[h2][b]Dr. Fiona O'Connell - The [i]Immaculate Aegis[/i][/b][/h2]

[hr]

"Oh, well, I'm not an ONI agent, just a researcher." O'Connell clarified. "I am working on joint Human-Sangheili projects to reverse-engineer Covenant and Forerunner technology. Needless to say, I'm not a part of the permanent crew of the [i]Aegis[/i]. Myself and my colleague were on board, en route to Sanghelios when we were taken from our universe. Just, um, follow me. Our lab is closer to the fore section of the ship."

Dr. O'Connell felt strange leading around a squad of Spartans, though likely not nearly as strange as they felt being on-board a "Covenant" capital ship, without needing to shoot their way through the halls. She had been informed that they had been taken from a time before the end of the Human-Covenant war. "Did your commanders brief you about where we came from?" O'Connell asked. "The war ended in 2552. The leadership of the Covenant was killed, and the Sangheili helped us do it. Actually, their ships comprised the vast majority of the fleet that destroyed Truth's fleet over the Ark. Oh, um, the Ark was a massive Forerunner installation that served as a sort of central hub and remote activation point for the Halo array...which you also don't know about."

O'connell let out a sigh. "There's a [i]lot[/i] that has happened in the years between our two times, Spartans. The point is, we've found peace. We won the war. There are some Sangheili that hold on to their old beliefs, but many have pledged their loyalty to the Swords of Sanghelios. If we had not become allies, it is doubtful there would be any life left at all in our galaxy." 

[hr]
[h3][b]Narak 'Chorna - The [i]Immaculate Aegis[/i][/b][/h3]
[hr]

Narak nodded. "Yes, during the war, the sophistication of the Humans' artificial beings were the one way in which they surpassed the technology of the Covenant. Though, the Covenant's versions were...intentionally restricted. During their studies of the Forerunners, the Prophets learned that one of the Forerunners' most advanced associated intelligences betrayed them to the Flood. It was, henceforth, forbidden to create a machine that could think as a living being." He explained. 

Walking around the table, Narak stood just behind McKay. He found himself curious to see the Human work, and to potentially learn from him. "I will admit, many Sangheili are still not sure if they should be willing to trust these types of constructs. I am not sure, myself. The Forerunners may not be gods, but their artificial intelligence, as best as we have learned, [i]did[/i] betray them. But, their capabilities are undeniable. This artificial intelligence should be able to read that data with the same ease as you would read a book."

[hr]
[h3][b]Thaz - Nal Hutta[/b][/h3]
[hr]

Thaz had her weapon at the ready and was standing on alert on the roof of the spaceport. Her active camouflage kept her hidden, and would allow her to set up her first shot unhindered. Though, it was not long before their target made himself known. There was only one creature in the group of reptilians that even came close to fitting the description they had been given, and he was an even bigger target than Thaz had expected. Almost immediately, Thaz raised up her rifle and trained her sights on the Gammorean's head, but did not even think about taking the shot yet. 

"I see the target. Plenty of guards, and it looks like he has a sniper of his own." Thaz spoke up to Samus through their comms. "The sniper will probably see me when I take my shot, but...I will be fine. You need to keep the target in the open until Jerus makes his kill."

Thaz quickly contacted Jerus as well. "We have the target in our sights. Give us the word when it is time."