Delivery Service

Ken put away Jenkins' message as the Pelican quickly found itself weaving through debris fields from the intense space battles prior, a mix of smashed orbital defence platforms, human ships and a few Covenant craft. It was a graveyard, and Ken sure felt like he belonged.

He had secured himself in the rear with some difficulty, several ribs likely fractured, same with his leg and general heavy bruising all over his body. He didn't care to guess what his organs were like right now. He'd been tossed around so hard, he was just happy to be in one piece. His morning jog on Reach taught him that was something he could never take for granted again. 

Echo's voice broke the silence. "Ken 17, I see your emotional state is reaching an equilibrium of sorts. Did you have any questions you would like to ask?" Echo being proactive in starting a conversation? That was something!

"I guess. Let's start with who is flying this ship. I want to thank them personally when I get a chance." Echo replied with a slight delay. "Your thanks are noted and quite unnecessary, as it is I who is flying this vessel." The words were flatly spoken, but again, Ken felt an undercurrent of emotion. Was that a little bashfulness and pride he detected? This wasn't the first time and he was sure now that he hadn't imagined it. It was obvious to him now that being a 'Symbiotic Intelligence' was something different from the AI he'd come to know through the Halo franchise.

He let out a free-flowing sigh, the easing gravity now giving his body a measure of comfort. "You really saved my butt out there. I was losing it, ready to let it end. Thank you, Echo." He let that linger in the air for a moment before asking another question.

"So what now? I know this is a special bird. Probably slightly ahead of this era of technology, but I doubt it's capable of getting us out of the system. What's the plan here?"

He was getting back on task. It was just easier for him than dealing with the nature of his and Echo's existence right now. A window popped up in his field of view, displaying what must be their position in space and a path to what appeared to be an adrift and derelict orbital defence platform.

"Well, first we need to secure a birth on that platform. It still has partial power and its orbit positioning thrusters seem stuck on its last command, pushing it slowly out of orbit and eventually into deep space. We won't be here that long though. As you rightfully deduced, our craft is not suitable for extended interstellar travel. Once we are secure and out of sight, we will see to your injuries, the rest of your rewards and then, we take on the next mission. It should grant us what we need for the next step."

"Rewards? There's more? Why didn't you give them to me at the same time as the Pelican?" There was no accusation in his words, he just genuinely wanted to know. "Your physical state and our precarious position in a closing net necessitated an expedited relocation to a more secure site. Especially with the Covenant reinforcements due here soon. One of the rewards will bring you a measure of discomfort and may leave you indisposed for some time, especially as you are now. The details of our next mission will not avail themselves to me until I have met all my obligations. I have simply taken into consideration these variables and decided to proceed as such. You are however free to change that if you want."

Ken shook his head and chuckled ruefully. "A measure of discomfort, huh? Sounds like a fun time! I think your plan is fine."

____

The Pelican shuddered as it docked within the zombie Orbital Defence Platform. Echo had gingerly picked their way through floating debris and damaged structures to get in. Once secured by magnetic clamps, Echo guided him to a storage unit containing health kits. As he clumsily floated closer, two kits vanished in a flash of light.

Bewildered, he watched as his health bar rapidly filled up, flooding him with a warm sensation he couldn't quite describe, almost as if his body was releasing a low rising hum at an otherworldly frequency, as it literally undid his injuries including his broken leg! He recalled how Echo had told him to expect things to work similarly to the game. At least for him. He had thought of Jenette then and asked Echo if he could somehow do the same for others and had been disappointed.

"Our existence here is in a way, reality breaking. Such power has to be limited between us or the fallout would be beyond our imagining. You can, however, do what you will with material objects granted us within reason. Just know, for instance, that items that you gain from rewards may include modifications that set them apart from their real counterparts, such as the enhanced AI interface of this Pelican that allows me to run all its systems single-handedly" Ken understood. Whatever had brought him here seemed to have a reason to its madness. He just couldn't fathom it.

"Now, you may want to lie down for the next part Ken 17." Ken complied, trying to think of something clever to say when an intense pain, similar to what he had felt on his arrival, except so much worse, took over him! It felt like blocks of white-hot data were being thrown into his mind, burning through his brain as they sank into his being. His body went through a similar process, his muscles, sinews, nerves, vessels and organs seemingly in an infinite loop of burning disintegration and rebirth. "Fuck!" was all he could think to say before he blacked out!

___

Ken groaned, his voice breaking the deathly silence as he shivered, recalling the unending torture he had gone through. It felt like years had passed. However long it was, he now understood why Echo did not award him down on Reach. He would have been the very definition of a sitting duck. He undid the restraints that kept him from floating off with an unconscious familiarity and called out, "Echo? You here? How long was I out?"

"Welcome back, Ken 17. It has been exactly fifteen minutes since you blacked out. I hope you find your rewards to your liking." That's right, the rewards!

He looked down at himself and saw a changed man. Outwardly, his clothing was now what he knew to be ODST armour. It was, of course, black and dark grey with no UNSC or unit markings. There was an obvious theme here. Beneath that, his body felt and looked different. Stronger. He had been a reasonably fit guy before but this...

"Your body has undergone a metamorphosis to better suit it to carry out your next mission. It matches the implanted knowledge now in your head. All the skills and combat training, knowledge of equipment and operations, it is all in there making you a potential peak example of an ODST and UNSC pilot."

Ken was amazed. He flexed his muscles, in wonder of the strength they contained. He looked about the Pelican, now knowing his way around it to an almost intimate level. He felt like he could fly it blindfolded! There was so much more in there he knew. He just had to bring it out somehow.

Echo continued. "Our next mission will heavily call upon your knowledge of infiltration tactics, advanced weaponry proficiency, and zero-gravity manoeuvres. In thirty minutes, this platform will bring us in line with a lone Covenant cruiser, Mantle's Fury, crippled by the Pillar of Autumn's AI and now drifting aimlessly in far-Reach orbit. Our primary targets are the Sangheili Shipmaster Yarin 'Vadum and Prophet of Shadow, a High Councilor heading this fleet. This is to be an infiltration and assassination."

Ken swallowed hard. This had long since ceased to be a game, almost from the beginning. This new mission would bring him a whole new order of risk, and at the same time, a chance to strike back at something. Out of all the things in his reach right now, the very forces that had destroyed Reach were a good choice. He was all for it.

"I understand," he replied, his voice surprisingly steady, "but before we do this, can you help me out with something?" Echo kept quiet, waiting on the rest. Ken carefully pulled out Jenkins' data card. "Could you deliver this?"

___

The Pelican detached from the platform, its thrusters humming with purpose as it manoeuvred toward the disabled Mantle's Fury. Ken, strapped into the pilot seat, felt his heart pound a steady rhythm against his ribs. The Covenant cruiser loomed large, its scarred hull bearing the marks of Cortana's wrath—vicious strikes to engineering, a chunk torn out near the root of its tapering neck. "Yesu Kristo!" Ken's exclamation was filled with awe. How was the ship still holding together? Why would a High Councilor insist on remaining aboard this wounded behemoth?

But such questions were secondary now, he knew. He was just thankful Cortana's handiwork would allow him to stealthily approach Mantle's Fury and latch his stealthy Pelican onto the cruiser undetected. What would have been a suicidal delivery run was now at the level of severe self-harm. He could live with that risk assessment.

He spared a fond thought at the special package secured in the rear of the ship, taking comfort in its singular purpose. If he played his part right, it would do the job. The infiltration ahead was risky, but for the fallen of Reach and for his own sake and survival, he had to succeed. "Let's do this!"