Linda said it felt like being at the bottom of a large bowl.
Dr. Halsey had assured them they most definitely were not in a "bowl."
"A sphere," she said, repeating this for the third time to Chief Mendez, "is where we are."
The Chief sat in the grass. "One more time," he said, "explain it to me, please, Doctor. Slowly."
Dr. Halsey sighed, straightened her skirt, and then sat next to him. "Very well, Chief" She unfolded her laptop, and numbers, charts, and spectroscopic analysis flashed on-screen.
The Spartans gathered as well to listen. In truth, while they understood the scientific principles that led Dr. Halsey to her conclusions, they still didn't quite believe them.
"We start with this so-called sun." She pointed straight up and then gestured to the data on her screen. "Spectra and energy output are consistent with a G2-type dwarf, one of slightly smaller dimensions than Sol.
"Next, you will note the curvature of this world, concave, as seen through Linda's sniper scope." She tabbed to a new screen and it sketched the star and a curve that arced to complete a full circle.
"Extrapolating, I calculate a diameter of one hundred fifty million kilometers—two astronomical units, or a radius equivalent to the distance of the Earth orbiting its sun.
"Conclusion?" She paused for dramatic effect. "We are inside a Micro Dyson sphere."
Ash pulled off his helmet and vigorously scratched his head
with both hands. "That can't be right," he protested. "We stepped through the rift and showed up here instantaneously. Even in Slipstream space it would have taken some time to travel to another star"
"Entirely true," Dr. Halsey said, "but we have not left Onyx."
"This is the part I don't get," Kelly muttered.
"The Forerunners' grasp of Slipspace technology was far more advanced than ours or the Covenant's," Dr. Halsey explained. "I believe this sphere resides in the center of the planet, encapsulated and protected by a Slipspace bubble of compressed dimensionality."
Chief Mendez looked around and shook his head, unable or unwilling to accept her interpretation of the facts.
"If all this is true. Doctor," Fred said, "and the Forerunners built this as a refuge, a bomb shelter to protect them from the Halos or the Flood, then why aren't they here?"
Dr. Halsey shrugged and uttered the words no one thought her capable of: "I do not know." She closed her laptop. "Did something go wrong with their plan? Or did everything go as planned? We may never know. Why the Flood survives today and where the Forerunners went are mysteries we have yet to solve."
They remained there a minute, quiet, pondering the scale of this place, the eon-old Forerunner secrets, and tried to integrate it into the events of the last few weeks.
Fred then grabbed his rifle and said, "Ash, take your team and gather our supplies. We're deploying in five."
"Yes sir" Ash donned his helmet. He and the other SPARTAN-IIIs moved as if jolted by lightning.
"Chief," Fred told Mendez, "I want a count of every round of ammunition we have."
"Sir." Mendez jumped to his feet. "I'm on it."
"With all due respect. Lieutenant," Dr Halsey said, and remained sitting. "Where exactly do you intend to go? We should rest, think, and heal our wounds. We have lost so many…"
"Yes, we have," Fred replied. "Which is why we are moving out. Dante and Holly gave their lives fighting. Kurt stayed behind and made sure the Covenant wouldn't follow us. Now it's our duty to complete the mission: find Forerunner technologies and get them back to Earth." He lowered his voice and added, "Doing anything less would dishonor their sacrifices."
Linda moved next to him and said, "Suggest we start by finding a way to open Team Katana's cryo pods, sir. Get them up and running."
"Yes!" Kelly said, and joined them. "Crack the Slipspace fields on those things, and maybe we'll find some way to bust out of this place, too."
Dr. Halsey stared at them and pushed her glasses farther up the bridge of her nose. "I see. You do understand that while externally, this space may only be a few meters in diameter within the center of Onyx, internally, its compressed dimensionality gives it a surface area"—she cocked her head, calculating— "many times the surface of the Earth."
Fred looked to Kelly and Linda, and he said, "Then we better get started. We've got a lot of ground to cover."
Dr. Halsey stood, sighed deeply, and brushed grass from her lab coat. "Very well, I'll gather my things."
She strode off and the Spartans watched her go.
Kelly whispered, "You think John's still out there? 1 mean alive?"
"Yes," Linda said.
"He has to be," Fred told her. "He's the only one left to stop the Covenant."
"While we're stuck in here." Kelly kicked the grass. "What's your take on the others? Team Saber?"
"They're kids," Fred said. "But so were we once. I think they're Spartans, like us."
Ash trotted up to them, Olivia and Mark trailing behind, hefting packs.
"All ready, sir," Ash said.
"Good." Fred set a hand on Ash's shoulder, and nodded to the others.
"Welcome to Blue, Spartans," Kelly said. "We're going to make a great team."
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ERIC NYLUND has published virtual-reality thrillers, A Signal Shattered and Signal to Noise; contemporary fantasy novels, Pawn's Dream and Dry Water (nominated for the World Fantasy Award); the science fantasy novel, A Game of Universe, and most recently, HALO: The Fall of Reach and the bestselling, HALO: First Strike. Nylund is a creative writer for Microsoft Game Studios. He lives near Seattle on a rain-drenched mountain with his wife. Syne Mitchell. He is currently working on his next novel, Mortal Coils. For more information, visit his Web site at www.ericnylund.net.
Table of Contents
SECTION I LIEUTENANT AMBROSE
SECTION II SPARTAN-III
SECTION III INTRUDERS
SECTION IV DR. CATHERINE HALSEY
SECTION VI THE GHOSTS OF ONYX
SECTION VII RECLAIMERS
Eric S. Nylund, Halo: Ghosts of Onyx
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