Chapter 48

"Move that guy out of the way!" Staff Sergeant Johnson bellowed as two marines dragged an injured comrade to safety behind the lines. "Petty Officer, I've got a platoon pinned down on the east side of the Campus and they're in trouble," Sergeant Johnson shouted to John.

"Aye, Sir, Blue Team move out," John replied promptly, rallying his team as they sprinted towards the embattled east side of the Campus. The Spartans led by John navigated through the war-torn landscape of the Corbulo Academy of Military Science, once a place of learning now reduced to debris-filled streets and wreckage.

"Tango Squad, hold on tight. We're en route," John relayed over his comms, the crackling response indicating the urgency of their comrades' situation.

The sound of plasma rifles echoed around them as they moved briskly through the rubble. Suddenly, Kelly broke formation, diving to the side as a charged plasma grenade landed where she had been a fraction of a second earlier. The explosion barely missed her, and she rolled back into formation, unscathed but for a few charred armor plates.

"Nice moves, Kelly. Can't have you getting toasted just yet," John quipped, his voice laced with determination as they pressed onward.

The team's progress was interrupted by a group of enemy combatants emerging from a darkened alleyway. Plasma shots flew past them as they sought cover behind a charred vehicle.

"Samuel, cover me!" John shouted, signaling for suppressing fire as he flanked the enemy position. The other Spartan Team members had returned fire as well and started to advance towards the enemy while taking cover whenever they can.

"Reloading!" Kelly called out, her hands moving swiftly to replenish her weapon's ammunition.

As the battle raged on, their movements were coordinated yet fluid, each member of the team anticipating the other's actions without hesitation. They fought with a fierce resolve born from years of training and camaraderie.

John's flanking maneuver had worked, and he had killed 4 Grunts who were taking cover behind a destroyed Warthog. The other Spartan advanced at the same time closing the gap between them and the Covenant forces. With John shooting them from the rear and the other Spartans attacking from the front, the Covenant forces stood no chance and were defeated in less than 3 minutes.

"Stay sharp, Spartans! We're not done yet," he stated as they moved forward, the sound of an intense battle could be heard ahead which meant that they were getting close to Tango Squads position.

As the team advanced, a series of strong, rapid-fire explosions suddenly ripped through the air, turning a row of structures into a mess of rubble and dust in seconds. Without missing a beat, John signaled the squad to move towards the source of the disturbance. His visor flickered with static as he attempted to raise Tang Squad on comms.

"Tango Squad, report!" he called out. Amidst garbled noise and bouts of static, a faint reply echoed back.

"East side...heavy fire...need backup!"

"Spartans, move!" John commanded as they picked up their pace, darting through the smoky haze that had filled the once-crisp air.

As they rounded a corner, the scene that unfolded before them was one of utter chaos - Marines pinned down by a barrage of plasma fire from an onslaught of Covenant forces who were backed by two towering Covenant figures which the UNSC had begun to call Hunters.

"Take out those Hunters," John ordered without hesitation. Kelly and Samuel split off from the group without a word, moving swiftly like shadows towards their targets.

John and Artie, also known as Arthur-079, engaged the hordes of Elites and Grunts in fearsome melee combat while also providing covering fire for Kelly and Samuel. Their superior training and Spartan-II augmentations gave them an edge over the Covenant.

Suddenly, one Hunter locked its gaze onto Kelly. Its fuel rod gun charged up; a bright green glow illuminated its figure against the smoke-filled battlefield. Just as it fired at her point-blank, Samuel came barreling into it with his own customized rocket launcher that was mounted on his shoulder. The Hunter was knocked back into the other one just as its weapon discharged; in an instant, the area was consumed by a brilliant, searing flash as the rocket launchers payload erupted. A shockwave rippled outward, flinging debris in all directions and momentarily obscuring the battlefield in a rolling cloud of smoke and dust.

Every Spartan weapon was custom made, even the Heavy Weapons such as Rocker launchers, grenade launchers, and Heavy Machines Guns. This was to separate the Spartan weapons from your standardized weapon that the UNSC Marines and Army soldiers use.

The Covenant forces were momentarily stunned as the two Hunters were completely wiped out, causing their advance to falter.

"Nice one, Samuel!" John shouted over the comms; his voice drowned out by incoming Plasma shots. Kelly, who had been momentarily thrown off balance by the blast wave, regained her footing and began to lay down fire on Covenant forces.

As John and Artie fought their way through the Covenant line, dispatching enemy soldiers with ruthless efficiency, they saw a group of beleaguered Marines huddled behind what remained of a damaged Warthog.

"Cover me," John ordered his companion before he sprinted towards the Marines, ducking and weaving through gunfire.

Reaching them, he quickly assessed the situation. Their ammunition was running low, and several men were wounded.

"Alright Marines we are getting you out of here" he announced to the beleaguered soldiers. "Kelly, Samuel, we need suppressing fire on these positions. Artie, see if you can't get that Warthog up and running."

A chorus of affirmatives met his orders as he turned his attention back to the Marines. There was half a dozen of them left from what looked to have been a larger platoon. Their faces were ashen and strained, but they looked relieved at their arrival.

"Hold this position," commanded the Marine Sergeant in charge. "We're about to turn the tide."

Turning back towards the battle, John took a moment to analyze the situation. The Covenant forces were regrouping, clearly surprised by the sudden attack and loss of their heavy hitters, the Hunters. It was a brief lull in the fighting that they needed to take advantage of.

"Blue Team use Heavy weapons to push the enemy back" ordered John while Artie continued to work on the Warthog's dead engine.

The team had acknowledged and started to use their heavy weaponry which include Heavy machines guns, grenade Launchers, and Rocket Launchers to engage the Covenant.

Meanwhile, Artie was busy trying to get the Warthog back online. The engine had taken a plasma shot, and he had to reroute power just to get it running. And if they could get it moving, it would make a big difference in their evacuation efforts.

Out on the battlefield, the Covenant had regrouped. A group of Elites had taken command of the Grunts, who were now lining up into a more organized formation. The Spartan team watched as two more Hunters lumbered into view from behind a crumbled wall. They'd have to be dealt with soon.

Samuel was the first to open fire, his rocket launcher spewing forth a deadly payload that spiraled towards the enemy lines with lethal intent. Their alien cries of surprise and fear were drowned out by the thunderous explosion that erupted amidst their ranks.

Kelly fired next, her grenades lobbing over the battlefield and exploding amidst groups of Grunts who shrieked and scuttled for cover too late.

A few other Spartans formed a line and started laying down suppressing fire on the Covenant's position. The two Hunters had started to advance too close, so Samuel changed his target to them and shot his last two rocket launcher shots at them which obliterated them just like the first time.

Meanwhile, Artie was having moderate success with repairing the Warthog. With a final twist of a wrench, he managed to bring the engine back to life. The vehicle rumbled to life sending a cloud of smoke and dust into the air. Despite its many dents and scorch marks, it was serviceable.

"Got it running!" Artie announced over comms. "John, I am ready for evac."

"Copy that," John said. "Marines, mount up!" He gestured towards the newly operational Warthog. The Warthog was a transport Warthog that didn't have the machine gun mounted on the back so it can hold 8 people including the driver and passenger.

The wounded Marines started to get on the vehicle with Artie carefully helping them on board. After everyone was aboard, he hopped onto the driver's seat and revved up the engine.

"Cover them," John ordered his team as Artie began to drive away from the battlefield.

As the Warthog pulled away, a barrage of plasma fire erupted from remaining Covenant forces giving chase, but it was effectively suppressed by Spartans' counter fire.

Once the Warthog was far enough away, John didn't waste any time and ordered blue team to pull back and retreat as they were running low on ammo and would be forced to fight in melee if they kept fighting.

Blue team had pulled back while taking a few more grunts and elites out as they retreated. They didn't want the Covenant to follow them back, so they used the nearby forest to lose the Covenant forces before they returned to Staff Sergeant Johnson.

Meanwhile a few minutes later at the evac point, the injured marines and Artie had arrived. The battle that was happening before was over and the evac point was quiet, at least for now.

The Marines had been transported to the medical tent to receive care for their injuries while those that could still fight were ordered to restock on ammo and help with evacuating the civilians and students that were still within the Academy.