Location: Cairo Station, Earth Orbit
Date: October 20, 2552
Time: 06:00
The tram hummed quietly beneath my feet, but the roar of Marines cheering filled the chamber as soon as we stepped off. The adulation was overwhelming, but I barely registered it. My mind was still locked on the events of Halo. The weight of everything I'd learned, everything I'd been through—both as Master Chief and as Daniel—was pressing down on me.
I didn't belong here, not really. And yet, here I was, walking beside Johnson like some kind of war hero. Maybe to them, I was. But to me, I was just someone who happened to wake up in the wrong place. I was Daniel, and now I was Master Chief—living both realities, one foot in each world, and yet tethered to neither.
"You told me there wouldn't be any cameras," I muttered, keeping my voice low.
Johnson turned his head, giving me that sly grin of his. "And you told me you were gonna wear something nice! Folks need heroes, Chief. To give 'em hope." He tugged his cap lower and winked. "So smile, would ya? While we still got something to smile about!"
I resisted the urge to respond, instead scanning the crowd. I wasn't used to this. The attention, the hero-worship—it felt wrong. It wasn't supposed to be this way. I wasn't supposed to be here. But I had no choice. Not if I wanted to save lives. That was my mission now.
As we walked toward the end of the hall, the blast doors of the bridge slid open, revealing the enormous viewing window. Beyond it, Earth rotated peacefully in the distance, a blue marble surrounded by the thin, glittering line of the UNSC's orbital defense grid.
And for a moment, as I looked out at the planet below, I felt the familiar pang of loss—of my real life, the world I left behind. But I couldn't dwell on that. Not now.
"Chief, you're needed," Cortana's voice chimed in my helmet, breaking my thoughts. "Let's not keep the brass waiting."
I nodded, instinctively adjusting my stance. That was the reality of this world now. Keep moving forward. Protect what you can. Fight for what remains.
We approached the council of naval officers, Fleet Admiral Lord Hood standing at their center, his eyes heavy with the weight of the war. As Johnson and I saluted, Hood nodded approvingly.
"Gentlemen," Hood said, his tone measured and calm. "We're lucky to have you back."
The exchange of formalities continued, but my focus was elsewhere. I glanced at Cortana's projection on the holotank, watching as she processed the data streams flowing through the system. Every second mattered, and I knew something was coming. It was just a matter of when.
As the award ceremony for Sergeant Major Johnson played out, my gaze drifted to Commander Miranda Keyes, who stood to the side, her expression proud but somber. She was about to accept a posthumous medal for her father, Captain Jacob Keyes.
Keyes had been a hero. I'd watched him fall to the Flood. And now, standing here, I couldn't shake the feeling that the weight of that loss was still pressing on me. Daniel might not have known him, but I—Master Chief—did. I could feel the tension, the responsibility to live up to the legacy of soldiers like Keyes.
Hood handed the medal to Miranda. She held it, her grip firm, but I saw the way her fingers trembled ever so slightly. I knew that feeling all too well.
As Hood continued with the formalities, I picked up a sudden tension in the room. My instincts were screaming, and I had learned to trust them. I scanned the area, expecting an attack.
Then it came.
"Slipspace ruptures directly off our battle cluster," Cortana announced, her voice tense.
My stomach dropped. Covenant.
"Show me," Hood ordered.
The large screen flickered to life, revealing a massive Covenant fleet outside the perimeter. The ships held formation, far too calculated for a random assault. Something about this didn't sit right.
"Cortana, give me an update," I muttered.
"Fifteen capital ships holding just outside the kill zone," she replied. "They're not attacking... yet."
"Why?" I muttered, my thoughts racing. What were they waiting for?
"Boarding crafts, and lots of 'em!" an officer called out.
My fists clenched. That's what they were waiting for.
"They're going to try to take our MAC guns offline," Hood said, turning to me with urgency in his voice. "Master Chief, defend this station."
"Yes, sir."
The formalities were over. The war was at our doorstep. I turned to Johnson as we made our way toward the armory.
"I need a weapon," I said.
"Right this way, Chief," Johnson replied with a nod, his usual grin gone. He knew what was coming.
The station was under attack, and this time, it wasn't just about stopping the Covenant. This was about Earth. About defending the very thing I had sworn to protect, even if I wasn't truly a part of this world. I had a responsibility now—both as Daniel and as Master Chief.
The sound of explosions rocked the station, sending vibrations through the floor beneath me. The Covenant had arrived. I armed myself and met the Marines at the entrance, watching as the first wave of enemies began cutting their way into the bulkhead.
"Field of fire on that bulkhead!" Johnson shouted, setting up a turret. "Soon as that door opens, let 'em have it!"
The tension was palpable as the cutting light intensified. Every instinct I had told me to act, to charge, to destroy the threat before it could get close. But I had to wait. I had to save as many lives as I could. That was all that mattered now.
The door exploded inward, and the Covenant poured in—Grunts first, followed by Elites. Plasma fire lit up the room, but we held the line. The Marines around me fired with everything they had, and I moved between them, taking down enemies one by one, each shot calculated.
But I couldn't shake the feeling that something bigger was coming.
As we pushed forward, clearing the immediate threat, Cortana's voice chimed in.
"Chief, we've got more boarding craft approaching. You need to cut them off at the source."
I nodded, moving out of the immediate combat zone. The station shook violently as another Covenant ship latched onto the hull. More enemies. More threats.
"Chief," Lord Hood's voice crackled over the comms. "If we don't take out their boarding craft, they'll keep sending reinforcements."
I knew that. I was already moving toward the nearest boarding zone, the weight of my decision pressing on me. This wasn't just about following orders anymore. It was about survival—for Earth, for the UNSC, for everyone.
And for me, for Daniel… it was about doing everything I could to stop the devastation I knew was coming.