The control tower of the Arcadian spaceport seemed to shrink around Jamie and the Zealot as they prepared for combat. The air hummed with tension, the energy sword in the Zealot's hand crackling with lethal power. Jamie's Spartan reflexes kicked in, every muscle in his body coiled, ready for the fight ahead.
The Sangheili Zealot, towering in its ornate armor, bellowed a war cry in its native tongue, gripping its energy sword with both hands as it lunged forward. Jamie barely dodged the first strike, the sword's blade slicing through the air with a hiss, leaving a trail of shimmering energy in its wake. He countered with a shotgun blast at point-blank range, but the Zealot's shields absorbed the brunt of the attack, shimmering as they strained under the impact.
The Zealot was relentless, pressing the attack with a series of sweeping sword strikes, each one aimed to kill. Jamie sidestepped and blocked as best he could, relying on his agility to stay ahead of the deadly blade. The room was filled with the sounds of clashing energy, gunfire, and heavy footsteps, the windows rattling with the vibrations of the battle below.
"Jamie, this one's more skilled than most Zealots we've faced," Cortana warned. Her voice was calm, but there was a note of urgency. "You'll need to outthink it, not just outfight it."
Jamie grunted in acknowledgment, ducking under another wild swing. He was used to being faster and stronger than his enemies, but the Zealot was relentless, its movements precise and calculated. This wasn't a typical Sangheili—it was a warrior at the peak of its training, skilled in the deadly art of combat.
The Zealot suddenly shifted tactics, feinting a swing before twisting its body into a powerful backhanded strike. Jamie reacted just in time, raising his shotgun to block the blow. The force of the strike sent him stumbling back, his armor absorbing the shock, but his weapon was knocked from his grasp. It clattered to the floor, sliding across the room out of reach.
The Zealot let out a triumphant roar, its mandibles clicking in satisfaction as it advanced on Jamie. Energy sword raised high, it prepared to deliver the killing blow.
But Jamie wasn't done.
With lightning reflexes, he reached for the combat knife strapped to his thigh, pulling it free in one swift motion. As the Zealot brought the energy sword down, Jamie darted to the side, narrowly avoiding the blade. Using the momentum of the dodge, he drove the knife into the weak point of the Zealot's armor, just beneath its armpit.
The Sangheili howled in pain, its shields flaring as the blade sank deep into its flesh. Jamie twisted the knife, eliciting another guttural roar from the alien warrior before yanking it free. He ducked just in time to avoid a retaliatory swing from the energy sword, the blade narrowly missing his helmet.
The Zealot staggered, its breathing ragged, but it wasn't out of the fight yet. It turned on Jamie with a newfound fury, swinging its sword in a wide arc. Jamie rolled to the side, grabbing a discarded plasma rifle from a fallen Elite. Without missing a beat, he opened fire, the plasma bolts slamming into the Zealot's exposed side.
Its shields failed with a bright flash, leaving the Sangheili vulnerable. But before Jamie could press the attack, the Zealot lunged at him with surprising speed, tackling him to the ground. The energy sword crackled inches from Jamie's visor, and he could feel the intense heat of its blade as the Zealot pushed down with all its strength.
For a moment, it was a contest of pure strength. Jamie's augmented muscles strained against the Zealot's bulk, his armor groaning under the pressure. The Sangheili warrior snarled, its mandibles snapping in fury as it bore down on him, desperate to end the fight.
Jamie gritted his teeth, refusing to give in. He shifted his weight just enough to get one arm free, reaching for the plasma grenade attached to his belt. With a swift motion, he activated the grenade and slammed it into the Zealot's chest, sticking it to the alien's armor.
The Zealot's eyes widened in shock, realizing too late what Jamie had done. With a burst of adrenaline-fueled strength, Jamie kicked the Zealot off him and rolled away. The grenade detonated a second later, engulfing the Sangheili in a brilliant explosion of blue plasma.
When the smoke cleared, the Zealot lay motionless on the floor, its armor scorched and shattered. The energy sword flickered and died, its blade dissolving into nothingness.
Jamie slowly got to his feet, breathing heavily as he surveyed the damage. His armor was scratched and dented, but he was alive. The Zealot, one of the Covenant's finest warriors, was not.
"Nice work," Cortana said, her tone lightening now that the danger had passed. "I'd say that's one less problem for Arcadia."
Jamie picked up his discarded shotgun, giving it a quick check before slinging it over his shoulder. "One problem down. Plenty more to go."
He made his way back to the control room's main console, where a series of holographic displays showed the layout of the spaceport and surrounding areas. The Covenant forces still entrenched around the terminal were in disarray, likely confused by the sudden loss of their commander.
"Cortana, any word from Captain Cutter?" Jamie asked, his attention focused on the map.
"I'm patching into Spirit of Fire's comms now," she replied. "Looks like Captain Cutter's got a priority transmission for you."
Jamie tapped into the frequency, and Cutter's voice crackled over the comms. "Spartan, I'm glad to hear you're still with us. We've just received intel on Covenant reinforcements inbound to Arcadia. They're not wasting any time."
Jamie's jaw tightened. Reinforcements meant more Covenant ships in orbit, and they had only just managed to take down one carrier.
"We're nearly finished with the civilian evacuation," Cutter continued, his voice grim. "But we need more time to get everyone off-world. I need you to hold the Covenant back as long as you can."
"We'll hold the spaceport," Jamie replied without hesitation. "No Covenant are getting through here."
"Good. I'm sending reinforcements your way, but they'll take some time. Do whatever you can to slow the Covenant advance."
The comms clicked off, and Jamie turned to the Marines who had been fighting alongside him. They had held their ground, pushing back the Covenant, but everyone looked exhausted. The battle was far from over, and the next wave was going to be even more brutal.
"We've got incoming Covenant reinforcements," Jamie announced, his voice carrying a tone of command. "We hold this terminal until everyone's off Arcadia. No retreat. No surrender."
The Marines nodded grimly, readying their weapons. They knew the stakes. If the Covenant regained control of the spaceport, the evacuation would fail, and Arcadia would be lost.
Jamie quickly moved to the terminal, accessing the station's defense systems. "Cortana, how much firepower do we have left?"
"Not much," Cortana replied. "Most of the automated turrets were taken offline during the initial attack, but I've managed to reactivate a few near the landing pads. They won't stop a full Covenant assault, but they'll slow them down."
"We'll need every advantage we can get," Jamie said, glancing at the depleted defenses. "Get those turrets online."
Outside, the rumble of Covenant drop pods hitting the ground could be heard, followed by the unmistakable roars of Grunts and Elites as they poured out of the pods, ready for another assault. The skies darkened with the arrival of Banshees and Phantom dropships, the Covenant determined to retake the spaceport.
Jamie stood at the terminal's entrance, shotgun in hand, as the first wave of Covenant forces advanced on their position. His HUD lit up with threat markers, the sheer number of enemies daunting even for a Spartan.
But he had faced worse odds before. This was just another battle in a war that seemed unending, and Jamie knew only one way to fight—head-on, with everything he had.
"Hold the line!" Jamie shouted, his voice carrying over the battlefield. "We fight for every inch!"
The Marines answered with a chorus of battle cries, their weapons blazing as the Covenant forces closed in. Plasma bolts and bullets filled the air, the sound of war consuming everything.
Jamie charged forward, leading the counterattack. The Covenant wanted Arcadia, but as long as he stood, they wouldn't have it.
Not today.