EliteCommander

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

While Meesei could have also assisted with the wounded, a mage needed to be the one to examine the orb in the tower. She might have allowed another mage outside of her pack to do so, but it was more valuable for her to ensure there were no delays. Once her orders had been given, Meesei headed up the tower as well.

---

The plan from the commanders high on their vantage point at the portal had been coming to fruition down below on the battlefield. Though, unbeknownst to them, it only had a chance to succeed because of the interference of the Champion's pack with the first watchtower. Fast, agile lycan teams had performed quick strikes against the growing Daedric formation, only to pull back before the Daedra could collapse their forces upon them. They poked and prodded the Daedra just enough to encourage them to chase them off. At the same time, a fair portion of the supporting forces to the center of their own lines, where Hal-Neesa was advancing, stayed back hidden in the trees as the rest of them were crossing an open field. It made their lines seem just thin enough to be a tempting target, without being an obvious trap.

Eventually, the lycans' periodic attacks on the Daedra brought the forces chasing them close enough to see the seemingly weak mortal lines, and at least one of their commanders took the bait. Whether to seize a perceived opportunity, or just out of a desire to earn glory in battle, a horde of Daedra marched across the field as well to meet them in battle.

Hal-Neesa was, of course, aware of the plan. One of their werevulture messengers had informed her of their intended deception. She knew that reinforcements would come to their aid once the Daedra were committed to battle. However, Hal-Neesa had no intention of waiting on rescue when she could turn the tide of the battle herself. As Skaafin and various Daedric beasts charged across the field, rapidly closing on their lines, Hal-Neesa took in a breath and focused. The amount of magicka that she could pull through her fingertips was of a magnitude only rivaled by the greatest mortal mages in history. Mages like Galerion or Divayth Fyr, for whom even gods could not simply ignore their power.

What Neesa produced was a spell that could not only be felt, but quite simply seen from across the battlefield. It was a massive ball of lightning above her, glowing as bright as the Silent City's sun. Even the immortal, supposedly fearless Daedra in front of her had been given pause at the sight of it. Though, they did not have the time nor ability to do anything about it. When Neesa pushed her hands forward, the ball of lightning split off into smaller orbs that spread out in an arc in front of her, flying over the heads of the Daedra. From each orb, violent streaks of lightning struck down towards the ground like a curtain of pure energy, essentially disintegrating any living thing unfortunate enough to be caught in their path. Among those close enough to directly threaten Neesa, only storm atronachs remained standing once the power of the lightning orbs died out.

Of course, Neesa's one spell was not enough to end the battle on its own. It was far from large enough to stretch across the entire battlefield, or even a majority of it. The lightning had cut a large swathe through the enemy, but only in an arc in front of Neesa. What it had done, though, was to give her time. She sent forward her undead thralls to fill in the gap and slow the enemy further, then pulled from her pouch a crimson red sigil stone.

Neesa levitated the sigil stone in front of her, then, with a flick of her wrist, pushed it straight down and embedded it into the ground. She cast a spell onto the ground over it, which formed a collection of glowing blue Daedric sigils on the ground all around it. It was not the method one would use if they were to form a portal to Tamriel, but the barriers between two realms of Oblivion were not nearly as robust. All it took was activating the sigil stone for Molag Bal to grasp a hold into Vile's realm.

In the sky above the field, there was a low rumbling almost like thunder, then the ethereal form of a Dark Anchor began to manifest. The ghostly ring soon solidified into stone, then a loud sound akin to a war horn sounded out all throughout the valley, and beyond. Three massive stone spikes fell down through the portal, connected by chains up to the anchor. After the chains pulled taut, Daedra from Coldharbour dropped like meteors from the portal onto the ground below, surrounded and protected by glowing blue magic.

---

After about ten minutes in the watchtower, Meesei and Ahnasha both came down together, with Ahnasha holding under her arm several cloth-wrapped objects. They sought out Fendros quickly, with Meesei grabbing his attention as Ahnasha climbed down off of Leaps. "Fendros, get one of our messengers. We need to send a werevulture to the commanders. I was correct, the orb at the top of the watchtower is enchanted. I do not have time to examine it in detail, but it seems to be a life detection enchantment combined with another alteration enchantment. Looking through the orb allows one to see over a far distance, with any life clearly visible through both terrain and foliage. It cannot see over the entire valley, but the other watchtowers no doubt cover those areas. And aside from the orbs, there are also these..." She said, gesturing towards Ahnasha.

Ahnasha unwrapped one of the cloths, revealing what appeared to be two hand mirrors. She handed one to Fendros, then looked into the one she was holding. "Our research on the Skaafin was correct." She said, though Fendros would hear her voice not only from right in front of him, but from the mirror as well. Looking into the mirror, Fendros would be able to see Ahnasha's face in it. "Skaafin use these enchanted mirrors to communicate from a distance. They are connected in pairs. We found three. These two are probably a spare set, and the third I have wrapped here is probably connected to another mirror in the hands of a Skaafin commander."

"I want some of our scouts in this tower." Meesei continued. "Give your mirror to them, and send Ahnasha's with a message back to our commanders. They can use this tower to help coordinate our movements, and target for our siege weapons. Though, we also need to warn them that the Daedra can do the same with the other towers. If our army in the valley moves forward into their view, before we can capture or destroy them, our army will be at a severe disadvantage.

It was at that point that the sound of a war horn echoed across the battlefield. Meesei turned her head up towards the sky and saw the portal hovering over the center of the battlefield, followed by a rain of magically-protected Daedra dropping down from the Dark Anchor. While they were, strictly speaking, allied reinforcements, that did not make them encouraging to see.

Halo: Aegis Team

Just a note, the group is collecting in an atrium inside the building, so they are indoors at the moment.

Halo: Aegis Team

Vael 'Virisusai

---

Vael had been tolerating the wait, though it seemed like he would be meeting at least some of his team before the Humans actually brought them beyond the atrium. The presence of an Unggoy had few other explanations at the headquarters of the UNSC. Of course, the Unggoy also wasted no time in confirming that fact. Vael had been, to his knowledge, the first chosen by the Swords of Sanghelios for this team, but he was not the one choosing those who would serve underneath him. He did not know what the composition of his team would be and simply had to trust that his own leaders were making the correct decisions. However, it did seem like those being selected were at least being told about him.

“I have not yet been informed of the members of my team.” Vael replied, also in Sangheili.

One of the Human guards beside Vael looked up towards him. “You shouldn’t talk about anything unti-”

Before the guard could get close to finishing his sentence, Vael’s gaze darted down to the Human, followed by a growl. So far, Vael had, from his perspective, given the Humans far more patience than had ever should have been required. Had most other Sangheili been given his position, there would already have been “incidents”. But, even Vael’s patience was not unlimited.

The guard’s firm demeanor had diminished almost immediately. He hesitated for a few seconds, weighing in his mind how important it was to push the issue. Ultimately, as long as they were speaking in Sangheili rather than English, he decided to back down.

Ignoring the guard entirely, Vael took out his personal data pad and looked down at Grik. “Unggoy…ultra.” He said, observing the Unggoy’s armor. “What is your full name and specialization?” He asked. Vael’s tone was dry and his question straight-to-the-point. He was not dismissive nor irritated towards the Unggoy, but neither was he friendly. He was simply professional.

The presence of either a Sangheili or Unggoy who were obviously not refugees was unusual on Earth. At least in a place like this. Civilians passing through the atrium who happened to see them would usually be surprised, and give them a wide berth. However, the approach of a five-and-a-half ton Mgalekgolo could be felt through the metal floor before it could be seen. When the Hunter stepped into view, all eyes were already upon it.

The same guard that had tried interrupting Vael stepped forward with his alarmed gaze on the nearest ODST, rather than the Mgalekgolo itself. “Don’t bring that…thing in here! It’s going to give a civvie a heart attack.” He said somewhat frantically in a hushed voice, though he also offered nothing in the way of an alternative. The atrium was essentially the only area on this floor that a Hunter could stand without mostly blocking passage around it.

The Apotheosis Arcanaeum

My thoughts are that he would have included a letter primarily to provide some proof of her version of events as being true, to get her in the door. Secondarily, it would probably say something to the effect of him making his recommendation contingent on her actually arriving successfully. He believes she has the adaptability and perseverance necessary to be a good student, and making such a difficult journey for a tribal Kobold is evidence enough for him.

If she didn't successfully make the journey, then, well...they'd never get the letter.

The Apotheosis Arcanaeum

@Lucius CypherYou know, it occurs to me that Melecus probably would have included an actual recommendation letter as well along with the other things he gave to Sika.

Halo: Aegis Team

@ReusableSwordIndeed. You can put your CS in the character tab, and you can post in the IC whenever you like.

Halo: Aegis Team

@ReusableSwordPretty much everything seems right for an Unggoy Ultra. I thought the weight was high, but double-checking it on the wiki, it seems that would be a normal weight for an Unggoy of that size. I guess the exoskeleton does add some weight compared to a Human. I like that you took advantage of the Unggoy's general propensity towards language-learning.

I have been debating on whether I should allow shields for characters that don't normally have them. Based on Halo's technology, there should be no technical limitation preventing it from being given to an Unggoy. Neither the power supply nor shield emitters take up much space, so they would fit on an Unggoy's combat harness, especially one of the more complete suits like an ultra. There is one type of Unggoy that is given shields in-game, but it could be argued that is just for the simulation in warzone. The Covenant never gave Unggoy shields because even high-ranking ones were seen as cannon fodder, and they likely did not want to spend the resources on them. That doesn't necessarily apply in the Swords of Sanghelios anymore, though, since any species is treated equally based on merit in their ranks. Without a technical nor cultural limitation, I cannot think of a reason that a high-ranking Unggoy would not be able to make use of shields in this era.

I accept the CS.

Halo: Aegis Team

@AristoclesDon't worry, I'll let you know.

@AndromedaiNice.

Personally, I've been getting knocked offline by this thunderstorm all evening, but everything sounds fine now. Probably. That seems to be happening a lot recently. Summer storms, I suppose.

Halo: Aegis Team

I have made my first post to start the IC. Feel free to have your characters arrive, or have already arrived, at the facility. Your characters can have recently arrived on Earth, or have been there for up to a few weeks. It is your choice. In any case, there is a chance for characters to meet informally before their first briefing on their mission.

Halo: Aegis Team

It had been for Vael ‘Virisusai, quite a long, silent flight in the back of a Pelican dropship. He had spent the past week on Earth at a different one of the Humans’ military installations. He had been selected by the Swords of Sanghelios, with the direct approval of the Arbiter, for this “Aegis team”. He was to serve as the commander of the Swords of Sanghelios warriors underneath him, to represent the interests of the Swords of Sanghelios, and to serve as the commander of the team itself on any mission where the Sangheili were decided to have authority. It had been a simple decision on the part of the Swords, once they had agreed to form this team. However, he had the impression that there was some confusion among the Humans. Vael was not privy to the weeks of inter-departmental discussions and arguments as to who should have jurisdiction over the UNSC contributions to the team, after HIGHCOM approved the plan. Being something of a…unique team, UNSC Naval Command, the Office of Naval Intelligence, and Spartan Operations all had their arguments for taking command. Vael did not have any knowledge of these discussions, but he did know that he had only today been given a direct answer as to who would be his counterpart among the Humans.

Eventually, the hours of silence were interrupted by the voice of the pilot. “Approaching LZ, prepare to disembark.” The two Human soldiers serving as Vael’s escort looked briefly at one another, but remained ever stoic. The rear door opened just as the Pelican was touching down on a landing pad just in front of a large, roughly-conical building in the middle of a massive Human city: HIGHCOM Facility Bravo-6. The landing area was in a protected courtyard, surrounded by high walls and security gates. Even still, as Vael stepped out of the back of the Pelican, he could still get a good view of the skyline of the city. He had learned some of this place before coming here. The city was called Sydney: a place that had been devastated by the invasion of Truth’s fleet during the war. Very little of the city had escaped severe damage, or outright destruction, at the hands of the Jiralhanae. Yet, after just five years, most of the city had been rebuilt. As Vael stepped away from the Pelican, flanked on both sides by his two Human guards, his thoughts went briefly back to his own home on Sanghelios. The city around him now was entirely alien to the structures of his own people, or even the former Covenant. Its scale could perhaps be compared to his home, but in Vael’s eyes, its many skyscrapers were cold and utilitarian. On Sanghelios, their cities were built into mountains, valleys, and caverns, becoming just as much a part of the landscape as the stones themselves. In this place, there was hardly any landscape to be seen, just metal and glass. Still, if nothing else, he supposed he could respect the Humans’ resilience to be able to face such losses and recover in short order.

As they approached the entrance of the building, they were met by two, black-armored security guards that wordlessly took over escorting Vael into the building, while the other soldiers returned to the Pelican. His new guards escorted him into the building; although, they did not make it any farther than the atrium before one of his new guards had him stop and wait where they were following a short conversation with one of his superiors. As patient as he usually was, Vael was growing frustrated with the continued delays the Human bureaucracy tended to cause. For today, he knew that he was meant to be meeting with an agent from the organization known as ONI, Major Alice Robinson, as well as the Captain of the vessel to which they would be assigned for their first mission. He knew that all of the members of Aegis Team had been selected and were on Earth, though he was unsure if they had all yet arrived. They too would be meeting for the first time today. In any case, Vael could continue to remain patient with the Humans for a while longer. He could tell that his guards were anxious to get moving as well. The sight of a Sangheili warrior in the middle of a Human city did draw some attention, especially from civilians who had reason to visit the UNSC’s headquarters.

Vael might have been more irritated had he known the true reason for the delay. Approval had not been given to reveal the existence of the facility’s underground complex to the non-Human members of the team. Normally, there would be no issue using one of the secure meeting rooms in the skyscraper above-ground. However, someone had neglected to consider the fact that they would require a secure room specifically on the ground-level, owing to the fact that one member of the team weighed approximately 5,000 kilograms and could not make use of any space not accessible by cargo elevator.