Anders blinked, once... twice... thrice...
"Un... unofficial?"
Milo nodded.
"When did ONI pick you up?"
Milo's cheeks warmed until the tips of his ears grew pink. His lips moved and a soft murmur escaped.
"U-um... u-um m-maybe... s-seventy-two hours a-ago? Th-they kinda just gave me an envelope with my salary and said good luck."
Anders' eyes widened.
'ONI abducted a civilian specialist and threw it at the largest Forerunner installation ever discovered'
She fell silent for a moment, a long exasperated exhale escaped the professor, her hands rose and rubbed the palms against her eyes.
"The top secret Xenobiology department of ONI threw a literal child at a forerunner installation and thought this was a good idea."
Milo shrunk a bit.
"S-sorry."
Anders glared at Milo.
"It's not your fault, it's ONI, they can't do anything good without lacing crimes against humanity on it."
She sneered, an incredulous expression manifesting on her face.
"They're not going to give a kid ice cream without maybe lacing it with cyanide and placing a tracking chip in the cone."
Milo shot a hand to his lips while his shoulders began to tremble, his eyes closing.
"I-i mean. Th-that would definitely be something ONI would do."
The professor rubbed her eyes again, her exasperation turning into fondness.
"At the very least this explains the 'why' and 'how' you're here and why you're look like a fish out of water."
The younger doctor blushed, averting her incredulous gaze.
"Y-yeah... e-even my mom was surprised wh-when she saw me."
Anders blinked at the additional bombshell.
"ONI didn't tell Agent Finch?"
Milo shook his head.
"Oh my God this gets worse!"
She whispered incredulously, making Milo's shoulders tremble harder, a quiet high pitched sound escaping him.
"Y-yeah... n-now you know why I'm s-so nervous all the time."
Anders took a breath, her gaze landing on Milo's persistent bangs over his eyes.
"You're doing just fine for an ONI abducted Doctor."
Milo giggled once more.
"W-we should p-probably g-get the cipher started, I'd like to see the other 'alien' sites"
Anders agreed, her attention flowing to the Hologram.