Chapter 97

The attack on Axel had failed, and now Imperial Admiral Xytan 'Jar Wattinree was throwing everything at Axels location. One after the other, large Covenant ships began to appear in the skies above preparing for a bombardment of the area. UNSC fighters and bombers were already flying around engaging the Covenant ships that were within the planet's atmosphere.

The previous Covenant reinforces were already on the run as they were ordered to retreat and get clear of the areas that were about to be bombed. Omni, who had noticed what the Covenant were up to had alerted Axel.

"Axel, incoming Covenant ships," Omni warned, his voice echoing in Axel's helmet. "They're preparing for a bombardment run."

Axel lifted his gaze to the sky, seeing the Covenant ships which were charging up their Plasma bombardment. "Everyone, fall back and find cover! and somebody get that shield up" he ordered through the comm channel. Every nearby soldier had rushed to take cover as one the shield specialists had placed the device from his back onto the ground which deployed a large shield around the area.

This shield was part of the many energy shield variants that the UNSC Research Department had developed to improve ground efforts. While small, the device could deploy a shield big enough to cover an area of about 100 meters. It was powered by Vacuum energy which is the reason why it was able to cover such a large area with its size.

Across all war fronts specialists had deployed these shields to block the incoming Bombardment. Within the next few minutes as everybody scrambled for cover, the Covenant ships initiated their bombardment across all war fronts.

As the Plasma bombardment rained upon the surface, the shields held strong against the intense heat and Plasma. The shockwave shook the very ground beneath their feet, blowing dust and particles against the outward part of the shield.

"Hold positions!" Axel ordered over the commlink as another wave of plasma hit the energy shield. Despite their current situation, there was sense of awe amongst the soldiers at seeing the bombardment from such close quarters.

Once the bombardment ended, the ground was scorched and blackened, but the shields had held. The smoke cleared revealing the untouched UNSC forces underneath. From behind cover, all the soldiers had risen and started to check the area for those who were trapped under debris that had fallen during the bombardment.

Meanwhile above Actium, a UNSC Fleet consisting of 2000 ships had exited warp. Leading this fleet was Admiral Cole who was placed as the leader of the fleet to launch a counterattack against the Covenant fleet.

"Launch all fighters, fire all weapons and get me Axel on the line," Cole ordered. His command crew leapt into action as the ships onboard AI relayed his command to the rest of his fleet.

"Axel, this is Admiral Cole I have entered Actium's orbit with our fleet. We're engaging the Covenant. Hold your positions."

"Copy that, Admiral," he responded, as another report came in about more Covenant troops advancing on all fronts.

"Keep the shield specialists on standby. We may need them again soon," Axel commanded, turning to his soldiers. "Prepare for another wave of enemy troops."

Back onboard Admiral Cole's flagship, the battle above Actium was quickly turning in their favor. The Covenant ships were being overwhelmed as the two fleets were even in terms of numbers.

"Their fighter screens are thinning out, sir," reported a tactical officer.

"Good," Cole said. He narrowed his eyes at the holo-projection of the enemy fleet. "Focus fire on their capital ship and disrupt their command chain."

As the command was issued, volleys of MAC rounds, Autocannons, and Ion cannons were fired at the Covenant Capital ships. Imperial Admiral Xytan 'Jar Wattinree watch in anger as his ship's shields were being decreasing at a rapid rate due to the Ion cannons. His fleet was already returning fire, but the situation was still not looking good.

While all of this was going on above Actium, on the planet of New Carthage, Catherine was investigating a recently discovered Forerunner facility. However, what she had discovered was something new entirely. She had found what appeared to be a massive artifact of sorts which had a strange appearance. She had never seen it before, so she had used the AI that Guilty spark had given her.

The AI, identified as Logos, had a soft and calming tone. "This, Catherine, is a Guardian Custode."

"Guardian Custode? I don't think I've ever heard of such a thing. What is it?" Catherine responded, running her gloved hand over the metallic surface of the artifact. The alien lines that ran across its surface glowed faintly with an energy that seemed ancient and otherworldly.

Logos hummed softly, its holographic form flickering as it processed information. "The Guardian Custode was a construct created by the Forerunners to maintain order within their empire. It has the capacity to police entire systems and subjugate rebellious factions."

Catherine paused, her hand freezing above the symbol-etched surface of the artifact. "So, a weapon," she murmured. Logos tilted its holographic form, as if considering her statement.

"In a way, yes," it responded after a moment. "A weapon of control. But the Forerunners did not use it lightly. Its activation was often considered a... last resort."

Catherine's mind got lost in thought. If this artifact held the power Logos' statement suggested, it could be a game-changer in their fight against the Covenant.

"But would it work for us?" Catherine questioned, her eyes never leaving the Guardian Custode. "Could we use it against the Covenant?"

"It is theoretically possible. However, the activation sequence is complex and risky. But with the presence of both Omni and Cortana alongside Axel the Reclaimer, then the activation will succeed." Logos answered.

"Well for now let's continue looking around, we will come back to this later" said Catherine as she and her team continued their search of the facility.

Meanwhile back on Actium, Axel and his troops were gaining ground against the Covenant forces. Despite their reinforcements which attacked the frontlines after the bombardment was over, Axel had ordered all forces to go on the offensive.

Utilizing the heavy vehicles and Air support from the Air Force, the ground commanders were able to start pushing the Covenant back, taking dozens of bases in the process. Special infiltration teams were deployed behind enemy lines to sabotage Covenant supply lines and destroy Covenant heavy weaponry.

ODSTs and Titans were deployed and dropped on top of Covenant bases as ground forces surrounded and attacked the base. A few Spartan-III teams utilizing stealth technology were sent behind enemy lines to identify and take out High ranking Covenant leaders.

During the chaos, the Covenant began to show signs of disarray. Their normally coordinated attacks became scattered, and their soldiers seemed to lack direction. Axel saw this as a opportunity to press on.

"Omni, coordinate with our aerial units. We need a precision strike on their command center," Axel ordered, as a battle raged around him.

"Understood," Omni replied. "Coordinates have been sent."

The sky above the battlefield filled with the roar of engines as UNSC aircraft swooped down dropping their payload on their designation target. The Covenant command center disappeared in a massive explosion, leaving behind only smoke and ruins.

From orbit, the MCU control ships had deployed thousands of battalions and their vehicles to the surface of the planet to assist with the ground battle and reinforce weak positions on the war front. Once they landed, their presence allowed the frontline officers more flexibility when it came to pressing the attack.

The Covenant's last hope of retaking the advantage in the war had failed and soon so would their Empire.